What's Pressoir Drinking?

Domaine Chapel Beaujolais Villages 2017

by Raj Vaidya
Tuesday, December 15th, 2020

Last week I recapped our Club Member dinner at Daniel featuring the wines of Domaine Mugneret-Gibourg. After the dinner, Chef Daniel was kind enough to invite Daniel, Edouard and myself to have a quick bite and to do a little raiding of the cellar I had the honor of building over the last eleven years. I immediately jumped on the opportunity to taste a bottle I have been thinking about all summer. This was the first vintage of Beaujolais Villages for the Domaine Chapel, a small winery founded in 2016 by David Chapel (son of famed Michelin starred Chef Alain Chapel) and his wife (and my dear friend) Michele Smith. Michele and I worked together at Thomas Keller’s Per Se back in the mid-2000’s and I’ve been buying the wines since the first vintage enthusiastically. This was a chance to taste a delicious, albeit humble wine from the Domaine which has had a chance to mature a bit. Typically Beaujolais Villages is all slurped up within the first year after release so this was a rare opportunity…

The wine had retained its juicy fruit forward mid-palate but had gained in complexity. The stony mineral character had really developed and the wine was distinctly more salty than it showed upon release. Cherry, spiced berries, and a hint of smoke on the palate rounded it out beautifully. And yet it remained true to Beaujolais, and extremely drinkable, as we polished it off in no time!

There are still a few bottles in the restaurant’s cellar, be sure to check them out next time you visit their outdoor (heated) cabanas!

What's Pressoir Drinking? (Turkey Day Edition...)

November 25, 2020

Raj Vaidya - Ulrich Stein, Riesling Kabinett Feinherb 2013

I’ve long been a proponent of drinking whites with fowl rather than leaning into the habit of picking a red, and while I think turkey is a pretty blank canvas for pairings, I like to pay more attention to pairing wines with the rest of the spread on the Thanksgiving table. With the smokiness of the sausage in my stuffing (shamelessly purchased from Restaurant Daniel rather than making it myself), the grilled squash I plan to serve and the sweet and salty cranberry jelly, I like to drink a slightly off dry Riesling from Germany, so I’ve picked one of my favorite producers, Ulrich Stein’s Kabinett Feinherb from 2013. Delicate, super mineral, with the weight of a feather and the palate reminiscent of rainwater, the perfect wine for tomorrow’s festivities…

Justine Puaud - Domaine Huet, Vouvray “Le Mont” Sec 1993

I always love to pair poultry with a juicy and elegant Pinot Noir. But this year I will go for something different. We chose the wine based on the stuffing. For this Thanksgiving holiday, we will stuff the turkey with raisins, prunes, nuts and a little bit of foie gras (as always!!!) and decided to open a Chenin from Domaine Huet Vouvray “Le Mont” sec 1993. I bought this bottle from our good friend James of restaurant Popina. My husband and I are Chenin lovers and are looking forward to discovering it.

For many wine insiders, Le Mont is one of Vouvray’s greatest vineyards. Some people even say it is indisputably a Grand Cru vineyard. With age, Le Mont develops strong perfume, great length and finesse. The richness of this age worthy Chenin Blanc will pair perfectly with the dry fruits in the stuffing and the saline aromas and notes of petrol will go superbly with the foie gras. My mouth is already watering….

Max Goldberg Liu - Domaine Didier Fornerol, Côte de Nuits Villages Rouge “La Rue des Foins” 2013 en magnum

While our Thanksgiving table will be a bit smaller than usual this year, the wines we drink can give back some of the warmth of being with family and friends. I’m looking forward to sharing this magnum from a winemaker friend, Didier Fornerol - it’s more generous and fruit-driven than many 2013 Red Burgundies I’ve had, but still has the vintage’s trademark cranberry or grapefruit-like tanginess that I think will be a great foil for the turkey.

J

aime Dutton - Champagne Chartogne-Taillet Les Barres Extra Brut

As I was picking out wines for our Thanksgiving  festivities, I went straight to Champagne this year. Not just for the celebratory moment of the holidays but because I love Champagne and I love the wines of Alex Chartogne and I cannot wait to pop this bottle tomorrow! This year we will just be 6 at our table and 2 of them prefer sparkling cider, so I am very happy that I will be able to enjoy this Champagne not only at the start of the evening but also when we sit down to the table.

