Tasting notes from the 2023 AGM at The Hanger Museum

The AGM this year was held on May 7, 2024 at the Flight Museum on McKnight Blvd just south of the airport. It is an interesting venue with quite a few old vintage aircrafts from the Second World War era. Due to the interesting venue and the exhibit, your Board of Directors chose a theme of Wine and War, and to complement the theme, we served a flight of all French wines from six French wine regions: Alsace, Burgundy, Loire Valley, Bordeaux and Rhone.

The business session of the AGM was done in record time of 15 – 20 minutes. Then a few

excerpts from the book “Wine and War” by Don & Petie Kladstrup (Broadway Books, New York) was presented. The book was a collection of real stories of the French vineyards’ and restaurants’ efforts to protect and hide their best wines from the Nazi; interesting stories not only of building false walls in their cellars, switching labels and vintage year, submerging their wines in ponds, but also of stories of collecting dust bales from a carpet cleaner to make their wine bottles look older to collecting rat droppings to make their chateau looked dirty to prevent the Nazi from taking over the chateau and converting it to a brothel.

After a few brief stories from the book, it was drinking time. The following is a record of the

wine list and my tasting notes, in the order of the tasting.

NV Wolfberger Cremant d’Alsace Brut, Alsace. 60% Pinot Blanc, 35% Riesling, 5% Pinot Gris

Straw colour with a green tinge. Nice fizz. Nice full mouth feel. Clean fresh on the nose with a hint of yeast. Very pleasant. Not quite a champagne but better than a lot of other sparkling wines from other parts of the world. Value for the money.

regular price $27.99 with FOV discount $18.91 at Crowfoot Liquor and Wines

2022 Louis-Jadot Macon-Lugny, Bourgogne 100% Chardonnay

Yellow straw colour. Nose of green apple, citrous notes, and floral. Nice round mouthfeel and a good long finish. Lugny is one of the Macon villages and is one the best among the villages. Good pairing with shellfish, chickens and mild soft cheeses.

regular price $31.99 with FOV discount $28.79 at Willow Park

2022 Domaine Sautereau Sancerre, Loire Valley 100% Sauvignon Blanc

White gold colour. At first quite tight and took a little bit of time to open up. Nose of fruity aromas hinting at melons, plums and apricot with hints of floral and minerals. Nice acidity and round mouthfeel. Lingering finish. Good pairing with salmon and oily fish.

regular price $39.99 with FOV discount $33.29 at Willow Park

2021 Louis-Jadot Bourgogne 100% Pinot Noir

Red burgundy colour. Nose of red cherry, raspberry, spices, and chocolate with notes of minerals. Silky texture, soft gentle tannins, medium body and medium finish. Very representative of what a red burgundy should be. Will pair well with chicken, pork and beef.

regular price $36.99 with FOV discount $33.29 at Willow Park

2020 Chateau Piney Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Bordeaux mostly Merlot

Dark garnet colour, almost inky. Nose of red and black fruits, spices, licorice with a hint of leather. Firm tannins with nice acidity. Very drinkable now but with enough structure for aging a few years. I think this is a bargain for the price. For pairing, think duck, lamb and beef.

regular price $35.49 with FOV discount $31.94 at Willow Park

2018 Famille Perrin Les Christins Vacqueyras, Rhone 75% Grenache, 25% Syrah

Deep purple inky colour. Powerful and complex nose of cocoa, black and red cherries, spices, liquorice and hints of violet and minerals. Smooth round mouthfeel. Firm yet smooth tannins. Nice long finish. This wine has all the elements for long aging potential and yet very approachable now. For pairing, think rustic cooking like beef stew, lamb shoulder, braised short ribs and game. This is drinking like a Chateauneuf-de-Pape but at not even half the price. My secret: I love this so much I went back to the store to get three more bottles for my own cellar after the tasting.

regular price $32.99 with FOV discount $29.69 at Willow Park

For members who missed the AGM, I hope to see you at the next AGM. We will have fun!