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 over the past few weeks. These are wines that were not sent as samples—in most cases, I actually paid for these wines (although a few have been given as gifts).

2009 Brewer-Clifton Pinot Noir Clos Pepe Vineyard, Sta Rita Hills, CA: Retail $65. Responsible bottle (554g; 1lb 3.5oz). Under wax and cork. A good friend brought over a Sanford Al Rio and I was looking for a wine to follow. Yeah, this will do. I have long exclaimed that Clos Pepe might be the Californian Grand Cru and I have yet to taste a Clos Pepe to prove me wrong. Until now. Yeah, no. Just kidding. This was phenomenal. My fellow diners thought this was much younger than a 15-year-old wine due to the incredible fruit on the nose and the palate but also the intense acidity and incredible verve. Whoa. I have long admired Greg Brewer’s wines and this has to be among his best. Intense fruit, incredible spice, zingy acidity, and a finish that lasts for days. Yowza. Whoa. And Holy Cow. This is one of the best Pinots I have had in a while and will likely be one of the best I have had this year. And it’s only April. Yikes. Extraordinary. 97 Points.

2021 Weingut Willi Bründlmayer Grüner Veltliner Cuvée la Bergerie, Kampala, Austria: Retail $65. Responsible bottle (547g; 1lb 3.2oz). Under screw cap. I bought a case of this wine more than a dozen years ago and the first nine wines were spectacular and proof that a Stelvin closure is a legitimate option for long-term storage. But. This wine slipped a bit from past bottles I’ve had. Sure, there is fruit and plenty of acidity, which are in balance. But. The depth, the intrigue, and the chutzpah are all a bit lacking, particularly compared with previous bottles. Don’t get me wrong, this is an Excellent wine, just a slight step below previous iterations (two bottles left). Excellent. 92 Points.

2019 Marcel Deiss Alsace Complantation, France: Retail $30. Ridiculously responsible bottle (485g; 1lb 1.1oz). Under cork. “Includes the 13 allowed varieties in Alsace.” Not sure what those are. “There are seven primary grapes of Alsace: Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Sylvaner, and Muscat.” The other six? Likely Chardonnay, Chasselas, Auxerrois Blanc, and Klevener de Heiligenstein. That’s four. The other two? No idea. At all. But this is gangbusters. I have no idea the percentages here, but the Muscat and the Gewurztraminer really come through on the very aromatic nose. A bit sweet aromatically with a mineral aspect that balances the richness. The palate is fruity, tart, and comes off a bit sweet as a result, but this is a really fun wine, and down-right tasty. Excellent. 91 Points.

NV Lacourte Godbillon Champagne Premier Cru Brut Rosé, France: Retail $50? $39 on Garagiste. Really Heavy bottle (837g; 1lb 13.5 oz). 100% Pinot Noir. A fairly intense orange-ish pink in the glass with fresh strawberry and cherry on the nose, quite refreshing. The palate is rather tart and even on the verge of austere, with good red berry fruit, an intense tartness, and a vibrant sparkle. I am not sure what the dosage is here and while I love me a low-dosage champers, this clearly could use a small shot of sugar. Maybe I nitpick, but this is austere even for me. Regardless, this is pretty darned tasty. Excellent. 90 Points.

2007 Paul Goerg Champagne Premier Cru Brut, France: Retail $79. Really Heavy Bottle (871g; 1lb 14.7oz). 100% Chardonnay. It has been nearly four years since I last popped a bottle of this wine and while certainly all of the ancillary information holds true, the tasting notes, while largely consistent, have some subtle changes. A bit darker in the glass with more caramel and nuttiness on the nose and the sparkle is ever-so-slightly less fervent. On the palate? Fantastic. That autolytic component has really taken hold and this wine has evolved into an “older champagne” which I crave. I have two bottles left and while I am not sure there will be much improvement here, I am not in any hurry to crack them. Outstanding. 93 points.

2017 Sanford Pinot Noir Vista al Rio, Sta Rita Hills, CA: Retail $70(?). Heavy bottle (669g; 1lb 7.6oz). Under cork. A good friend brought this over for my Filet du Porc en Croûte and it did not disappoint. Medium color in the glass with oodles of black cherry and plenty of earth on the nose. Yowza. The palate is fruity, but just short of “quite” fruity with plenty of acidity, a lovely earthiness, and more than a modicum of verve. Yeah, this wine more than held up to the pork, cheese, bacon, and pastry crust. Yeah. Whoa. Outstanding. 93 Points.

WINE OF THE WEEK: I don’t know if there is a “typical week” when it comes to wine consumption in the drunken cyclist abode, but this week likely comes close: a couple esoteric whites, a couple of Pinots, and a good dose of champagne. We thoroughly enjoyed all the wines this week, two in particular. The vintage Goerg was certainly a treat and justified holding onto it for the extra decade. The Wine of the Week, the 2009 Brewer-Clifton Pinot Noir Clos Pepe, also showed very well with some additional age on it. Both wines might have helped the process of convincing my wife that aging wine can be a very good thing. She still firmly(?) believes that wine should be consumed fairly quickly after acquisition. I have spent more than twenty years trying to convince her otherwise. Am I getting closer? I like to think so, but as I said, it’s a process.

What was/were your Wine(s) of the Week?