A brilliant wine dinner with friends at the Drapers Arms, with 15 interesting wines
This was a brilliant wine dinner with a nice crowd, at the excellent Drapers Arms. We all brought a couple of bottles and served them blind to each other. The way it works is we taste, discuss, unveil and then drink. These are my notes on the wines, written blind and maybe then supplemented with extra detail post-reveal. For wine geeks, this is such fun. If you aren’t a wine geek, such a dinner would be deeply confusing and weird!
Champagne Dom Pérignon 2008 France
This is fresh and taut with a subtle toastiness, showing crystalline citrus fruit and a slight saltiness. So expressive and developing really nicely. Accessible and delicious with hints of almond and pear. 95/100
Bufadors Vinya del Rascarà Brut Nature 2016 Corpinnat, Spain
This is 100% Xarel.lo. No added sulfites. Pithy, mineral and saline with some dissolved CO2, but it’s not that fizzy. Saline, bright and even chalky with pure lemony fruit. Satisfying and delicate, this low-pressure fizz has great precision and it’s really fine. 94/100
Michele Perillo Iripina Code di Volpe 2019 Campania, Italy
Waxy and textural with a hint of aniseed, some pear, and a touch of bitterness. There’s a slight salinity here, and some notes of honey and nuts. Very fine. 94/100
Marine Courtin Coteaux Champenois Le Blanc du Tremble 2020 Côtes des Bar, Champagne, France
11.5% alcohol. This is quite special. Lovely citrus and pear fruit, some nuts, and amazing definition. Liquid minerals, cherries, lemons. Astonishing precision and focus. 95/100
Domaine Pignier G.P.S. 2022 Côtes du Jura, France
12.5% alcohol. No added sulfites. Full golden colour. Rich with nice texture, notes of pear and peach, and some development. There’s a bit of tannin here and some marmalade and toast character. 93/100
Saalwächter Silvaner ‘Steinkante’ 2022 Rheinhessen, Germany
This is 40 year old Silvaner. Amazing reduction with spice, smoke and minerals. Textural palate shows pear and citrus fruit with good detail. Salty and profound. 95/100
Pierre Luneau Le L d’Or Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie 2005 Loire, France
Rich and textural with nice pear, wax and honey, showing some development and nice depth. Stylish. 92/100
Moric x Villa Tolnay Riesling Furmint 2021 Balaton, Hungary
Floral and salty with cheesy detail under the direct citrus fruit. Tangy and showing lovely precision with good tension, finishing salty and waxy. 95/100
Viña Tondonia Blanco Reserva 2004 Rioja, Spain
Notes of honey, toast and wax, as well as spice and marmalade, and a lick of lime. Nice density. Rich and bold but with lemony freshness. Classic Tondonia Blanco. 95/100
Cellier Saint Benoit Ploussard Côte de Feule 2022 Jura, France
Elegant and sweetly fruited with smooth red cherry and strawberry fruit. Sleek with nice weight. It’s Cinsault-like with smoothness and hints of apple. Elegant and textured. Very fine. 95/100
Comando G 1er Vino de Paraja Rozas de Puerto Real 2018 Sierra de Gredos, Spain
Supple, fresh and elegant with sweet strawberry and red cherry fruit. Fine-grained and really elegant. 95/100
Comando G Rozas de Puerto Real Vino de Pueblo 2023 Sierra de Gredos, Spain
Supple and fine-grained with sweet red cherry and plum fruit. Some dried herbs in the mix too, as well as ripe strawberries. Silky and refreshing with nice texture. 95/100
Pranzegg Camill 2013 Mitterberg IGT, Südtirol, Italy
This is interesting. Supple, linear and light, this is an expressive with fine spices and notes of herbs and earth, as well as red fruits. 94/100
Ignios Baboso Negro 2019 Tenerife, Spain
12.5% alcohol. Peppery, with red cherries and some strawberry notes. The palate is bright and fresh with red cherries and white pepper, as well as nice acidity. Red cherries, redcurrants and even some strawberries. So mineral, expressive and textural. 96/100
Cara Sur Los Nidos 2021 Mendoza, Argentina
0.5 hectare plot of 80 year old vines at 1500 m altitude, whole bunch, matured in concrete egg. Spice, cherry, raspberry and blackberry notes here. Grainy structure is quite firm. Some savoury, slightly earthy notes. Very impressive. 95/100
