Laws Whiskey House
Marc Hébrart
Mes Favorites Vieilles Vignes Mareuil Sur Ay Champagne Blend
I’ve started to enjoy Marc Herbrart Champagne’s in the last six months. There are just over 20,000 grower producers in Champagne…hard to try them all in many lifetimes. Basically, impossible. I picked up some of his 2019 Blanc de Noirs today on Last Bubbles for $79…used a coupon and got the free ship. I bought two of these at Costco last weekend for $56.99. Had a glass at the end of last Friday night w/ friends. Enjoyed it, but wanted to taste it and write notes with a clean palate.
This lives up to that price point and slightly exceeds it. 91.5 rounding up to 92.
The nose has a sour Lemonhead candy quality (that’s a 1st time wine descriptor for me), white stone fruits-peach, nectarine, lime zest, cream, honeydew, brioche, saline, chalk, sea fossils, ginger, hues of ginger ale, white Spring flowers with greens.
The palate shows nice mousse…crisp. It leans into reductive but flashes some oxidative quality. White stone fruits-peach, nectarine, Meyer lemon, lime zest, lychees, Rainer cherries, some apple cider, bruised Bosc pear, cream, honeydew, pineapple juice, brioche, some caramel saline, gritty chalk-limestone-volcanics minerals, sea fossils, white spice-ginger with some palate punch, ginger ale notes, jasmine, white Spring flowers with greens with a well balanced, knitted, polished and elegant finish that lands dead smack on minerality and lasts two-minutes.
One thing I have been meaning to bring into the light with a post on Champagnes in general but haven’t yet is, I studied the hell out of French Wine Winemaking Laws. Perhaps, the strictest or at least one of the most restrictive in the world…growing, labeling, certain varietals for certain wines. Basically 3 grapes are primarily used in Champagne but 7 are allowed; Pinot Noir, Chardonnay & Pinot Meunier are the primary ones and Arbane, Petit Meslier, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris are the ancillary ones. 5 grapes only in Bordeaux blends and you cannot irrigate there either. You get what the season gives you. Having said all that, there seems to be some allowed leeway in Champagne labeling…Extra Brut, Brut and Demi-Sec etc.. Nature is 0 to 3g, Extra Brut is 3 to 6g and Brut is 6-9g etc. This Marc Herbrart is 5.5g, which technically makes it Extra Brut. Yet it’s labeled Brut. I see this all the time. I regularly see champagnes labeled Brut that are 10-11g or more. So, if you care about the sweetness level of your Champagne, you should probably read up on the champagne you’re about to buy. Given how strict French Wine Laws are, I find this a little baffling.
This Marc Hebrart received its cork March 2, 2023 and as I mentioned, its dosage is 5.5g.
Photos of; Champagne House-Marc Herbrart, the man himself-Marc Herbrart, perfect vineyard Chardonnay grapes & vista of their vineyard(s). What rows!!! — a year ago
Four Roses
Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
My House Bourbon... another empty & yes I have another 😁 — 7 years ago
Château Lynch-Bages
Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2000
The 2000 is delicious but, it is evolving at a glacial pace. Out of magnum.
On the nose, touch of barnyard, glycerin, ripe; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, plum, strawberries & cherries. Vanilla, dry clay, limestone, river stones, just a touch of pyrazines & bandaid, dark,,turned, moist earth, dry grass and dry & fresh dark florals.
The body is full, round & sexy. Dry softened, sweet tannins. ripe; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, plum, strawberries & cherries. Vanilla, dry clay, limestone, river stones, just a touch of pyrazines & bandaid, fresh tobacco leaf, saddle-wood, dry underbrush, dark, turned, moist earth, dry grass and dry & fresh dark florals. The acidity is magnificent. The structure, tension, length and balance are sensational. The finish is drop dead gorgeous. I’d still hold mine another 5 years as long as you have 3-4 bottles for more 5 year increments.
Photos of, their Estate vines, Clyde Beffa-Owner of K&L Wine Merchants, Owner of Chateau Lynch Bages - Jean-Michel Cazes, guests of the dinner and a sunset view from their Estate.
Producer notes and history...Lynch Bages takes its name from the local area where the Chateau is located in Bages. The vineyard of what was to become Lynch Bages was established and then expanded by the Dejean family who sold it in 1728 to Pierre Drouillard.
