At the quite brilliant two-star Mugaritz we had three nice things, all much better than the dross Albarino we were generally obliged to order.
Savennières Trie Speciale 2000, Domaine Baumard
A rich, powerful nose of apple fruit and minerality. This is very concentrated and powerful. It also smells quite clean for a Savennières. The palate is very powerful with clean apple fruit and a great mineral tang. It is very long and really quite stylish. It could age happy for a long time, but was perfectly up for drinking at six years of age.
Pouilly-Fuissé Vieilles Vignes les Crays 2003, Daniel Barraud
A weighty nose of honey, nuts and toast. There is very ripe lemon fruit there too. This smells like really rather ripe Chardonnay. The palate is obviously very ripe and weighty, but there is enough acidity there for it not to become overly heavy. This is a really good 2003, especially considering the Maconnais is a warmer region, I am impressed.
Riesling Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Auslese #10 2003, Fritz Haag
The nose smells very strongly of botrytis and ripe fruit. This is very charming. The palate is really quite sweet, but there is a surprising amount of acidity for a 2003. This is much better than most German 03s I’ve had, quite delicious.
