Greg’s turn to host Monday Table so he marshalled us all down to Tassie to explore Grands-Echezeaux a little further. It was a weekend of great food, friends and wine. Sadly the cork gods weren’t kind to a couple of GE’s. A 2001 DRC and ’05 Lamarche were both corked and the ’99 DRC was somewhat let down by its cork.
Champagne
2002 Billecart-Salmon Champagne Cuvée Nicolas-François Billecart: Full, fresh, rich and concentrated. It has a sappy, grapey quality in the mouth and plenty of yeasty things going on. The front of the palate is elegant and citrussy and it drives home with intense berry
2004 Deutz Champagne Amour de Deutz Rosé: Rich and full of red fruits. Relatively high dosage countered nicely by a line of minerally acidity. Good depth, balance and length.
’14 White Burgs
2014 Philippe Colin Chevalier-Montrachet, Grand Cru: Has an almost ‘Montrachetesque’ tinned pineapple quality. This is large scaled Chevalier. It is rich, spicy, creamy, layered and intense. It tightens in the glass and has a touch of sulphur holding everything together.
2014 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet, Grand Cru: Shows a whiff of barrel toast and plenty of white peach. It has a fruit sweet heart and layers of flavour. It is concentrated and powerful and finishes with loads of spice and mineral.
2014 Domaine Jean Chartron Bâtard-Montrachet, Grand Cru: Ripe, explosive peach fruits have something cool and minty playing in the background. It is full, round, intense and sappy. The finish is very fresh and very long.
GE’s with and Ech Smoky
2008 Domaine d’Eugénie Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: Seductive nose of cherry, spiced plum, freshly grated ginger and sandalwood. It has exquisite balance and poise and is so lacy against the gums. It is perfectly ripe and shows excellent transparancy. It has great drive and really fans out on the finish. Superb young Burgundy.
2008 George Jayer Echezeaux, Grand Cru, Élevé et vinifié par E. Rouget: A little more advanced than the last bottle I had. It has creamy red fruits and some earthy development. Strawberry flavours flow through the palate and the finish is tangy.
2005 Gros Frère et Sœur Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: Deep, dark, concentrated and oaky. It has loads of spice, some menthol and sarsaparilla notes. There is a core of black fruits and it has good depth and length. Needs a decade or two to come together.
2003 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: Sweet, spicy and stemsy. Has some chocolate flavours and is concentrated with a low acid feel in the mouth. I thought it showed a touch of oxidation or was it slightly baggy fruit from a hot year?
2002 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: AdV once told me ‘if you wait 15 years, you are rarely wrong’. He is right, this has really come on and is now a splendid drink. It has a very DRC nose of sandalwood, soy, Hoisin and rose petals. The palate starts off tight and a little lean but really opens up and builds. It is fine, lacy, detailed and long.
1962 Lupé-Cholet Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: Very volatile and aldehydic. Plenty of sous bois and nutty action. There are tertiary coffee, mushroom and truffle flavours and the palate is thick and unctuous. There’s plenty of flavour but its a bit wild and wooly.
1999 Mongeard-Mugneret Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: Complex and inviting nose of reducing meats, rose petals, sandalwood and red and black fruits. It is full and intense with good detail and cold tea tannins. Length is excellent.
1999 Domaine René Engel Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: A little meaty and sweaty at first but breathes to show floral infused red and black fruits. It is deep with a velvety texture. It has terrific drive and length.
1999 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: I have certainly seen much better bottles of this. There was plenty of volatility and some chocolate/coffee oxidation. It has great concentration and layers of flavour but the usual verve and detail has been planed off.
2012 Mongeard-Mugneret Grands-Echezeaux, Grand Cru: The nose is quite spicy and also has a suggestion of compost and sweet berry fruit. Sweet luscious flavours envelop the mouth. Fruits have a slight waxy feel and it has good depth, is full and fans out on the finish.
Port and a Sweetie
2000 Quinta do Noval Porto Vintage Nacional: Almost has a Penfolds, crushed ant, formic acid quality to it. Very youthful with a core of delicious raspberry fruit. There’s a clean and lively spirit and plenty of floral spice. It is deep and concentrated with a crisp, energetic and long finish.
2010 Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel: Sealed under screwcap this thing will probably live for a century. It is so fresh and vibrant with loads of lime sherbet and a hint of rockmelon. There’s some flint and other geological matter too. All of the wine’s sugar is perfectly countered by a line of razor sharp acidity. It has such focus and clarity and supreme length of flavour.