08 Dhondt Mes Vieilles Vignes BdB. Chet and I traded a few bottles of bubbly and I was the lucky recipient of this one. What a beautiful wine. Creamy pretty layered fruit, very smooth and refined, nice mousse, great length, a very lovely Champagne that reminded me of Comtes. Need more!
+1. Breathtaking BdB.
Anxiously awaiting 08 Comte also Alan.
My 02 Dhondt’s have just entered a secondary stage of development and though Brad B will disagree with me regarding 02 Chardonnay, my take is that many top chards went down hard and into a deep sleep, these 02’s still have a very nice upside. I went very deep on Dhondt 08’s and also consumed one recently as it was so easy to drink. We turned around and we had drank the whole bottle! I think it will develop beautifully over time.
We’ve consumed a few of your bottles including 04 Ledru which was classic Pinot noir/ambonnay GC and so singular as all Ledru is, as well as the last 2 glasses of 02 Winnie last night. First night it was somewhat shutdown and slightly oxidative and tonight clearer brighter and delicious, with no trace of oxidation.
Anxiously awaiting my 12 Dhondt’s which are set to arrive soon.
If you come across any 08 Diebolt-Vallois Fleur de Passion DON’T hesitate to PULL the trigger and quickly on that one!
Yeah big fan of the 08 fleur de passion.
Jeremy Holmes would approve of this thread title.
I liked the 2004 vintage of the MVV BdB. Sadly, I don’t recall seeing any offers for the 08’s or 12’s and missed them. I did order a gaggle of magnums of the 2014 for a good price; hopefully those will show well.
Chet,
I really like the 2002 Dhondt and have always found it to be a wine that has potential which is not what I would normally expect from an Oger wine from this vintage. I loved it on release and loved it the last time I had it which was in 2016. In my opinion, it is the best wine Dhondt has produced or at least the best I have tasted going back through the 1990s.
As for the 2002 vintage in general, I do feel that a majority of the Chardonnay in the Cote des Blancs got too mature and a lot of these wines drank well out of the box, but didn’t and won’t get better. This doesn’t mean all did, but most are already showing a creaminess and toastiness that is beyond its current age. 2002 is a Pinot Noir year and a year for Chardonnay from other regions and a year for blends that have a good dose of Pinot in them.
I agree on the 2008 Dhondt. It is very good. The 2006 is too. Neither are 2002 good, but both are great buys. The NV Dhondts are also great deals though show quite a bit of vintage/release variability. The 2010 is a big, big disappointment in my book though.
Thanks for chiming in, Brad. I still have a bottle of the 02 that I’ve been protecting from my greedy clutches but I think it’s going to pair with some omakase sometime this year.
I missed when the 08, released but bought a 10 on memory of the 02. Sad to see you think it’s not up to par.
I also bought some of the NV recently when a shop offered a nice deal on some pre-arrivals. I’ve found it so-so personally. It seems to lack exuberance and leans on a more pith like expression. I’m wondering if that is due to it’s base year.
Looking forward to the 12’s swinging through town.
Sadly agreed on the 10, though on the whole I never found much that thrilled me from the year. The rosé can be all over the map. One of the recent disgorgements spent a very short time on the lees with a dosage level that just made it strange.
Jim,
Agree on the Rose. It is usually a pure vintage wine and sometimes sees 4+ years on the lees and other times 18 months. I think the dosage is fairly consistent, but the wine isn’t always given all that much rest post-disgorgement before it is released and when you then throw in the big swing in age and vintage character, you can get a big variation spread from release to release.
Glad you did.
“If you come across any 08 Diebolt-Vallois Fleur de Passion DON’T hesitate to PULL the trigger and quickly on that one!”
Yes, Chet. I tried one last week and was very impressed.
Thread title for the win.
Brad
The 08 Dhondt MVV is still very primary but should have a very good chance to develop nicely over time.
Having steered clear of almost all 10’s except for Cedric Bouchard and all 11’s I’m a player for 12’s.
Time will be the only judge regarding 02 Chardonnays and the Cote de Blanc but there is a very similar hard shutdown flavor profile I’ve experienced in many wines like Pol Roger B d B, Deutz Amour, Gimonnet Rare, and Lenoble Rare and Gentilhomme plus some others like Bruno Michel Pauline that are reminiscent of classic old white burgundy. I’m certain your information and analysis is more than reliable but it’ll be lots of fun to evaluate these plus the likes of Comte, and so many others once they hit the 20 year mark.
————
Jerry
Agreed ++
I grabbed 4 mags of the ‘14 so I have high hopes these will show well with some more age.
I had both the 2002 Dom Ruinart and 2002 Dom Perignon Saturday night, and while I was too occupied by other things to give a fair appraisal I can’t say either bowled me over. Both seemed creamy, as you say, and less than I would have expected. The SQN grenache I opened was a hit although I barely tasted it, but the 2001 Cos, which I drank after things settled down a little was boss