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2009: Wine in Context

Having recounted the year in some detail (in parts one and two), I think it's only fair to shine the limelight onto a handful of specific wines, some of which I have already featured quite prominently, some of which I have not. But as with my annual review per se, this is not just about what's in the bottle, it is about the whole experience. Well, in most cases it is; sometimes the wine shone through regardless of the context.

2009: The Top Four

• 1. Ferme de le Sansonnière Rose d'un Jour 2008
• 2. Château Léoville-Las-Cases 2008
• 3. Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises 1999
• 4. The red wines of Alphonse Mellot

Marc Angeli's rosé, taken on a sunny summer afternoon, in the perfect setting, is the leading candidate for my top wine moment of 2009. In truth any rosé would have been a good choice in this sort of situation, and I would typically reach for one from Tempier, or in more recent times a bottle from Pierre Jacques Druet, but in this case Marc Angeli's bottle was at the top of the pile. And what a choice! It raised the whole event up several notches, with its vibrancy, precision and freshness. A real mouthful of joy.

The latest vintage of Léoville-Las-Cases was one of those real metaphorical face-slaps, one of those moments when you approach a wine on autopilot, perhaps a little absent-mindedly, but your mind is brought back into focus with a jolt when the wine touches you with its aroma, flavour or texture. In this case, I was sitting in a chair inside the tasting room at Léoville-Las-Cases, just off the main road through St Julien, tasting through the portfolio (which includes Nenin, Potensac and Clos du Marquis as well as the grand vin). I was distracted for a moment by the arrival of Jancis Robinson and a fair-sized entourage, glimpsed through the window to my left, and as I watched them being escorted into the ultra-private tasting room for true wine celebs, my nose found the Léoville-Las-Cases, and wham! What a fabulous set of aromas, and the palate was just as impressive; it was a war cry for 2008, a sign that there were some truly great wines in this vintage, that this was not a year in which to ignore Bordeaux, and the circumstances of this realisation only served to make the moment even more significant for me. I only wish I could put some away in the cellar so that I could try to rediscover the sensation some time in the future

Meanwhile Bollinger's fabulous Vieilles Vignes Françaises is an obvious contender for inclusion here; in fact I dare not exclude it! How could any taste of Bollinger be more special than when taken in the house where Lily Bollinger lived for so many years? The fact that the wine was stunning only served to heighten the pleasure. What a great moment that was! Sometimes though it is not so much the context of a wine, but rather the wake-up call it awards you, akin to the Léoville-Las-Cases experience. That was certainly the case with the wines of Alphonse Mellot, tasted at the Salon in February 2009, when I encountered a portfolio of red Sancerre with more density, richness and substance - and yet still with bright flavours and great freshness - than I have ever encountered. Suddenly, a whole appellation seemed to come alive for me. If a tasting achieves that, it can surely only be a good thing!

Winedoctor: Disclosure

It should be clear from my writings on Winedoctor that I am in receipt of aid and hospitality from a number of bodies within the wine trade. Nevertheless it is only right that, at the end of the year, I recount all such fiscal support. I have been remiss in not doing this in previous years, but not this year.

Support received:

• Albert Bichot: press trip to visit Burgundy and the Albert Bichot domaines, including travel, accommodation and hospitality
• Yvon Mau/Freixenet: press trip for 2008 Bordeaux, including travel, accommodation and hospitality
• Mentzendorff: press trip to visit Bollinger, including travel, accommodation and hospitality
• Samples received: too many sources to mention, but a wide range of wines for review from merchants, PR firms and producers.
• Gifts received (and accepted): one bottle Bollinger Grande Année 2000, one bottle Albert Bichot Pommard Premier Cru Clos Micault 2003, one Bollinger diary and t-shirt.
• Free meals for restaurant reviews: two such meals offered in order to obtain a restaurant review, both declined.

It is also only right that I point out the tasting and events where I have funded attendance myself. This section should also feature a large majority of the wines that appear on Winedoctor, many of which (especially a good number of those from the Loire, and the more mature wines, especially Bordeaux) have been purchased using funds from my own pocket.

Self-funded tastings and events:

• Annual Australia Day Tasting, Edinburgh
• Salon des Vins de Loire, Angers, France
• Renaissance des Appellations tasting, Angers, France
• Charles Sydney breakfast tasting, Angers, France
• Enotria trade tasting, Edinburgh
• Annual Champagne tasting, London
• Liberty Wines trade tasting, Edinburgh
• 50 Great Portuguese Wines, Edinburgh
• Tasting Krug with Julie Cavil and Woodwinters, Bridge of Allan
• Visit and tastings at Begude, Rives-Blanques and Antech in Limoux, France
• Huet, tasting demi-sec and the 2008 vintage, Királyudvar tasting, London
• UGC tasting of the 2007 Bordeaux vintage, London
• IMW tasting of the 2005 Bordeaux vintage, London
• Tasting South Africa with Richard Kelley, Linlithgow

And Now it's Your Turn....

What are your favourite wine moments of 2009? Have you opened a special bottle to celebrate a great occasion, a significant birthday, a wedding, graduation or perhaps something a little more unusual or obscure? Perhaps you have sipped an ancient vintage from the Wehlener Sonnenuhr vineyard whilst sitting beneath the sundial, or fulfilled a long-held dream to visit the vineyards of some far-flung nation?

Wine in Context moments don't have to concern only great or expensive wines to qualify, it's the context that I'm looking for! So send me your best wine moments of 2009, and if I receive more than one reply I will post them online (I am assuming your consent for that!). Email them to me here. (17/12/09)