Cote de Beaune-Villages

2000 Maison Champy, Cote de Beaune-Village ($20) -- Bourgone. Couldn't find much in the way of production notes for the 2000 Pinot Noir, but enjoyed this wine very much with dinner tonight.

Smokey complex aromatics with full fruit flavors and medium to long finish. I will be buying more!

Gigondas

2001 Jerome Quiot Gigondas ($16) -- Red Rhone. I guess February is turning into French Wine Month here at the shop. Here is a candidate for one of the better poor man's Chateauneuf-du-Pape.

The vineyards are made up of 75% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 10% Mourvedre, 5% Clairette and Cinsault. On first opening not much nose, but has very pleasant soft fruit flavors that went well with my lunch of Chicken Parmesan and Garlic Bread. The finish was medium to long.

Erie Avenue Blind

It wasn't on Erie Avenue and it really wasn't too blind, but four of us did show up to enjoy some back vintage French whites. And one of the French whites wasn't French, it was the Kalin Cellars 1996 Sauvignon Blanc and it did fool three out of the four.

Afterwards we wandered down to Pho Paris to take advantage of Half-Priced Wine Night. This beauty wasn't half-priced but had an aroma full of complex fruit that wouldn't stop. Whose brilliant idea was it to order the 1997 Chateau Haut-Brion!