LeDomduVin: Chateau Calon Ségur 2016

Chateau Calon Ségur Saint Estephe 2016

Although too young, the vintage 2016 in Bordeaux is a beauty and drinks delightfully now for those who cannot wait. 

Yet, some are still tight and deserve a few more years (or even decades) to reach their opening window. That was the case for Chateau L'Evangile 2016, which I opened recently (see previous post). It is a superb wine but way too young to be opened now. 

Others are already opened and ready to drink, like Chateau Figeac 2016, which I also opened recently. Wow! What a wine! I loved it! It could be a phase, as it could close again for a few more years. Who knows? Yet, for now, it tasted amazing. 

And some are in-between, like this Chateau Calon Segur 2016. 

Though shy and subdued on the nose, it still timidly revealed red and black berries and ripe plum aromas with earthy and floral notes mingling with coffee, chocolate, and oaky nuances.

The palate is also quite shy, medium to full-bodied. Elegant and well-crafted, it is balanced with ripe fruit, an earthy grainy texture, integrated yet present tannins, and enough acidity to keep it fresh. Overall, it has a very good structure, nicely expanding with dense ripe black fruits, earth, and minerals toward the finish. Nice overall!

I liked it a lot, as it was enjoyable. Yet, it is in a transition period now. Not fully expressing itself and not fully harmonized and integrated either. It is hesitant to reveal its full potential just yet while still giving hints of how "grand" it will be at a later stage in the years to come. 

That said, I found it true that Saint-Estephe wines usually take longer to integrate, loosen their tight tannins and earthy soil-oriented grainy texture, and open compared to their neighboring appellations cousins. 

Give it some time in the cellar; it should reward you plenty once it has reached its opening tasting window. 

Cheers! Santé! 

Dom 

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LeDomduVin: Sommelier (portait)

LeDomduVin: Sommelier 

By @ledomduvin 2023

#ledomduvin #dominiquenoel  #lesphotosadom #portrait #sommelier #wine #vin #vino #wein #sommelierlife #sommlife #ilovemyjob

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LeDomduVin: Mise en place

Mise en place

Philipponnat Clos des Goisses 2012

Philippe Colin Chevalier-Montrachet 2019

Anne Gros Echezeaux 2019

Ponsot Clos de la Roche VV 2019

Palmer 2009

Cheers! Santé! 

Dom

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LeDomduVin: Highlights of Ginsberg + Chan tasting

Highlights of the tasting at @ginsbergchan

It was really a lovely tasting with some really delicious wines. But I can not post all of them, so here is a selection of the ones I liked the most. Pictures only, as I didn't take any notes. 

Thank you, @kenman_wine, for the invite, much appreciated. 😁👍🍷

Nice to catch up with Kelvin Yeung

No picture, but it was nice to meet @claire.nesbitt_, whom I have followed on Instagram for a while. An inspiration for drive, passion, and determination for sports and wine. 😄👍🍷

Cheers! Santé!

Dom

@ledomduvin #ledomduvin #wine #vin #vino #wein #champagne #burgundy #corsica #lesphotosadom #tastingnotes #sommelier #sommlife #sommelierlife #ilovemyjob #ginsbergandchan

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LeDomduVin: Chateau Figeac Saint-Emilion 2016

Chateau Figeac Saint Émilion 2016

Wow! Now that’s my kind of wine! Combining elegance and sophistication with complexity and character, perfect balance, harmony, integration, great freshness, juiciness, silky texture, beautiful structure from beginning to end, and offering plenty of freshly crushed red fruits and berries mingling earthy, mineral and integrated oaky notes. The lingering seamless finish is a statement of how good this wine is. Looooved it. 

It is a bit sentimental between Figeac and me as Figeac was the godfather chateau of my Sommelier Certification year in 1997. I have always loved Figeac ever since. Yet, I must admit it has been a really long time since I’ve tasted a Figeac this great! Highly recommended! 

Cheers! Santé! 

