...Coteau de la Biche
2020 – Vinous, Rebecca Gibb MW
A charming, welcoming, very suave 2020 Vouvray Sec Coteau de la Biche with no edges. This expands in the mouth; there’s good concentration and fine tannic structure that provides a gentle chalky finish. Very satisfying and succulent with a lovely smoky note at the end. The 7g/L of residual sugar keeps things juicy and succulent rather than adding overt sweetness. 90
2015 — The Wine Doctor
This is vinified mostly in stainless steel, with a small portion of the wine aged in 400-litre barrels before a final blending and bottling. After more than four years in bottle it displays a very pale, delicate, straw-tinged hue in the glass. The nose is very expressive, suggesting the generosity of the vintage. with a rich aromatic array of smoky citrus fruits with a pithy edge, along with notes of crushed limestone and flint, as well as more interesting gun powder notes. It feels smart, confident, refined and a touch reductive, a character I like very much. The palate is full and pithy, and not bone dry; the sec category in Vouvray permits residual sugar levels up to (and including) 8 g/l, and although I don’t have the wine’s technical details to hand I suspect this is at the top end of that range, a feeling perhaps reinforced by the wine’s gentle acidity. The focus of the palate is therefore breadth and substance rather than incisive structure, the style communicating the richness of the vintage with transparency. It feels pithy, phenolic and yet fresh. The one thing it lacks is a little length, nevertheless I feel consistently drawn back to the glass, so there is certainly something good here. For label images and more see my Weekend Wine write-up. 91/100
2009 – The Wine Doctor
This cuvée is sourced from the vines situated directly behind the cellars, at Cave de la Biche. It opens with a nose of smoky almond and lemon fruits, with some quite floral elements, the overarching style pretty and scented. It has a polished presence, with a firm texture and good substance. The flavour profile is evolving some complexity, with a touch of liquorice, and a lightly peppery vigour. In feels fairly fresh and lively for its age, with a welcome acid zip in the finish, although overall it still has that rather austere, old-school style. 89/100 (October 2020)
2000 – The Wine Doctor
At twenty years of age this wine, from the domaine’s ‘original’ vines, presents an intriguing and evolved character, with a smoky, grained and toasted-almond nose, and yet it still manages to convey a sense of mineral energy. The palate feels correspondingly fresh and smoky, pure and cool, with a bright acidity providing some lift. This gives it a fresh character, despite the rich liquorice, toast and vanilla flower profile. A good energy here, and a clear indicator that these wines can age and evolve in a positive fashion. 90/100 (October 2020)
1990 – The Wine Doctor
Despite having been in the bottle for close to thirty years this wine still displays a pale golden yellow colour in the glass, one that is undeniably impressive for its age. The aromatics are certainly evolved and intriguing, with a lightly cheesy note to start with, followed by waves of vanilla, toast and praline. Despite its youthful appearance it is clear that this is evolving. The palate only serves to confirm this, showing a polished and grained substance with complex nuances of liquorice and toasted fruits, with a good sense of energy. It certainly has both acidity and freshness. Its taken thirty years to get here, but this certainly piques my interest. 91/100 (October 2020)
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