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 Collery Champagne Grand Cru Extra Brut, Champagne, France: Retail $70. Extremely Heavy Bottle (828g; 29.2oz). 100% Chardonnay. When I saw this on Last Bubbles, I was struck by a couple of things. The first is that this is a Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs from Aÿ, a town on the Montagne de Reims, which is home to the best Pinot Noir in Champagne (not Chardonnay, necessarily). The second? It was only thirty-two bucks. No brainer. I bought a case. The first bottle we opened, we transported from our home in Houston to a little stay-cation in Austin, where we popped it binging on Emily in Paris (don’t judge). The cork indicated that this has been in bottle for a while, which is just fine with me. Initially quite tart, but it eventually mellowed into a quite lovely, creamy, decadent, delight with wonderful fruit (citrus, pear, even some fresh peach), a fresh-baked yeastiness that is captivating, and, yes, a ton of verve. The palate is even more. More of all of it. Even at full retail, this wine delivers on every level; at more than half-off? I clearly should have bought more. Outstanding. 96 Points.

2005 Couly-Dutheil Clos de l’Echo, Chinon, Loire Valley, France: Retail $45. Responsible Bottle (553g; 19.5oz). 100% Cabernet Franc. The third and last bottle of this wine and it falls conveniently smack dab in the middle of the other two. Quite dark in the glass with aromas of black fruit (dried and slightly stewed) with some forest floor and even a touch of tobacco. The fruit has faded, but it is still a lovely quaff with interesting secondary aromas and flavors that impress, and struggle slightly to keep up with the still vibrant acidity. Look, it’s a 20-year-old wine that is still holding on…. Excellent. 91 Points.

2022 Joseph Drouhin Bourgogne, France: Retail $30. Responsible Bottle (568g; 20.0oz). 100% Pinot Noir. Tons of cherry, a touch of fruit, weight, a touch of bravado, and even some chutzpah. Yeah, this is no DRC, but it is a solid Burgundy. It’s fruity, more of a “New World” Pinot Noir wrapped up in a traditional Burgundy bottle and label. I really have no complaints. Excellent. 90 Points.

2023 Littorai Pinot Noir Les Larmes, Anderson Valley, CA: Restaurant $110. We were in Austin for a little stay-cation; a brief respite from the kids and the in-laws, While I felt guilty leaving, it was the brain-child of my wife and proved to be a near-perfect remedy for our respective ails. Our favorite Austin restaurant, Apt 115, welcomed us with a wide-open door and superior service. This was our third bottle (!) of the night, preceded by a 2022 Grand Cru champagne (amazing!), and an outstanding Knoll Chardonnay Smaragd, which is as rare as an introspective lottery-winner. This Littorai though? Whoa. Light to medium in color with plenty of fruit (dark cherry) and that Central Coast Lightness with oodles of verve and flair. The palate is fruity, alive, and utterly delicious, with a boatload of fruit (wild cherry), a relentless acidity, and incredible balance. I thought this would be good, but this good? Whoa. Yeah, this is next level kinda good. Outstanding. 95 Points.

2024 Les Sarrins Rosé, Côtes de Provence, France: Retail $25. Very Heavy Bottle (707g; 24.9oz). Agglomerated stopper. Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah. This is a wine that we drink by the case; it has been on-and-off on sale at our local H-E-B (I love my H-E-B), and when it is reduced? We buy a ton. An exceptional rosé at just over thirteen bucks? Um, yeah, sign me up tonight and every night. It is currently about 24 degrees outside, but that never stops us from drinking rosé, particularly when it is this good. Made by Bruno Paillard. Yeah, THAT Bruno Paillard. Outstanding. 93 Points.

2022 Vietti Langhe Nebbiolo Perbacco, Langhe DOC, Piedmont, Italy: Restaurant $80. 100% Nebbiolo. Under DIAM10. We were in Austin for the weekend, and we got in much later than expected, so we settled for dinner at the hotel. Meh. Well, actually, the pasta and the pizza were well above average, as was this wine. I have a passing familiarity with Vietti, enough to know that just about every wine they produce is fan-tas-ma-gorical (technical term). And while this wine was certainly pricey (I think retail is around $25), it is completely delicious. Medium color with wonderful red and black fruit (raspberry, cherry, plum) on the nose, really fantastic. The palate is subtle, particularly given the exuberant nose, with a zingy tartness and ebullient fruit and plenty of verve. OK, Yowza. And Whoa? Outstanding. 93 Points.

WINE OF THE WEEK: As I have mentioned countless times by this point, we drink a ton of champagne, which means that we also buy a ton of the stuff. I try to do my due diligence before clicking “pay” but once in a while I go out on a limb. Such was the case with this week’s Wine of the Week, the Collery Champagne Grand Cru Extra Brut. Buying a Grand Cru champagne is not necessarily “going out on a limb” but still, I had never heard of the producer much less ever tasted any of its wines. Needless to say, I was delightfully surprised.

What was your Wine of the Week?