Dom 

@ledomduvin #ledomduvin @chateau_figeac #figeac #wine #vin #vino #wein #saintemilion #bordeaux #redwine #lesphotosadom #tastingnotes #sommelier #sommlife #sommelierlife #ilovemyjob

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LeDomduVin: Chateau L'Evangile Pomerol 2016

Chateau l’Evangile Pomerol 2016

Beyond its dark, opaque robe, it displayed aromas of dark fruits and berries mingling with earthy, smoky, peppery and oak nuances. The palate is also very dark, a bit tight right now, offering great concentration and density, packed with the same flavours as on the nose. This is a solid wine, strongly built, rich and opulent, intense, bold, layered, with great structure and texture, enough acidity to balance the ripe dark fruits and the firm grip of tannins. The lingering finish presents a lot of dark matter combined with earthiness, pepperiness, spiciness and tar smokiness. 

Although it mellowed down after being decanted for one hour before serving, it was still tight. Only half of the bottle was consumed. I served the rest of the bottle the day after, and it was much more approachable, proof of its youth and tremendous potential to age for decades to come. I enjoyed it very much, yet it is too young, in my opinion, and deserves to be cellared for a few more years to loosen a bit and offer an even better experience. Despite being a bit too young for now, this is a magnificent wine! 

Cheers! Santé! 

Dom

@ledomduvin #ledomduvin @chateaulevangile #levangile #wine #vin #vino #wein #pomerol #bordeaux #redwine #lesphotosadom #tastingnotes #sommelier #sommlife #sommelierlife #ilovemyjob  

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Ledomduvin: Champagne anyone? Jacques Selosse and Dom Perignon

Champagne anyone? 

Jacques Selosse and Dom Perignon 

Now, it is not every day one gets to taste Jacques Selosse. Especially the cuvee "V.O.", and for good reasons, the price reflects the high quality and tiny production. 

Jacques Selosse only produces 3600 bottles of Version Originale ("V.O.") for the whole world. It is very sought-after and hard to find as the allocations per buyer are small, just a few bottles only if you can get them. 

Official suppliers and distributors usually sell out almost immediately; hence, finding some bottles on the grey market at unreasonable prices is unsurprising. 

Jacques Selosse V.O. 'Version Originale' Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Extra Brut NV (Disgorged 2019)

Disgorged in 2019, this "Version Originale" displayed rich and enticing golden apples and pears perfumes mingling with floral and mineral notes. The palate resembled more of a wine than a champagne as the bubbles faded rather quickly, diminishing the usual effervescence. Soft, silky, complex, dense, sophisticated, graceful and luxurious, expanding gently until the long, lingering finish. What a treat! Definitely living up to the hype! Loved it!

Jacques Selosse "Initial" Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Brut NV (disgorged 2021)

"Initial" is the more "accessible" Cuvee of Jacques Selosse. Yet, although less complicated to find, he only produces 33000 bottles of it, which is also scarce. I would have loved to taste it side by side with its sibling to compare them, especially because the "Initial" was disgorged in 2021, so the comparison would have been interesting. But, the host decided not to open it, unfortunately.  Too bad! Oh well, there will be a next time. 

Dom Perignon Brut Vintage 2013

Dom Perignon 2013 has been one of our House Champagnes for the past few months, so I have served it several times lately. It tasted the same as a few days ago. Fresh, crisp, elegant, and racy, it is lighter, less rich and less textured than the 2012 (IMO), yet lovely density and structure with refreshing acidity, boasting floral and mineral aromas and flavours with yellow fruits and yeasty nuances. Perfect as an aperitif and with light appetizers. 

I loooooove Champagne!

Cheers! Santé!

Dom

@ledomduvin #ledomduvin @domainejacquesselosse #jacqueselosse @domperignonofficial #domperignon #champagne #bubbly #bubbles #versionoriginale #initial #rarechampagne #tastingnotes  #sommelier #sommlife #sommelierlife #tastingnotes

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LeDomduVin: Do you Movember? I do

Do you Movember? I do

Over the last 6-7 years, every November, I have let my moustache grow. The moustache does not suit me, so I grow a goatee, which suits me better. 

And this year, again, I am doing it to support the cause. 

If you are not familiar with the concept, “Movember” (November + Moustache) is a foundation which came up with the idea of encouraging men around the world to grow a moustache (for the whole month of November) to raise awareness and funds for men's health - specifically prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and suicide prevention.

