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).

2014 Famille Carabello-Baum Volnay 1er Cru, France: Retail $75. Extremely Heavy Bottle (880g; 31oz). 100% Pinot Noir. A good friend brought this over for a dinner party of sorts and it was stellar. No formal note, as I was trying to be a good host (I rarely succeed), but this was, frankly, rather un-Burgundian (particularly for a ten year old wine). Fruity, even really fruity, great acidity, balance. Lacking in the earthy, meaty aspects that I associate with the region, but this was particularly fantastic. Excellent. 92 Points.

NV Antoine Derigny Champagne Grand Cru Brut, France: Retail $55. Ridiculously Heavy Bottle (846g; 29.7oz). 100% Chardonnay. This wine continues to vacillate between Excellent and Outstanding, and this iteration firmly lands in the latter. But tonight, this wine really seemed to shine. I love when that happens. Normally, I gravitate toward Pinot dominated Champers, but this BdB from the Côte des Blancs clearly has some age on it, which, at least for me, is key for the genre. Baked pear tart, yellow apple, even some tangerine and some fresh-out-of-the-oven croissant. Outstanding. 93 Points.

NV Philippe Gonet Champagne Brut Grande Réserve, France: Retail $50. Really Heavy bottle (836g; 1lb 13.3oz). 60% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Meunier. I wish I had more to add to my previous notes. Sadly, I am not all that clever. Here are those notes: Slightly golden in the glass with a delicate yet fervent sparkle and lovely aromas of freshly baked apple pie. The palate is tart and precise with plenty of fruit, great acidity, and just a kiss of sweetness. Excellent. 92 Points. 

2022 Mezzacorona Pinot Grigio, Trentino, Italy: Retail $12. Very Responsible bottle (427g; 15oz). Under screw cap. OK, here is a challenge: find a better white, Italian wine, or Pinot Grigio at this price (I pay just over seven bucks at my H-E-B). Hint: You can’t. Great fruit with bits of minerality and white pepper adorn the nose while the palate is, yes, “fruity” but also quite tart as the acidity really runs the program here. Excellent. 90 Points.

NV Petit & Bajan Champagne Grand Cru Ambrosie Brut, France: Retail $60 (at Division Wine Bar in Portland). 70% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir. It was a “working” happy hour with my lovely wife and I selected this–there is no corkage for wines over $50 at the venue. Straw to yellow in the glass with lovely lemon curd and baked croissant on the nose. The palate has that young Chardonnay aspect, the zinging acidity that makes one think it is drier than it actually is. But the Pinot comes in on the mid-palate to add some depth and backbone. Lovely. Lengthy tart and creamy finish. Excellent. 92 Points.

2017 Tongue Dancer Chardonnay Bacigalupi Vineyard, Russian River Valley, CA: Retail $50. Extremely Heavy Bottle (880g; 31oz). We were leaving the following morning, early (7:00 a.m.) for the airport. We were jetting off to Portland, Oregon for a couple of weeks. My wife to visit her sister, my son to go to basketball camp, me to get my Pinot on. Perfect. Before we left, we opted to open a bottle of perfectly aged Tongue Dancer. Mind you, aged Tongue Dancer is a commodity; we find it hard to hold onto bottles as they are typically so fantastic upon release. I have had his wine a few times now and whoa. Rich, on the verge of unctuous, with fantastic tree fruit (ripe pear) and aromas of lemon curd wafting in and out of detection. The palate is rich, for sure, but also balanced, nuanced, and morgasmic (technical term). Whoa. This is truly amazing.

I have raved about Tongue Dancer before, but this is different level, folks. Whoa. Outstanding. 96 Points.

WINE OF THE WEEK: It has been a harried couple of weeks. First, there was Hurricane Beryl, which once again threw Houston into chaos. Centerpoint Energy, the region’s energy provider, has been investing more in politicians than fixing the antiquated grid. So we lose power. A. Lot. And the state-level politicians, all of whom are Republicans, seemingly don’t give a single fudge about Houston since it has been voting Democratic (at least recently). OK, rant over. This week’s Wine of the Week? Easy. A few years ago, I bought a couple of cases of Tongue Dancer Wines since, well, it is really fudging good. If you have not tried it yet, why are you waiting?

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