Closel Clos

Domaine du Closel 1998 Savennières Clos du Papillon (Loire) – Looks tired and oxidized. Isn’t. But it’s not without oxidation as a complexing agent, and that will throw some. Nothing here is atypical for the grape, appellation, or producer, but knuckle-draggers who insist that “wine should taste like fruit because it’s made from fruit” should buy something else. All those caveats aside, it’s not the freshest wine in history (though I’m given to understand that day two brings a lot more energy and life), with sodden metal squeezings and wet chalk predominating. It’s a dark, broody, aging hipster sort of wine, and the right food – which I do not have during my encounter – would not be amiss. Still, given my horrendous experiences with my own bottles of Closel and other Savennières from this era, I have to welcome one that has actually performed up to expectations. (10/11)

Robert Clary

Jessey “Domaine du Closel” 1997 Savennières Le Clos Lavau (Loire) – At first opening, the increasingly familiar stewed garbage and cabbage aromas dominate. As time goes on, these drift away, though only to an extent; even a day later, they still linger in the background. What emerges, later, is a sweat-stained minerality, like armpits in a mine, sludging its way through a wine with the texture of a dry mead. There’s some salt, too. It most definitely improves with air, and a day later it’s much more identifiably Savennières. That said, after much exploration, and not meaning this as a recommendation for anyone else, I don’t think I’m going to age Closel anymore. It just doesn’t turn into anything I like. (4/09)

Jessey's girl

Jessey “Domaine du Closel” 1997 Savennières Moelleux “Cuvée Isa” (Loire) – Quite literally smells like garbage. The palate is chalky and rough, with a mineralistic aspect, and while the wine comes off as dry there’s a thickness that can only come from the sugar. However, the wine is so utterly aromatically repellent that only the nasally-challenged could even contemplate actually putting it in their mouth. (6/08)

Closel the Vaults

Jessey “Domaine du Closel-Château des Vaults” 2004 Savennières “La Jalousie” (Loire) – Generous, chalky, and surprisingly fruit-forward for a chenin (though “fruit” here is very loosely-defined; this would be some sort of exotic melon after a chalkboard accident), with a pleasant approachability but the structure for short-term development. I wouldn’t push it too long, though it’s important to note that I’m not a fan of oxidized Savennières; those who like that expression should hold it with impunity. (5/08)