As there is a history of cancer in my family, I do it in memory of those who passed away and those who are currently suffering from it. 

It is a good cause worth supporting. 

Dom

Here is the link if you want to donate

https://ex.movember.com/

@ledomduvin #ledomduvin @movember #movember #moustache #goatee #november #cancer #selfie #lesphotosadom

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LeDomduVin: Nice lineup again

Nice lineup again

The other day, I opened these bottles for a private dinner. They showed really nicely. 

Dom Perignon 2013

Fresh, crisp, elegant, racy, it is lighter, less rich and less textured than the 2012 (IMO), yet nice density and structure with refreshing acidity, boasting floral and mineral aromas and flavours with yellow fruits and yeasty nuances. Perfect as an aperitif and with light appetizers. 

Bachelet-Monnot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Referts 2019

Over the last 2 years, I have learned to greatly appreciate this producer. I'm very fond of their wines, which combine elegance and finesse in a refined, complex and detailed way, combining fruit and mineral aromas with floral scent and lightly oaky, buttery notes. They are never too extracted, overripe, rich, or buttery, a sign of skilled craftsmanship. And this Puligny Les Referts is a good example of it. It was delightful. Decanting is recommended. 

Château Pichon Baron Pauillac 2010

Pichon Baron is one of my favourite Pauillac wines since I discovered it more in-depth through multiple visits during the En Primeur in the early 2000s. I have even slept at the Chateaux a few times. Over the last 20 years, like many people, I have witnessed its rise from a discreet and underrated wine to the proud and luxurious wine it has become. The 2010 has been drinking beautifully over the past few years, yet has the potential to develop further for many years. Ripe, concentrated, rich, complex, ample, generous, displaying lots of ripe dark cherries and berries with earthy and oaky nuances, it is well balanced, with enough acidity to keep it fresh and a good grip of integrated, yet present, ripe tannins. The long finish immediately calls for another glass. It showed even better after about 1 hour of decanting as the tannins and earthiness mellowed down. Loved it. 

Cheers! Santé! 

Dom

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LeDomduVin: The 5 medals wine

The 5 medals wine

The other day, I went to my local supermarket to buy some groceries, and, as usual, I browsed around the wine selection. Suddenly, my eye caught an insane deal: 1 Chateau Lussan Cuvée Réserve 2018 for HKD 68 (about 8 Euros) or 3 bottles for HKD 120 (about 14 Euros).

As I always say: “I buy, open, and serve the best and most expensive wines in the world at work, but I drink the cheap ones at home.”

(NB: Put your kids in an international school, pay for the school and rent yourself in Hong Kong, and you'll understand why I drink cheap wines at home 😅😅😅).

I had never tried Chateau Lussan before, but being a Bordeaux native used to the taste of inexpensive Bordeaux, how bad could it be? Especially for such a good deal. And if it was bad, I would not regret it much, as usually HKD 120 is the price I pay for one bottle.

Yet, what surprised me the most was that this little wine boasted five medals on its label. Not one or two, five!!!

It was so intriguing I had to buy it. Not because it had 5 medals, as I do not trust these medals that you can now see everywhere, and often do not mean much, and do not necessarily reflect the quality of the wine either (*).

I bought it because I had to taste it to understand why it got five medals and if it was justified. So, I took the deal and left the supermarket with my 3 bottles. I was proud of myself and eager to open one as soon as I arrived home.

Surprisingly enough, the wine was not bad, not bad at all, especially at this price. Is it worth five medals? Not sure. Yet, the quality/price ratio helped get them, for sure.

It is a nice, quaffable Bordeaux wine, well-balanced, presenting satisfying red and dark fruit aromas and flavours, generous without being heavy or rich, yet structured and complex enough to give you something to chew on at this price. Even the finish is king of lingering. At this price, it is a steal. I will surely buy some more.

The moral of the story is that wine medals usually don't mean much, but sometimes they do!

And in an ocean of cheap Bordeaux wines that have difficulty selling, they might even mean something sometimes!

Santé!

Dom

@ledomduvin #ledomduvin @chateau.lussan #chateaulussan #vin #wine #vino #wein #redwine #bordeaux

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