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).

2023 Henri Bourgeois Sancerre Les Baronnes, Loire Valley, France: Retail $25. Very Responsible Bottle (423g; 14.9oz). Under screw cap. 100% Sauvignon Blanc. I bought a few of these from my H-E-B (I love my H-E-B) and this is the first that I have popped. I have only been to Sancerre once and it was only for a heartbeat, but one of the wineries I visited was Henri Bourgeois. Fond memories (although brief). Quite tropical on the nose with plenty of minerality, salinity, and considerable spunk. The plate is all of those and more. Yowza. Tart, engaging, fruity, and divine. Whoa. Outstanding. 94 Points.

NV André Delorme Crémant de Bourgogne Blanc de Blancs Brut, France: Retail $20. Very Heavy Bottle (753g; 26.5oz). 100%(?) Chardonnay. I saw this at my local H-E-B (I love my H-E-B) and I took a flyer. I was looking for a reasonable sparkling wine that I could serve to my in-laws without feeling too guilty. This was the choice. Initially, it was around $15. Giddy-up! We had a few, which were fine and then it dropped to just above ten bucks. Yeah. Bring it. Bright and cherry but not all that complex, yet still a solid wine for middle-week consumption. Very Good. 88 Points.

NV Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut, France: Retail $50. Extremely Heavy Bottle (877g; 30.9oz). 75% Pinot Noir, 15% Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Meunier. The last time I had a bottle of this wine, I was sitting outside at a quaint restaurant in Blois, France with my lovely wife. Tonight? Pretty much the same thing without the al fresco restaurant in France part of it. Light straw with lovely golden delicious fruit, a lovely yeastiness, and a slight almond note. The palate is quite fruity, with a lovely sparkle, balancing acidity, and a lengthy finish. Yeah, another good bottle. Nay, a fantastic one. Excellent. 90 Points.

2018 Left Coast Estate White Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, OR: Retail $24. Responsible Bottle (521g; 18.3oz). 93% Pinot Noir, 7% Pinot Gris. Under screw cap. Every time I taste a white Pinot Noir, I wonder why more producers don’t go this route. If they ever do, they should follow Left Coast’s lead. I received two bottles of this wine a few years ago as samples. As one would expect, there is a bit more color than there was four years ago, but the wine has otherwise held up quite nicely. Good tree fruit (a ton of pear here), with nice acidity and a fairly lengthy finish. Surprisingly similar notes to the previous bottle. Excellent. 90 Points.

2015 Purple Star Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, WA: Retail $19. Very Responsible Bottle (447g; 15.7oz). 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot. Under cork. It has been a while since I have tried a Purple Star wine, once a mainstay of my blog. I found this bottle in my cellar, however, while doing a bit of inventory (I still have a long way to go with that) and decided tonight was the night. Quite dark with tons of black fruit: blackberry, plum, cassis. The palate is much the same, even on the verge of brooding with plenty of tartness and depth. Excellent. 91 Points.

2015 Domaine La Millière Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc, France: Retail $50. Heavy Bottle (613g; 21.6oz). “Made from Roussanne, Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Bourboulenc.” I picked up three bottles of this wine from Last Bottle Wines several years ago and this is the first I have popped. Heavily oxidized. Sure, it’s “old” (but not that old) but this is far too oxidized and undrinkable. Flawed. 

WINE OF THE WEEK: This was one of those weeks when the Wine of the Week was not necessarily the best wine of the week. That would have to go to the Henri Bourgeois Sancerre but I bought that at my local grocery store, and while I love my H-E-B, there just is not much of a story there (although I did visit the winery however many years ago…). This week’s top wine, the 2015 Purple Star Cabernet Sauvignon, however, evokes all kinds of pleasant memories centered around the winemaking team of Kyle and Amy Johnson, two fantastic people who make some pretty darned good wine.

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