We Poached some salmon last night and tried to pair it with a French red, to varying degrees of success.

First up: Domaine Faiveley Mercurey Domaine De La Croix Jacquelet, 2004

Pinot Noir. Very pale ruby color. Shy nose -almost nonexistent. Clearly something wrong on the palate - very very thin and acidic. Fiercely so -and bitter -especially on the finish. Undrinkable upon pouring, I decanted to see what would happen after a few hours. Nope. This wine was either flawed in some way, or is simply an unsuccessful effort. Disappointing.

Next: Michel Tête (domaine du Clos du Fief) Juliénas Vieilles Vignes 2006

Gamay. Better - Richer ruby color and a huge amount of strawberries wafting from the glass. A definite balsamic note coming through, along with a little clove, violet, and pencil shavings. Lean, with a strong acidic lift and ripe fruit - but missing a little something in the middle. It did fatten up with air-time and thus was much easier to enjoy with the fish. Thumbs up, and clearer the stronger wine of the two, but I almost wish I would’ve waited on this bottle.

~$14US, 100% Gamay Noir, Chenas, Cru Beaujolais, France

Ruby color. Pencils and crayons and cherries. Zesty acidity but a lovely round ripeness to the fruit. Complexity via herbal notes in the finish - sage and thyme, with a little woody asparagus. Medium bodied an edge of firm tannins to close the deal. A very fine Chenas with at least  2 more years of upside potential.

~$15US, Gamay / Pinot Noir Blend, Cheverny, Loire Valley, France

Cheverny is one of the many unheralded appellations within the Loire Valley a.k.a. The Garden of France. By appellation law both red and white  wines must be blends - so the actual mix is here unknown, but Gamay Noir and Pino Noir are both in play - predominately Gamay.

After popping there was definitely some barnyard funk and a rustic edge, so I decided to decant to let things blow off. After about an hour, aromas were much more harmonious; obvious cherries and something like the smell of the forest right after a rain…damp and earthy. Home-grown, understated, but over-achieving, like a back-woods guitar prodigy that can play like the devil, but doesn’t realize it’s anything special.

A great food partner with medium-bodied cuisine - nothing too exotic and bold, and nothing too delicate. Grilled pork, salmon, simple pastas, and goat cheeses all would make easy friends.

~$22US, 100% Gamay, Fleurie, Cru Beaujolais

This summer’s Beaujolais adventure takes me to Fleurie, one of the 10 Crus in the region known for it’s eponymous floral aspects. This is my first 2006, which I understand to be a textbook year in Beaujolais, yielding characterful and focused wines.

Bright ruby color with the slightest yellow and magenta hues at the rim. There is a cool haze, which I attribute to the importer ’s (Kermit Lynch) appreciable insistence on non-filtering for purity. Very aromatic nose - strawberries and violets go on and on - very clear and definite. The palate is soft and sweet on entry and moves into a cranberry tartness which is just mouthwatering. Pencil-box flavors come into focus for a moment and more flowers and spice hit toward the finish - something like a sandalwood soap (?) - but cranberries and strawberries really persist. The lightest dusting of tannins finish it out. Can I say strawberries again? Right off the vine.

Pure and vibrant - walking the line between elegance and opulence. Without question, the palate here rivals that of a fine Pinot Noir - but it’s lighter and a little higher-pitched. It lights up with food (light-medium bodied fare) - Poached salmon? all day long. Turkey sandwich? brilliant. Light pasta? no prob. It’s drinking so well now, I don’t have the patience to wait to see how it evolves - the purity of fruit here is really the key - but will probably show other dimensions in the next 3 years. Excellent wine. A sleeper.

Update: I Vac’d ~300ml in half-bottle and popped it 24 hours later. Better integration and lusher  - with the fruit was as vibrant as ever. Even better - You could really confound folks in a blind tasting w/ this and some old and new-world Pinots.

~$17US, 100% Gamay, Cote de Brouilly, Cru Beaujolais, France

Delicate floral nose. High-toned palate, with pure and light cherry flavors supported by a tremendous acidic backbone. Graphite and lavender. Fattened up nicely with air, making me feel that this could live a few more years in the cellar. A perfect pairing with goat cheese, and one of those rare red-wines to enjoy with fish. Love the old-school label.