Awards and citations:


1997: Le Prix du Champagne Lanson Noble Cuvée Award for investigations into Champagne for the Millennium investment scams

2001: Le Prix Champagne Lanson Ivory Award for investdrinks.org

2011: Vindic d'Or MMXI – 'Meilleur blog anti-1855'

2011: Robert M. Parker, Jnr: ‘This blogger...’:

2012: Born Digital Wine Awards: No Pay No Jay – best investigative wine story

2012: International Wine Challenge – Personality of the Year Award




Tuesday 23 August 2011

Le Petit Pressigny: a visit to La Promenade's cellars and admiring the village's new traffic lights

Red light in le Petit Pressigny
During dinner at La Promenade on Saturday night, Xavier Fortin, the restaurant's long-serving sommelier, kindly invited us to visit the restaurant's cellars the next morning around 11am. This gave me time to wander around the village (population: 326 in 2006) and, in particular, to admire the new traffic lights in the centre of the village. These are a traffic calming measure – changing colour as cars etc. approach.

Getting the green light

Among the treasures in La Promenade's cellars, there are some very old bottles from the Foucaults (in Chace). The oldest being a 1900 Saumur-Champigny.

1900 Clos Rougeard, Saumur-Champigny (Foucault)


Xavier Fortin who has been at La Promenade since 1988

2004 Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine, André Michel Brégeon

Xavier kindly opened a 2004 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine from André Michel Brégeon. Now one of the crus communales it spent five years on its lees. Light to mid-gold in colour this has a richness and complexity that one doesn't normally associate with Muscadet. At the same time it is brilliantly precise and mineral in the finish. A grand vin but not at a grand vin price.

4 comments:

Chris Kissack said...

The 2004 Gorges is indeed superb. I may have to pick up some more. Can't say I've ever tasted the 1900 Foucault wine though. :-)

Jim's Loire said...

1900 – nor me nor I suspect many people. There can't be many in existence!

Anonymous said...

I am still buying the `01 Haut-Bourg Muscadet for $22 Cdn. Delicious.

Bob Alberta.

Jim's Loire said...

You're a wise man Bob!