2010 Sancerre La Grande Cote

Honeydew, mirabelle and herbal elixirs set the tone for Pascal Cotat’s 2010 Sancerre La Grande Cote, with hints of caraway, cardamom and toasted nuts offering counterpoint on a for this vintage surprisingly expansive, satin-textured palate. The seductively lingering finish benefits from a fine, juicy, refreshing steam of citrus and from subtle but saliva-inducing salinity while preserving the rich underlying sense of nut oils. This should prove to be a classic Cotat keeper, i.e. at least a 20 year wine. Pascal Cotat – for more on whose methods and (quite literally) garage winery, consult my report in issue 172 – perpetuated a family tradition of late harvest by not beginning to pick in 2011 until the second week of September, yet the results are moderate in alcohol (particularly when compared with those obtained by his cousin Francois, in most instances from neighboring vines) and in the case of the Mont Damnes evince a sense of both vivacity and levity exceptional for this vintage. As for mid-October harvested 2010, just wow! Taken together, these last two vintages show Pascal (with papa Francis still in support) on a roll. A Peter Vezan Selection (various importers), Paris; fax 011 33 1 42 55 42 93