All the Chave

Dinner at Caprice featuring the wines of Jean-Louis Chave, with Jean-Louis in attendance.

2021 Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Blanc, en magnum - nose was nice and floral at first, with peachy and flinty notes giving way to some acetone. Very nice and smooth on the palate.

2013 Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Blanc, en magnum - showing a much bigger nose of acetone, with more tropical fruit like pineapple. Also bigger on the palate, too.

2009 Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Blanc, en magnum - this wine was so big now, with lots of honey and acetone on the nose. So rich and juicy! Beautiful!

2015 Jean-Louis Chave Saint-Joseph Clos Florentine, en magnum - served nearly 9 hours after opening. This has got a very big nose, with lots of eucalyptus, smoky, leather, very cool fruit, savory notes like sundried tomatoes, and floral notes like violet. Showing really beautifully. Second pour towards the end of dinner showed lots of metallic rust, pretty savory nose, and also soapy notes. What a lovely wine this was!

2000 Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Rouge, en magnum - served 9 hours after opening. Nose of leather, savory and a little bretty, with a little hint of dust. Later showed some woodsy notes. Acidity was high on the palate with just a hint of tannis. Bottle was probably not in the best condition, so this was the most disappointing wine of the night.

1995 Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Cuvée Cathelin - served almost 10 hours after opening. This was really big, but so elegant, so fragrant and floral, with leather, game, and a little smoky notes. Good acidity balance on the palate. There came a hint of sweet grass after some 40 minutes in the glass, and a little coffee after more than an hour in glass. Such a beautiful wine!

1998 Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Blanc - nose was showing beeswax and a little acetone. Very ripe on the palate together with cheese.

1997 Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Vin de Paille, en demi-bouteille - a little sugar cane but not pure sugar cane juice, rather the Cantonese drink of sugar cane juice with water chestnuts and white grass root (竹蔗茅根). Really rich and sweet, like figs, and lots of honey on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.