La Grange Tiphaine, 2018 Update
I was delighted to be able to taste a selection of recently released wines from Coralie and Damien Delecheneau of La Grange Tiphaine earlier this year. My joy reflects not merely the fact that I take pleasure in tasting new wines, especially if these new wines happen to be the latest vintage from a high-flying domaine in the once much-maligned Montlouis-sur-Loire appellation. No, the pleasure here is more personal, because I know Damien and Coralie (and, to be fair, many others in the Montlouis-sur-Loire appellation) have had an extraordinarily tough time of it recently, with several recent vintages having been seriously impacted by frost. Many of the wines tasted here originated in the 2016 vintage, when Montlouis-sur-Loire was hit particularly hard, so it was a privilege to be able to taste these wines.
As always Damien (pictured) poured a selection of wines both white and red, from both the Montlouis-sur-Loire and Touraine appellations, as well as two wonderful sparkling wines.
The Wines
The last vintage of Nouveau Nez I tasted was the 2014 vintage, written up here, and the 2015 Nouveau Nez looks to be just as convincing. For an even greater sense of fun though, I recommend getting hold of a bottle of the 2016 Rosa, Rosé, Rosam cuvée, a sparkling pétillant naturel made from a blend of Grolleau, Côt, Cabernet Franc and Gamay. Damien and Coralie describe in as a vin de piscine, but I can’t help thinking it deserves something more than mere pool-side glugging; I would certainly drink this as an apéro in preference to many other sparkling rosés I have encountered over the years.
