2010 Michel Girard Pinot Sancerre

Moving on to another red from Sancerre, not known for their reds, I tried a 2010 Michel Girard pinot noir.

I don't have the price, but I bought it from Morrell's in NYC, whose customer service is excellent.

To make a long review short:  I didn't much care for it.  I don't have much experience with pinots (one reason I'm drinking them this fall and winter), but this wine didn't seem to have much nose or flavor.  I did aerate it, and it didn't improve the next night either.  It could have been a house red I ordered with pizza.  

This pinot is drinkable, but I didn't find it at all memorable or one that I'd buy again.

2010 Pascal Jolivet rosé

My first pinot of the season is a 2010 rosé from Pascal Jolivet in the Sancerre region. I forgot to jot down the price, but I believe it ran me in the low $20s, or maybe high teens.

I'll let the label speak for itself: "The Pascal Jolivet Domaine covers 49.5 acres in Sancere, with vineyards close to the villages of Bué, Verdigny, and Ste Gemme. 8.6 acres are planted in chalky clay soils with Pinot Noir. The PJ Rosé Pinot Noir is a 'saignée' wine. The juice is produced from macerated Pinot Noir grapes that have been not been sorted by hand or de-stemmed. ... The juice is fermented naturally, without adding cultivated yeasts."

Unfortunately, I didn't like it.  It packed a pretty acidic kick without much in terms of nose or subtlety of flavor.  Now, I didn't use my aerator for the first glass or two, which might have helped, because after a day or two I liked it better; it didn't seem as acidic.  It was definitely better with food; I don't think it's a sipping by itself wine.

2009 Christian Moreau Chablis & 2007 Makor of Elviwines Red

Transitioning here from the last chablis of the summer into my fall and winter reds.

First off is a 2009 Christian Moreau chablis.  The label says the family has been making wines for 200 years, and reminds American drinkers that it should be served cool, not cold.  Like another chablis I drank this summer, it says that this wine would be good as an aperitif.

This bottle ran me in the lower $20s.  This chablis was OK but it seemed a little flat without a lot of subtlety of flavor.  I jotted down that maybe I got the "minerality" that you find in chablis [chablises]. It was slightly sweeter than other chablis and had a slight kick of acidity.

On the whole, OK, not my favorite white, but I've said that about all the chablis I've drunk this summer.


Moving into fall is a kosher red from Spain made by "Makor of ELVIwines." This wine is 14% by volume and I believe ran me in the lower teens.

This red if 85% bobal and 15% cabarnet sauvignon.  I had no idea what bobal is [a grape; no kidding], so I looked it up.  Wikipedia says it's a variety of Vitis vinifera and native to Valencia, where this wine is from.  It's the third-most planted grape in Spain, after tempranillo (numero uno) and airen (never heard of that one either).  Further, "The wines produced tend to be fruity, low in alcohol content (around 11°) [not this one] and high in acidity (5.5 to 6.5 tartaric acid)."


The acidity is probably what turned me off about it.  I used an aerator for my first glass, but I didn't care for the taste.  It was too sharp and lacking in subtleties.  Frankly I let the bottle sit too many nights before my second glass so I shouldn't comment on old wine, but it hadn't improved over time, as some wines do.  


Maybe this wine is at a disadvantage by being the first of my move into reds this fall after a spring and summer of whites.  I'll try a few more wines made with bobal over the winter and see if I change my opinion.