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).

NV Alfred Gratien Champagne Brut, France: Retail $60. Exceedingly Heavy Bottle (838g; 1lb 13.5oz). 50% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Noir, 25% Pinot Meunier. This was one of the 200(+?) wines at the Wine Spectator Wine Experience in New Orleans and the winery’s representatives suggested that I take a couple bottles of this wine. Um. OK? Quite nutty in the glass: macadamia, almond, and perhaps walnut on the nose with a touch of citrus and pear. Lovely. The palate is tart, rich, and quite yeasty. Outstanding. 93 Points. Outstanding. 93 Points.

2003 Concha y Toro Cabernet Sauvignon Don Melchor, Puente Alto, Maipo Valley, Chile: Retail $100. Very Heavy Bottle (730g; 1lb 9.7oz). Under cork. 95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc. I bought this and a 2005 a dozen years ago online for just over $60 a bottle and I had planned to open the two of them together as a mini-vertical, but, well, that didn’t happen. Oh well, this one is not getting any better. Quite dark in the glass with plenty of spice and a decided herbal element and there are touches of fruit on the edges, mostly dark (blackberry, cassis, plum), but I fear this might be on the downward slope. The palate follows that fear with somewhat muted fruit, an intense spice note on the mid palate, more than ample acidity, and a surprising amount of tannins on the finish. Yeah, this is still excellent, but I feel it has dropped a step (or two) of what it once was, signaling that it is (passed?) time to drink. Excellent. 90 Points.

2007 Hirsch Vineyards Pinot Noir San Andreas Fault, Sonoma Coast, CA: Retail $70. Heavy Bottle (651g; 1lb 6.9oz). Under cork. I bought this bottle waaaay back in 2010, well before my blog was born. I had a tasting with Jasmine in the rudimentary “tasting room” where we went through a number of bottles over the course of a couple of hours. I am not the first to attest that Jasmine is engaging, charming, and compelling. She embraced the attributes of what she called the “extreme Sonoma Coast” and championed Hirsch vineyard (which probably needs little championing). Fairly light and a bit cloudy in the glass with black cherry and plenty of spice on the nose. The palate is reserved, or maybe demure, but it packs a wonderful punch. Incredible fruit, zingy tartness, and finishes with spice and more of that remarkable acidity. Wowza. Outstanding. 96 Points.

2009 Lemelson Vineyards Pinot Noir Thea’s Selection, Willamette Valley, OR:Retail $40. Really Heavy Bottle (714g; 1lb 9.2oz). Another year(ish?) and while this is still doing quite well, it seems to have slipped, if ever-so-slightly as the fruit is losing its grip… It still has great acidity, nice earthiness, and plenty to love. But no more need to hang on to these (I have one left), in my opinion. Excellent. 90 Points.

2009 Panther Creek Pinot Noir Freedom Hill Vineyard, Willamette Valley, OR: Retail $40. Really Heavy Bottle (718g; 1lb 9.3oz). Under cork. I bought eight of these from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board over a decade ago and the first few bottles were less than stellar. Well, maybe it just needed more bottle time as the last few have been fantastic. It has been a solid year plus since we cracked the last one and I honestly thought these last few bottles would be well on their way to gones-ville, but at least this bottle is still holding on with ample acidity, fruit, and more that a shot of verve. Very nice. Excellent. 90 Points.

2021 Vignobles Paradis Claire-Voie, Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence. France: Retail $25. Responsible Bottle (577g; 1lb 4.3oz). From WTSO. 60% Syrah, 30% Grenache Noir, 10% Vermentino. A year to the day since I last wrote a note about this wine (not planned, so weird) and it shows that “intentional” or “True Rosés” don’t need to be consumed immediately upon release. This is still bright, vibrant, and pretty tasty. Pretty much what one expects from the appellation: more floral than fruity (but still plenty of red berry) on the nose with very nice acidity and a bit of a chalky mouthfeel. Very Good. 89 Points.

WINE OF THE WEEK: I popped a few corks this week that probably should have been pulled years ago. Oh well, it happens. As one would expect, a few of those “shoulda, woulda, coulda” bottles were American Pinot Noirs–I have way too much “older” Pinots in my cellar, just ask my lovely wife. One that did not follow that theme, however, was this week’s Wine of the Week, the 2007 Hirsch Vineyards Pinot Noir San Andreas Fault, whoa. I lived in California for a bit, and most of it was spent within a few miles of the San Andreas Fault. I did not experience an earthquake while a resident of the state but I have on one of my visits back, which was pretty frightening. What is not scary was this wine from Hirsch. If you get a chance to try a wine from Hirsch, dive on in. It’s much more fun than an earthquake.

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