As our plates are filled with turkey, stuffing, fresh Cape Cod cranberry sauce, sweet potato and squash all doused in gravy, I can imagine there is nothing better than enjoying more than a glass of Chartogne’s Les Barres.

This bottle is from the 2011 harvest and is 100% Pinot Meunier.

Eléonore Lafarge - Domaine Trapet, Gevrey Chambertin 2017

I will celebrate my first Thanksgiving this year. Since this is a time to enjoy with your family, I wanted to feel like I was at home during these festivities, so I decided to drink a Gevrey Chambertin from Domaine Trapet from 2017. My family has always been close to the Trapet family, so enjoying a bottle of Trapet always makes me feel at home.

I am going to enjoy the traditional Thanksgiving menu, so this bottle should pair perfectly with the turkey. I am already hungry and thirsty when I think about tomorrow!

Daniel and Sally - Domaine Simon Bize, Savigny les Beaune 1er Cru Les Guettes 1993.

Our small family gathering this Thanksgiving will enjoy a magnum of Domaine Simon Bize, Savigny les Beaune 1er Cru Les Guettes 1993. Not only will the wine pair perfectly with the flavorful heritage turkey raised by our neighbor upstate but it is another way of giving thanks to friends and family. Patrick Bize was one of my dearest friends in Burgundy and this wine will remind me of how thankful I am to have known him and enjoyed so many great times with him.

Edouard - Domaine de la Grand’ Cour Fleurie Lieu-dit “Champagne” Cuvée Vieilles Vignes 2017 from Dutraive

For those who know me, my wine choice for Thanksgiving may not come as a surprise. Yes, I love Beaujolais. An often, this wonderful wine is considered the best companion for turkey, so I couldn’t resist. I’ve been wondering how the cliché of Beaujolais for Thanksgiving was born. Is it because of timing? Probably. Beaujolais nouveau is celebrated on the 3rd Thursday of November while Thanksgiving happens the week after. Or perhaps people found out that a juicy, delicious Gamay was the perfect answer to an often dry bird meat (not everyone masters turkey roasting like Julia Child…). Anyway, for me, Beaujolais has its place on the table everyday, with arguably all sorts of food, if any!

The wine pictured here was made by winemaker Jean-Louis Dutraive, an incredibly generous and talented man I had the chance to visit him at his domaine in Fleurie, Beaujolais. I was also around when, during a Paulée in NYC a few years ago, he opened some of his old bottlings from the 1990’s and the crowd, sipping on Pinot Noir from DRC and Chardonnay from Leflaive, dropped their jaw as they experienced the incredible freshness from such old wines, and on top of that, from Beaujolais!

Jean-Louis’ wines are easy to recognize among others. First, simply by looking at their robe. Because they’re never filtered nor fined, they usually appear slightly cloudy, with an intense light ruby color splashed with hints of fuchsia. I found his wines to always be incredibly expressive, almost exuberant at times. Aromatically, I guess the name of the appellation “Fleurie” has the psychological power to suggest scents of flower but I do find the aromatic palette to be loaded with violets, tulips and roses. The smell of wine may be called “bouquet” for a reason.

Whenever I serve Beaujolais to my guests and friends, I really enjoy watching them take a sip and immediately see an irresistible grin light up their face.

News from the vineyard 7/15/20

The height of summer means the canopy management work is finished and all that remains for the hard working crew at Domaine Chapel, in their old vine vineyard Charbonnières in Fleurie, is to pick the wild strawberries and await the ripening that late July and August brings.

Domaine Chapel is a winery started in 2016 by David Chapel (son of famed three-star Michelin Chef Alain Chapel) and his wife, Michele Smith (formerly a NYC sommelier.) Lucie and Eva, foraging below, are their only full time employees (in practice they are actually volunteers and work for room and board!) The old vines of the Charbonnières vineyard are among their top holdings.