Last night several of us got together to explore a vertical of Coche-Dury Corton Charlemagne. A wonderful dinner by Christopher Grossman was provided at Atlas.
Wonderful pairings.
This is a wine you rarely get a chance to taste as a single bottle much less several vintages together.
A real education.
Pairing one
Pan Roasted Norwegian Halibut
Vidalia Spring Onions, English Peas, Morel Mushrooms, Soubise
2007- A mild note of TCA on the opening. The nose is subdued because of this. It does show the Coche-Dury complex flint type notes on the nose. The wine shows some of the high acidity of the year but it finishes with a great flourish. Starting to flesh out some complex spice. Even with the mild TCA this was quite nice.
2011- A reticent nose that takes over an hour to evolve. Finally the Coche-Dury flint type notes come out. A riper wine of power and big texture in the mouth. Intense. Oily. This one was still going at the end. Wished I had saved more to taste. Excellent!
Pairing two
Maine Lobster En Croute
fine herbs mousse, Bearnaise, Green Apple, Salsify
2001- Darker color. The nose is a complex mix of apple type notes and spice. The flint type notes signifying Coche-Dury were still there but in a complex package. The palate is fascinating. Apple fruits mixed with a complex spice. Mineral spine. The intensity here and finishing complexity is first rate. One of the best of the tasting.
2009- Monolithic wine that just never opened up. The nose is closed at this point. Hints of the Coche-Dury flint notes. The palate is oily and thick. The energy is low compared with the 2001.
Pairing three
Fresh Black Truffle and Fettuccini
Reggiano Parmesano, Preserved Burgundy Black Truffles, Buckwheat and Farm egg pastas
2003- A strange nose. There is something chemical here that is difficult to identify. No Coche-Dury flint here. Yellow color with apple notes throughout. Pleasant palate with a finish that just doesn’t take off. Not sure if this is representative but it was the least desirable wine of the tasting.
2006- Very clean but ripe fruit notes on the nose with Coche-Dury flint in the background. A beautiful balance to this wine. Zen type of balance. Amazing density to the midpalate. With a little more intensity of flavor this would have been a top wine of the night.
Paring four
Black Truffle Stuffed Galus Braun Chicken
Crown Roasted Breast, Crisped Leg Confit, Black Truffle Jus, Potato Puree, Roasted Chicken Jus
2004- Ahh. This nose is FIRST rate. A beautiful mix of golden fruits, spice and Coche-Dury flint. The palate is beautiful with intense golden spicy fruit and spreads out in the mouth. The finish is showing early complexity with a long satisfying aftertaste.
2008- Reticent nose that gives way to a gorgeous light golden fruit and flint mix with time. The palate here shows that special balance that great wines exhibit. With time this blossoms and morphs. Layers of complexity with time. Again, I should have left more of this but it was so darn good. Great today. Extraordinary in the future.
2012 - Rich intense light golden fruit nose with Coche-Dury flint notes. Engrossing. Rich mid palate that sucks you in with all the luscious primary fruit. Beautiful finish. This was extremely nice!
Paring five
Pan Roasted Rabbit Loin
Black Truffle Farce, Rabbit Confit and roasted mushroom Risolle, Roasted Sunchoke Puree, Sunchoke Fondant, Roasted Mushroom Jus
2005 – Golden color. More advanced fruit with some Coche –Dury flint. The palate is intense. Maybe the most intensely fruited wine of the night. Golden. Spicy. Complex. Long.
2010- Lighter color. Almost like water in some ways. Intense lighter fruit cloaked in Coche-Dury flint on the nose. The equilibrium here is what you find in the greatest wines on the planet. The finish is wonderful. To me this approaches perfection. Profound.
Pairing six
Degustation de fromage
Comte, Epoisses, Out of the ashes, Marcona Almond, Toasted Bread
2000- Corked
2002- Golden fruit with spice and flint of Coche-Dury on the nose. Engrossing. More apple type notes with spice on the palate. Fabulous intensity but not up to the very top level wines of the night.
It is hard to rank the top wines. I thought the 2010 was the very best to me. I loved the 2001 and 2004 for the expressive noses. I loved the 2008. An embarrassment of riches.
Thanks Steve Friend for including me on this journey. Thanks to Joel for helping me source a wine. The greatness of these wines cannot be overstated. Cheers!