Domaine du Collier, Saumur, Blanc

Terrific bottle of this. As usual the right food helps. But even before dinner this was so good. Pale yellow gold color. Typical Chenin Blanc flavors of hay, pear and chamomile but with great freshness as well. With our dinner of an umami-rich butter/miso pasta with shiitake mushroom and spinach this was at another level. Perfect pairing. I wish I had more.

A private dinner (Restaurant De Lage Vuursche, Lage Vuursche, NL) : Bright and vibrant, especially for a twelve year old dry white wine, totally classical Chenin Blanc flavour profite, waxy bottle-age, very good intensity and length. Excellent, actually a bit fresher than the bottle tasted last year.

A private lunch (Restaurant Bak, Amsterdam, NL) : Medium golden colour. Crisp and tight, subtle bitters, tart citrus and chamomile, rich tertiary aromatic development (wax, honey) but not oxidative, long smoky finish.

I was surprised by some of the other tasting notes, as I found this very nice to drink and some years at this level. Typical Chenin Blanc flavors, with ripe green apple, sweet florals and good acidity. I liked it.

I assume the 2010 vintage is a bit over its date - I can’t find the aroma described by others. For me it tastes a bit dull

Rather sweet, like off dry, with good acidity, apples, honey, peaches, slate, and lime stone. Balance is there. Pretty good finish and enjoyable.

Nez bien ouvert, pas parfaitement net mais joli, sur les fruits blancs, un aspect légèrement fumé, la poire et une touche grillée légère d'élevage. Belle construction en bouche, très belle même, sur une acidité ferme mais très bien balancée par une léger gras. On retrouve de la poire, une côté floral (blanc) et aussi quelques notes de pommes que j'aime moins (pas blette mais pas de la granny smith non plus, si je peux dire ça comme ça). Très très …