Over the past month, we've consumed a number of wines with meals, the
notes of which are shown below. Most of these wines were imported by
Selection Massale, a small importer of "natural" wines in San Leandro,
CA, that is run by some Internet acquaintances of mine.

*2006 Domaine Dupasquier Vin de Savoie Pinot* - France, Savoie, Vin de
Savoie (1/31/2013)
This was an absolutely lovely expression of the Pinot Noir grape, almost
ethereally light yet packed with flavor both fruity and mineral. Yet the
flavor profile put me in mind of Pinot Noir from Carneros, albeit with
far greater acid cut and more minerality.

*2008 Domaine Dupasquier Gamay Vin de Savoie* - France, Savoie, Vin de
Savoie (1/31/2013)
Lightweight yet flavorful, with typical Gamay acidity. When I smelled
the wine, however, it brought to mind Steve Edmunds's lovely Bone-Jolly
wines, which is no faint praise but quite surprising for a French
Gamay.</li>

*2009 Domaine Le Bout du Monde Côtes du Roussillon Villages Hop La* -
France, Languedoc Roussillon, Roussillon, Côtes du Roussillon Villages
(1/31/2013)*
Imagine a midweight Chateauneuf with a much racier mouthfeel and that's
what you've got here. It's got the Bretty funk of a good CNdP and a
similar cherryish fruit profile (that doesn't, however, veer into cherry
liqueur territory) but has got great acidity and a lighter body. All in
all, an outstanding wine and dynamite with red meat.

*NV Pascal Potaire Touraine Les Capriades Piège à filles rosé* - France,
Loire Valley, Touraine (1/31/2013)
So much fun: lightweight, bright pink, dry, acidic fizz. What's not to
love? Not a wine to contemplate overmuch, but hell of fun and a great
bottle for a hot summer's day with some BBQ. It's produced from both Côt
(Malbec) and Gamay.

*2007 Domaine Denis Bachelet Côte de Nuits Villages* - France, Burgundy,
Côte de Nuits, Côte de Nuits Villages (12/21/2012)
Quite tight right out of the bottle, but aeration actually seemed to
close it down harder. With some time, though, it fleshed out a bit.
Initially, mostly pencil lead and tart raspberry, growing more expansive
and rounder with time. This is wine that definitely needs more time.

Mark Lipton