In 1749, Drouillard bequeathed the estate to his daughter Elizabeth, the wife of Thomas Lynch. This is how the estate came to belong to the Lynch family, where it remained for seventy-five years and received the name Lynch Bages. However, it was not always known under that name.
For a while the wines were sold under the name of Jurine Bages. In fact, when the estate was Classified in the 1855 Classification of the Medoc, the wines were selling under the name of Chateau Jurine Bages. That is because the property was owned at the time by a Swiss wine merchant, Sebastien Jurine.
In 1862, the property was sold to the Cayrou brothers who restored the estate’s name to Chateau Lynch family.
Around 1870, Lou Janou Cazes and his wife Angelique were living in Pauillac, close to Chateau Pichon Longueville Baron. It was here that Jean-Charles Cazes, the couple’s second son, was born in 1877.
In the 1930’s, Jean-Charles Cazes, who was already in charge of Les-Ormes-de-Pez in St. Estephe agreed to lease the vines of Lynch Bages. By that time, the Cazes family had history in Bordeaux dating back to the second half of the nineteenth century.
This agreement to take over Lynch Bages was good for both the owner and Jean Charles Cazes. Because, the vineyards had become dilapidated and were in need of expensive replanting, which was too expensive for the owner. However, for Cazes, this represented an opportunity, as he had the time, and the ability to manage Lynch Bages, but he lacked the funds to buy the vineyard.
Jean-Charles Cazes eventually purchased both properties on the eve of the Second World War. Lynch Bages and Les-Ormes-de-Pez have been run by the Cazes family ever since. In 1988, the Cazes family added to their holdings in Bordeaux when they purchased an estate in the Graves region, Chateau Villa Bel Air.
Around 1970, they increased their vineyards with the purchase of Haut-Bages Averous and Saussus. By the late 1990’s their holdings had expanded to nearly 100 hectares! Jean-Michel Cazes who had been employed as an engineer in Paris, joined the wine trade in 1973. In a short time, Jean Michel Cazes modernized everything at Lynch Bages.
He installed a new vat room, insulated the buildings, developing new technologies and equipment, built storage cellars, restored the loading areas and wine storehouses over the next fifteen years. During that time period, Jean Michel Cazes was the unofficial ambassador of not just the Left Bank, but all of Bordeaux. Jean Michel Cazes was one of the first Chateau owners to begin promoting their wine in China back in 1986.
Bages became the first wine sent into space, when a French astronaut carried a bottle of 1975 Lynch Bages with him on the joint American/French space flight!
Beginning in 1987, Jean-Michel Cazes joined the team at the insurance company AXA, who wanted to build an investment portfolio of quality vineyards in the Medoc, Pomerol, Sauternes, Portugal and Hungary.
Jean-Michel Cazes was named the director of the wine division and all the estates including of course, the neighboring, Second Growth, Chateau Pichon Baron.
June 1989 marked the inauguration of the new wine making facilities at Lynch Bages, which was on of their best vintages. 1989 also marked the debut of the Cordeillan- hotel and restaurant where Sofia and I had one of our best dinners ever. A few years after that, the Village de Bages with its shops was born.
The following year, in 1990, the estate began making white wine, Blanc de Lynch Bages. In 2001, the Cazes family company bought vineyards in the Rhone Valley in the Languedoc appellation, as well as in Australia and Portugal. They added to their holdings a few years later when they purchased a vineyard in Chateauneuf du Pape.
In 2006, Jean-Charles Cazes took over as the managing director of Chateau Lynch Bages. Jean-Michel Cazes continues to lead the wine and tourism division of the family’s activities. Due to their constant promotion in the Asian market, Chateau Lynch Bages remains one of the strongest brands in the Asian market, especially in China.
In 2017, Chateau Lynch Bages began a massive renovation and modernization, focusing on their wine making, and technical facilities. The project, headed by the noted architects Chien Chung Pei and Li Chung Pei, the sons of the famous architect that designed the glass pyramid for the Louvre in Paris as well as several other important buildings.
The project will be completed in 2019. This includes a new grape, reception center, gravity flow wine cellar and the vat rooms, which will house at least, 80 stainless steel vats in various sizes allowing for parcel by parcel vinification.
The new cellars will feature a glass roof, terraces with 360 degree views and completely modernized reception areas and offices. They are not seeing visitors until it’s completion.
In March, 2017, they purchased Chateau Haut Batailley from Françoise Des Brest Borie giving the Cazes family over 120 hectares of vines in Pauillac!
