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 Barbier-Louvet Champagne Grand Cru Cuvée D’Ensemble, France: Retail $55. Extremely Heavy Bottle (853g; 30oz). 60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay. My first note on this wine is still spot on: “The winery is located in Tauxières-Mutry, a Premier Cru village on the Montagne de Reims, but the wine is classified as a Grand Cru, so the fruit likely comes from the nearby villages of Bouzy and Louvois. Pale to golden straw in the glass with plenty of green apple and fresh brioche. Yum. The palate is fruity, lively, and rich, with a lengthy finish–just delicious from start to finish. Outstanding. 93 Points.“

2016 Bear Flag Wine Zinfandel, Sonoma County, CA: Retail $25. Heavy Bottle (651g; 22.9oz). 89% Zinfandel, 7% Petite Sirah, 4% Teroldego. Dark, really dark, even brooding in the glass of this near-inky-dark wine with black and blue fruit, a touch of earth, and just a hint of spice. The palate is fruity, even really fruity, but brooding at the same time. Look, this is a fruit-driven wine and not overly complex, but there are times we all need uncomplicated fun. And this is it. Very Good. 89 Points.

2004 Michele Chiarlo Barolo Tortoniano, Italy: Retail $40. 100% Nebbiolo. Not the most expensive Barolo on the market (although I did see this 2004 online for $135–price gouge much?), but it is a solid effort and has aged quite well thus far. Much more bricking on the rim, with more tertiary notes developing: leather, un-smoked cigar, grilled steak. The fruit is pretty much non-existent at this point, but the acidity is alive and kicking, thank you very much with largely integrated tannins and a lengthy finish. I would not hold onto this all that much longer, however, as this is clearly showing its age. Excellent. 90 Points.

2007 Joseph Drouhin Moulin-à-Vent, Beaujolais, France: Retail $22. Responsible Bottle (571g; 20.1oz). 100% Gamay. So, it has been close to two years since I cracked the last bottle of this wine and that one was, well, not great. This one? Yeah, pretty amazeballs (technical term) with great red fruit, fantastic acidity, plenty of weight, and several layers of complexity. I have said this for a while now (and hopefully I will start listening to myself at some point), but I need to drink more Beaujolais. And more Cru Beaujolais. And more… Yeah. I need to make a list and Beaujolais will be at the top. Excellent. 92 Points.

NV Gallimard Père et Fils Champagne Cuvée de Réserve Blanc de Noirs, France: Retail $50. Heavy bottle (832g; 1lb 13.3oz). 100% Pinot Noir from l’Aube. I purchased this from Last Bubbles about a year ago. This was the first of the lot that was a bit sub-par, there was some clear oxidation and a lack of typical effervescence. I will chalk it up to a less-than-stellar cork and keep my fingers crossed for the remaining five bottles. Very Good. 89 Points.

2018 Hugel Riesling Classic, Alsace, France: Retail $25. Responsible Bottle (519g; 18.3oz). DIAM 5 closure. Hugel is perhaps the name in Alsatian wines, with the house founded in Riquewihr in 1639, and this is their flagship wine. A light straw color with golden highlights, there is a distinct lemon zest and green apple combo on the nose with just a hint of petrol. The palate comes of as quite dry (but there is 3.7 g/l of residual sugar), with plenty of fruit and boatloads of tart, lip-smacking acidity. While this is fantastic on its own, there is no doubt that this will shine even brighter with food. Excellent. 91 Points.

2019 Roaming Dog Chardonnay, Columbia Valley, WA: Retail $13. Very Responsible Bottle (463g; 16.3oz). Under screwcap. There was a time that I was receiving samples from the Acquilini Family on the regular. Well, those days came to an end for whatever reason and this is one of the few leftovers that I have in the cellar. When I tasted the other bottle back in 2020, I liked it enough (88 Points), but I am not quite sure how I feel about this bottle. On day one, it was solid, certainly quaffable, on the big side, but manageable. Day 2? It’s a different animal altogether with some astringency on the nose and an odd marzipan kinda vibe (not in a good way) on the palate. Yeah. Day 2 is close to down-the-drain not good. Weird. Unrated.

NV Taittinger Champagne Cuvée Prestige, France: Retail $50. Extremely Heavy Bottle (835g; 29.5oz). 60% Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, 40% Chardonnay. OK, so far, out of the six bottles purchased, two “good” ones (including this one), two “meh” bottles, and two more corks to pop. Overall? There are better champagnes out there at this price. Very Good. 89 Points.

WINE OF THE WEEK: If I am being honest, this was a rather mediocre week for pulling wines from the cellar. Also, the photo above comes from way back in 2017 when this week’s Wine of the Week, the 2007 Joseph Drouhin Moulin-à-Vent was also Wine of the Week. I normally do not like repeat winners, but I am going to make an exception for a nearly 20 year-old Beaujolais. I am out in Oregon this week, home of some of this country’s best Pinot Noir, and while there is some Gamay out here, there does not seem to be much interest in planting much more. I guess the variety will always play second fiddle to Pinot Noir, which is too bad.

What was your Wine of the Week?