Domaine de Pouy 2021 White (Côtes de Gascogne)

86 pts from Wine Enthusiast

Domaine de Pouy has been one of France’s best white wine producers for decades. Robert Parker, Jr. himself spent years gushing over the wines, calling it “always one of his favorite inexpensive dry whites”, “One of America’s finest white wine values” and that the “exuberant, super-aromatic white was one of the best in Côtes de Gascogne, a region known for churning out some of the most interesting and affordable wines anywhere in the world.

The 2021 Domaine de Pouy Côtes de Gascogne is a fantastic white wine value that owes much of its energy and freshness to its cold soaks on the skins during harvest and never touching oak in the aging process. That leaves a pent up white wine loaded with aromatics that jumps out of the bottle with green apple, melon and citrus with a racy finish. It’s juicy, crisp and a good compliment to pretty much anything on the table.

Jacky Janodet Domaine les Fines Graves Beaujolais Villages

The late Jacky Janodet was known as an artisan producer of first class Cru Beaujolais. In the venerable region of Moulin-A-Vent, Janodet’s 17.2 acres of vineyards, the Domaine Les Fines Graves, with their high percentage of very old vines, yield wines which are incredibly rich and powerful for Beaujolais, often improving with several years in bottle. Today the domaine is ably run by Jacky’s wife Evelyn and their son, Jerome. The Domaine Les Fines Graves continues to produce excellent wines from the Beaujolais Villages, Chénas and St. Amour appellations. However, it is the Moulin-à-Vent, the queen of Beaujolais, that reigns at this estate. Deep, brooding and quite Burgundian in nature, this is one of the most masculine and age-worthy of all Beaujolais wines. Jérôme also has his own enterprise and makes a sumptuous Saint Amour from his Domaine des Vieilles Caves. A mere 250 cases a year are made from this plot of 75 to 100 year-old vines formerly owned by Jérôme’s grandfather.

100% Gamay with tasting notes of juicy plums and their skins, cherries, earth and grapes. Silky and delicious in texture.

Traditional semi-carbonic fermentation in large vat. Aging for 6 months, assemblage takes place in cement vats, after which the wine is bottled.