The 100 hectare vineyard of Lynch Bages is planted to 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The vineyard has a terroir of gravel, chalk and sand soils.
The vineyard can be divided into two main sections, with a large portion of the vines being planted close to the Chateau on the Bages plateau. At their peak, the vineyard reaches an elevation of 20 meters. The other section of the vineyard lies further north, with its key terroir placed on the Monferan plateau.
They also own vines in the far southwest of the appellation, next Chateau Pichon Lalande, on the St. Julien border, which can be used in the Grand Vin. The vineyard can be split into four main blocks, which can be further subdivided into 140 separate parcels.
The average age of the vines is about 30 years old. But they have old vines, some of which are close to 90 years old.
The vineyards are planted to a vine density of 9,000 vines per hectare. The average age of the vines is about 30 years old. But they have old vines, some of which are close to 90 years old.
Lynch Bages also six hectares of vine are reserved for the production of the white Bordeaux wine of Chateau Lynch Bages. Those vines are located to the west of the estate. They are planted to 53% Sauvignon Blanc, 32% Semillon and 15% Muscadelle. On average, those vines are about 20 years of age. Lynch Bages Blanc made its debut in 1990.
To produce the wine of Chateau Lynch Bages, vinification takes place 35 stainless steel vats that vary in size. Malolactic fermentation takes place in a combination of 30% French, oak barrels with the remainder taking place in tank.
The wine of Chateau Lynch Bages is aged in an average of 70% new, French oak barrels for between 12 and 15 months. Due to the appellation laws of Pauillac, the wine is sold as a generic AOC Bordeaux Blanc, because Pauillac does not allow for the plantings of white wine grapes.
For the vinification of their white, Bordeaux wine, Blanc de Lynch-Bages is vinified in a combination of 50% new, French oak barrels, 20% in one year old barrels and the remaining 30% is vinified in vats. The wine is aged on its lees for at least six months. The white wine is sold an AOC Bordeaux wine.
The annual production at Lynch Bages is close to 35,000 cases depending on the vintage.
The also make a 2nd wine, which was previously known as Chateau Chateau Haut Bages Averous. However, the estate changed its name to Echo de Lynch Bages beginning with the 2007 vintage. The estate recently added a third wine, Pauillac de Lynch-Bages.
— 8 years ago
Egly-Ouriet
Les Prémices à Ambonnay Extra Brut Champagne Blend
This pours a darker yellow.
Part of this has spent time in oak.
Nice mousse but leaner in style as it fades a bit on the long set.
Starts with slightly macerated stone fruits-peach, nectarines & a touch of apricots, tropicals-pineapple, cantaloupe, bruised pear-apple, zested lime-lemon, blood orange, ginger to ginger ale, malt, light caramel notes, light vanillin, cream, some nice yeast, bread dough, baguette crust, limestone intermixed with volcanics, sea fossils, saline, yellow slightly wilting lilies, spring bouquet, excellent crisp acidity and well knitted, balanced, structured, elegant finish finish that lands on crumbled minerality.
This cuvée is a blend of equal parts of three varieties; Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, and Chardonnay. Disgorged 7/23.
Pointing again, this is labeled an Extra Brut, yet it’s only 2g dosage, making it a Nature. Not sure how these producers get away without sticking to French Wine Laws.
Photos of, House of Egly-Ouriet, their Chardonnay & Pinot vineyards at harvest & Owner and Winemaker Francis Egly. — a year ago
Winchester
Double Oak Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished With Sherry Cask Staves
Very nice oak flavor. Less sweet, but not harsh. Rhonda wants a bottle in the house. Buy a bottle. — 3 years ago
Il Chicco (Andreucci)
Regale Toscana Sangiovese Blend
Outstanding, delicious and bold, celebrating in laws new house! — 5 years ago
Vena's Fizz House
Maine Pine Bitters
Picked these up from Vena’s Fizzhouse in Portland, Maine. It was one of the ingredients in a cocktail I got called the Lumber Sexual.
I fell in love and had to get the bitters to try and recreate it at home.
Perfectly herbaceous and harmonious with a flowery, naturally sweet quality. Resinous. Love it with just club soda and a whiskey rock as pictured. — 6 years ago
Laws Whiskey House
'Four Grain' Straight Bourbon Whiskey
A fantastic candied cinnamon spice sweetness. Brilliant stuff from Denver. — 8 years ago
Domaine Chandon
Étoile Carneros Rosé
Celebrating Mother’s Day at my in-laws House. They enjoy Chandon, especially their high-end ones like this, but this was our first time with their rosé.
