The living legend of Vouvray: Philippe Foreau and the Clos Naudin:Philippe Foreau is the third generation of the Foreau family to produce Vouvray from this fabled domaine which his grandfather purchased in 1923. Philippe assumed the direction of the domaine in 1983 upon the retirement of his father, André. Today, the domaine consists of 11 1/2 hectares planted to Chenin Blanc. We are very pleased to offer a selection of Foreau’s most prize wines, quantities are limited:
2005 Philippe Foreau Clos Naudin Reserve....$99.99
Foreau’s 2005 Vouvray Moelleux Reserve smells spectacularly and kaleidoscopically of quince and apricot paste, date, honey, nutmeg, sweet floral perfume, pear distillate, lemon, white raisin, and hints of bitter quinine and smoky Calvados. Extraordinarily rich on the palate, yet clear, juicy in primary fruit character, and with luscious citrus leavening its concentration of nutmeg- and cinnamon-tinged apricot and quince, this finishes with terrific length and penetration, still clear and pure as honey, quince, apricot, apple blossoms and lilies slowly dissipate. Here is a Vouvray for the ages. Its 154 grams of residual sugar are by no means overwhelming and should assist it in a long, slow evolution. Furthermore, they are the reason one can enjoy the elegance and delicacy of 11.5% alcohol after, following sec, demi-sec and moelleux that weighed in at a surprisingly uniform 13.5%.
Rated 96/100 The Wine Advocate
2009 Philippe Foreau Clos Naudin....$54.99
Candied grapefruit and lime peel in the nose of Foreau’s 2009 Vouvray Moelleux – a wine from largely over-ripe but not botrytized fruit – anticipate a tactile sense of palate attack that he thinks is too often lacking in wines of this vintage. A hint of white raisin woven into the candied citrus rind- and quince preserve-dominated palate here points to a level of ripeness that in Foreau vintages of an earlier era might have signaled a special reserve moelleux. Peppermint, white pepper, and citrus zest deliver piquant contrast to the candied sweetness in a finish of hugely impressive, sustained grip. Foreau thinks this ultimately superior to the corresponding 2008 (just as he agrees that 2008 has the edge in sec and demi-sec) but I am not prepared to go that far. Certainly, though, it is early days for this 2009 moelleux, a wine likely to reveal many additional facets over the next quarter-century.
2009 Philippe Foreau Clos Naudin....$54.99
Candied grapefruit and lime peel in the nose of Foreau’s 2009 Vouvray Moelleux – a wine from largely over-ripe but not botrytized fruit – anticipate a tactile sense of palate attack that he thinks is too often lacking in wines of this vintage. A hint of white raisin woven into the candied citrus rind- and quince preserve-dominated palate here points to a level of ripeness that in Foreau vintages of an earlier era might have signaled a special reserve moelleux. Peppermint, white pepper, and citrus zest deliver piquant contrast to the candied sweetness in a finish of hugely impressive, sustained grip. Foreau thinks this ultimately superior to the corresponding 2008 (just as he agrees that 2008 has the edge in sec and demi-sec) but I am not prepared to go that far. Certainly, though, it is early days for this 2009 moelleux, a wine likely to reveal many additional facets over the next quarter-century.
Rated 94/100 The Wine Advocate
As rare as it gets....
Lastly, a very special bottle, only produced for the 3rd time since 1947
SOLD OUT
2011 Philippe Foreau Domaine du Clos Naudin
As rare as it gets....
Lastly, a very special bottle, only produced for the 3rd time since 1947
SOLD OUT
2011 Philippe Foreau Domaine du Clos Naudin
"Goutte d’Or" Vouvray Moelleaux....$299.99
"Once in a generation, conditions conspire to create the grandest wine from the Vouvray appellation: Philippe Foreau’s “Goutte d’Or”, which in 2011 marks its third release in the entirety of the estate’s history (the previous two were 1947 and 1990). The wine is a tour de force, boasting 230 grams of residual sugar as a result of roughly 70% of the grapes enduring the effects of botrytis. On the palate, an impressive density delivers notes of apricot, straw, fig and kirsch, yet it carries only 9.5% alcohol. Harvest took place on the 10th of October and the total production was 2400 bottles. Philippe expects the wine to evolve over the course of the next 100 years, so this is a bottle for the deepest part of the cellar."
"Once in a generation, conditions conspire to create the grandest wine from the Vouvray appellation: Philippe Foreau’s “Goutte d’Or”, which in 2011 marks its third release in the entirety of the estate’s history (the previous two were 1947 and 1990). The wine is a tour de force, boasting 230 grams of residual sugar as a result of roughly 70% of the grapes enduring the effects of botrytis. On the palate, an impressive density delivers notes of apricot, straw, fig and kirsch, yet it carries only 9.5% alcohol. Harvest took place on the 10th of October and the total production was 2400 bottles. Philippe expects the wine to evolve over the course of the next 100 years, so this is a bottle for the deepest part of the cellar."
-Importer Neal Rosenthal
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