Over the course of a week, I taste a bunch of wine, usually with friends, and almost always with my wife. Here are some of the wines we tasted this last week that stood out:

2003 Château Belle-Vue: Retail $22. I got a pretty good deal on these back in ’07 and this is the first I have popped. Good fruit on the nose with a bit of mocha. On the palate, fruit persists, but there is also a slight green note, which was surprising given the really hot vintage. Very Good, just short of outstanding. 88-90 Points.

2001 Domaine Chandon Étoile Rosé: Retail $40. This was our last bottle of this and it was by far the best. Great sparkle and red fruit. On the palate, rich and deep with a dry but lasting finish. This was thoroughly enjoyable. Outstanding. 89-91 Points.

2004 Domaine Marc Kreydenweiss Riesling Wiebelsberg La Dame “Partager avec toi”: Retail $25. After two sadly oxidized bottles, this was a pleasant surprise. It was still lacking a bit in fruit and depth, but it was such a relief, since I opened this for my father-in-law and it turned out to be OK. Classic older Alsatian Riesling flavors. Very Good. 87-89 Points.

2009 Chad Pinot Noir: Retail $25. Alright, this was the last of these bottles and this one finally showed some of what others have found in this wine. Good earthy fruit on the nose. A little chalky on the palate, but otherwise rather nice. Very Good. 87-89 Points.

NV Gosset Champagne Brut Excellence: Retail $40. This bottle has a bit of age on it and the extra time has served it well. The Champenois say that Non-Vintage Brut does not get any better with age, but I disagree. This is citrusy and biscuity will bright, refreshing and even complex flavors. Outstanding. 90-92 Points.

2009 MacLaren Syrah Samantha’s Vineyard: Retail $35. This is our third bottle of this wine and I certainly like it, but this time the acidity seems to be a bit out of balance. Pretty decent fruit and nice weight, but the acidity was overly present. Of course we had this with Asian food, since my father-in-law prefers red, and that was not the best choice. Very Good, nonetheless. 86-88 Points.

2009 Rafael Reverte Garnacha Cistum: Retail $40. I had a bottle of this week with my father-in-law and my tasting note from a couple months ago is still spot on: I picked this up from the PLCB when it went on sale for $12. The store claimed that this received a 92 from the Advocate, which stated that its drinking window as 2014-2024. I am not so sure about that, since this had more new world fruit and very little tannin on the back end. For $12? Not bad. For the $38 suggested retail claimed by the PLCB? Not a chance. Very Good. 86-88 Points.

1991 Topolos Zinfandel Rossi Vineyard Sonoma County: Retail $22. I have had more than my fair share of aged Zins over the years. Next to champagne and Pinot, probably my preferred wine. This is solid with some decent fruit, but the acidity is a bit too prominent. Nonetheless, Very Good. 87-89 Points.

2009 Domaine Pignier Côtes du Jura (Pinot Noir): Retail $25? We went out to dinner tonight and after tweeting a bit about this producer during the day, I grabbed a bottle of this to take to dinner. I had the pork chop special and I would like to say that I had read my earlier tasting note for this wine prior to deciding what to order (but that would be a huge lie): Nose a bit funky with mushroom and stewed raspberry, but the palate is inviting: tart cherry, that raspberry and plenty of acid. Good on its own, but likely great with a bit of pork chop. Very Good. 86-88 Points.

WINE OF THE WEEK: As I mentioned a few times in the above notes, my in-laws were here all week and since my father-in-law likes wine, we opened up a few bottles. All the way through Saturday night, there was not really a wine that stuck out; none was worthy of Wine of the Week honors. On Sunday afternoon, though, my father-in-law mentioned that he wanted to have some champagne (at least that is what I heard). We decided to head out to one of our favorite BYOB restaurants in the neighborhood (the Blue Cat, which really does a nice job) and I grabbed our last bottle of NV Gosset Champagne Brut Excellence. I am a big fan of Gosset, particularly the wine that is one step above this–the NV Grande Réserve (I frequently cite this as my favorite NV Brut) and even became a bigger fan (if that was possible) after my visit there last summer. This wine was better than I remembered (perhaps it was the additional cellar time–who knows?), and was a nice cap to the weekend.

What was your Wine of the Week?