You aren’t confusing this for French, but goodness it is easy to sip on! Strawberry purée and orange citrus zest on the nose. Creamy and minuscule bubbles that became a bit reductive after time in the glass showing this was west coast. Strawberry limeade, rhubarb pie and mint leaf on the palate. Happy Mother’s Day everyone. — 8 years ago
Tullamore Dew Co
Irish Whiskey
My go to bottle for around the house. Amazing for the price. — 8 years ago
Bruno Paillard
Cuvée 72 Extra Brut Champagne Blend
Beautiful cuvée with excellent mousse. It shows both reductive & oxidative characteristics. Meyer lemon, lime zest, pineapple juice and some dried pineapple, dry apricots & yellow & white stone fruits, black cherries, Rainer cherries, green apple, caramel notes, very light yeastiness, bread dough, cream, light saline, ginger, beautiful powdery chalkiness, yellow flowers with greens, excellent acidity with a well balanced, well knitted, elegant and smartly polished finish that lands on minerality & soft spice and lasts 90 seconds.
The name Cuvée 72, derives from…36 in bottle +36 stored at the House…72 months minimum of maturation before shipment. Cuvée 72 is a variation on the complexity of time and development of our Première Cuvée.
Good pair with Jasper Hill Farms Harbison & yellow Nectarines.
The blend is 45% Pinot Noir, 33% Chardonnay & 22% Pinot Meunier. Again, while the label states it is an Extra Brut, its dosage is 6g, which makes it a Brut by being 1g over. Puzzling considering French wine laws.
More than 30 wines whose composition is kept secret, Cuvée 72 is comprised of a system of reserve wines dating back to 1985 along with the latest harvest. It is a selection of first pressing of meunier, chardonnay and pinot noir, a proportion of which (20%) have had their first fermentation in oak barrels. — a year ago
Bunnahabhain
Wilson and Morgan 23 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky
5th in the tasting. First of the peat. Really nicely done. Not overly peaty. FYI supposedly the 12 is as good at a better price. Craziest thing I heard? Try the Nikka 21 with sushi. Not sure how we got here and on this topic but I think it was due to the peat/no peat differences. This is one that Start said he always has for company. He also called out the Macallan 25 and Reflection (not a house whiskey obviously but there for special occasions). I noted I need to come over more often! I’m rating higher due to the hint of peat. — 5 years ago
Uccelliera
Brunello di Montalcino Sangiovese 2001
What a fun find at my in-laws house. Very earthy and chocolate nose with the tiniest hint of blood orange peel (I agree with another reviewer). Still a lot of bite on this one for the age. Nice amount of funk too. Expect it will shine with food. Really impressed.
Edit to say my husband smelled Little Caesar’s bread sticks on the nose 🤣 — 6 years ago
Jack Daniel's
(Black Label) Old No. 7 Tennessee Sour Mash Whiskey
I have drunk JD for years. Always have a bottle in the house. — 7 years ago
Château Duhart Milon
Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon - Merlot Blend 2006
The 06 vintage was more highly praised by the Bordelais than it delivered. That’s not to say, some producers didn’t deliver.
This 06 is not at its peak...still needs a few years. Will it be a wine that blows you away? Not likely but, it will deliver nice fruit, earth & balance. Especially, with a Ribeye.
The nose shows; ripe; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, baked strawberries, dry cranberries & some black plum. Saddle-wood, limestone minerals, dry stones, cinnamon, soft spice, light vanilla, black rich earth, touch of black licorice and red & dark fresh florals.
The body is round and a little lean but puts on weight with food and decanting. The structure, length & tension are falling into place. The fruits are ripe and expressive. Blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, baked strawberries, haunting blue fruits, dry cranberries & some black plum. Saddle-wood, touch herbaceous, mint, limestone minerals, dry clay, dry stones, cinnamon, soft spice, cola, light vanilla, black rich earth, touch of black licorice and red & dark fresh florals. The acidity is round and beautiful. The finish is on the leaner side but, well balanced and lasts a full minute. 9.1 without the Ribeye, 9.2 with it.
Photos of, Duhart Milon, Cabernet ready to to be pressed, wine making facilities and their barrel room.
