Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Domaine Guion Bourgueil

Though I didn’t take notes when drinking the 2007 Bourgueil “Cuvée Domaine” from Domaine Guion a month or two back, I remember it leaving me somewhat nonplussed. Good wine, certainly. Drinkable, an easy bistro wine, but not much more. A little lean and monochromatic. I’ve heard positive things about Guion’s wines though, from people whose opinions I trust, so when it came time to select something to pair with a simple market dinner – grilled pork chops, seasoned with nothing more than salt and pepper, and a mixed green salad – out came the slightly more “serious” wine from Domaine Guion.


Bourgueil “Cuvée Prestige,” Domaine Guion (Stéphane Guion) 2005
$14. 12.5% alcohol. Cork. Importer: Fruits of the Vines, New York, NY.

First off, fourteen bucks? This is a seriously good value, especially given that, as mentioned above, it is the estate’s more elaborate wine (the “Domaine” bottling goes for $11). A bright, translucent red with violet highlights, it shines that slightly surreal color of raspberry sorbet – the natural stuff, not the dyed blue variety. Brett is the first thing that greets the nose, savory more than off-putting, attractive in its fresh-stomped aromas of the barnyard. The wine’s not flawless but it’s all the more interesting for its crooks and freckles.

Blackberries, slightly under ripe black cherries and a muddle of green and black peppercorns first strike the palate and are echoed on the nose once past the wine’s Brett-driven pungency. Slightly sour acidity and a taut, narrow tannic profile make this a wine for the table, for sure; delicious with my pork chop but more than a little challenging as an easy sipping wine. Again, that complicated essence is one of the qualities that most endears me to good Loire Cabernet Franc.

As things open up and settle in, the wine’s blue- and red-fruited nature comes to the fore – plums, blueberries, boysenberries…. And yes, it’s also very floral, with a nose not unlike the slightly rustic side of cool vintage Northern Rhône Syrah – hothouse flowers, baking spices, berry fruit and animal aromatics. Fourteen bucks? Yep, I could happily drink this on a regular basis.

7 comments:

tom said...

I like the “Cuvée Domaine” -- yes, a bit of an ugly duckling -- but some good funk and interesting green tea component make for an interesting pour. I shared a couple of bottle with friends and they didn't share my enthusiasm, but I thought it was an interesting bottle and very good food wine.

Samantha Dugan said...

I love it when this happens, not what is expected but lovely...

bill l said...

i really liked the cuvee domaine. went thru half a case pretty fast.
not sure about the red label. too much brett for me.

David McDuff said...

Alright, alright, you've convinced me... I'll give the "Cuvée Domaine" another try. It's not so much that I didn't like it, just that it didn't really move me. Kind of reminded me of Filliatreau's flower label but not as pretty.

Dr. Vino said...

Cuvee Prestige 05 rocks! I bought a couple of cases to see if a few bottles can make it a decade. But I probably can't keep my hands off them...

Cheers,

Tyler

David McDuff said...

Hey Tyler,

At least try to keep your hands off a bottle or two. It should be interesting to see how it develops over the next few years. I'd stash a couple myself, but there's no friggin' room in my cellar.

Anonymous said...

The 2006 is stellar

http://www.cabriniwines.com/sku25003.html

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