Producer history and notes...the Rothschild family is divided into two sects for lack of a better word. There are the ones that own Mouton Rothschild and Cleric Milon etc. and the other owns Lafite and Duhart. The two sides of the families don’t necessarily get along. However, they are two of the oldest/wealthiest families in recorded history.
Duhart Milon was originally known only as Chateau Milon. At one time the estate was the second wine of Chateau Lafite.
The story about how this came to be is interesting. The owner of Lafite at that time was the Marquis Nicolas-Alexandre de Segur. King Louis XV called him “The Wine Prince” because of his extensive vineyard holdings in Bordeaux. The Milon vineyards were well regarded but, not as good as Lafite, which is how the wine came to be thought of as the second wine for Lafite.
In 1815, the property was considered by some people as a fourth growth Bordeaux wine in the making. In those days, the wine was sold under the name of Chateau Mandavy-Milon. Between 1830 and 1840, the Casteja family inherited the estate.
The label of Duhart Milon, according to family tradition came about from an old legend written about one of their ancestors, Sir Duhart. Sir Duhart, was rumored to have been a pirate for Louis XV. He retired in Pauillac. The “Pirate’s House” on the Pauillac port existed up to the 1950’s. That original building inspired the label for the Duhart-Milon wines.
The Casteja family remained in possession of Duhart Milon until the first part of the 20th century. At the time, Chateau Duhart Milon was one of larger Pauillac estates with around 50 hectares of vines.
In 1937, the result of successive inheritances led to the sale of Duhart Milon. The Left Bank property went through five different owners in just 25 years. As well, the vineyards were split up and with the frost of 1956, the quality of Duhart Milon continued declining until the Rothschild family purchased the property in 1962.
At that time of the sale, Chateau Duhart Milon included 110 hectares of land, of which only 17 hectares were planted with vines. The entire vineyard was in desperate need of replanting. Major renovations were urgently needed in the vineyards, which demanded work on the drainage and replanting.
The size of their vineyards were also increased with the purchase of other parcels adding to the size of their Medoc holdings. New cellars needed to be built as well.
Chateau Duhart Milon remains one of the few 1855 Classified Growth estates without an actual Chateau. At Duhart, all you will find are the cellars, vatting rooms and barrel storages.
During the period of 1970 to 2000, the vineyards nearly doubled in size! Additionally, they constructed new cellars, renovated and modernized their wine making facilities as well in 2003. By 2008, the wine of Duhart Milon increased in quality, stature and price.
Much of the price increase had to do with the association with Chateau Lafite Rothschild, which had by that time, become the most in-demand, collectible wine in China. By the time the 2015 vintage was offered, prices had dropped to a more affordable price level due to changes in Chinese laws regarding client gifts/bribes.
The 152 hectare vineyard of Chateau Duhart Milon includes; 76 hectares of vines planted to 67% Cabernet Sauvignon and 33% Merlot. This makes Chateau Duhart Milon one of the few 1855 Classified Growths with only two grape varieties planted in their vineyards.
The average age of the vines are 30 years old. The vineyard is planted to a vine density of 7,500 vines per hectare.
Duhart Milon vineyards are located in northern Pauillac, on the western side of Chateau Lafite Rothschild, on the Milon hillside, which is not far from the Carruades plateau...now Lafite’s second wine. This places the vineyard quite close to Chateau Mouton Rothschild and Chateau Clerc Milon. However, because of micro climates, this is a slightly cooler terroir, due to its northern exposure.
The naturally cooler soils provides more freshness to the wine, and allows for later picking. The terroir of Chateau Duhart Milon is a combination of gravel, sand and limestone soils. The Duhart Milon vineyards are unique in Pauillac, as the vines are for the most part, located in 1 single, large parcel.
The vinification of Chateau Duhart Milon takes place in temperature controlled stainless vats. Malolactic fermentation takes place in vat. Chateau Duhart Milon is then aged in an average of 50% new French oak barrels for 14 to 16 months, depending on the vintage.
There is a second wine, Moulin de Duhart, that was created in 1986. There is also a third wine produced by the estate, Baron de Milon. — 8 years ago
Paul T, Missing My Beautiful Wife 24/7
I only drink wines that taste like Patent leather, soft leather is for sissy’s,😬
Vinny Brooklyn
The American counterpoint to an Irish whisky at the Embassy of Ireland in Japan (the recently opened Ireland House). USA a clear winner, even in the highball format. — 10 months ago