TN: Another lost Friday afternoon gathering – 88 DRCs, 90 Bordeauxs, Raveneaus, Dauvissats and etc.

ANOTHER LOST FRIDAY AFTERNOON GATHERING – 88 DRCS, 90 BORDEAUXS, RAVENEAUS, DAUVISSATS AND ETC. - Black Salt, Washington DC (8/2/2019)

Six of us got together for another rendition of the lost Friday lunch. As usual, the dishes were very good and complemented the wines very well.

Champagne
This showed beautifully. Champagnes always taste better in magnum.

  • 1983 Louis Roederer Champagne Cristal Brut - France, Champagne
    En Magnum. Perfectly mature nose displaying apple pie, apricot, dry peach, a hint of red currant, a hint of vin jaune, caramel, honey and limestone mineral. Very good concentration, finely layered sweet yellow fruit with a hint of red, still showing ample fine mousse, bright acidity, strong limestone mineral and a long sweet yellow fruit and cinnamon driven finish. Initially, the finish is bone dry. With air, gets sweeter and rounder. A classic beautifully mature Cristal. I just noticed that my previous impression is almost identical. (97 pts.)

Double Blind wine

  • 2018 Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Domaine Sainte Claire - France, Burgundy, Chablis
    Served blind by RJ. Very primary nose displaying pear and white peach and rain water. A bit straightforward and masculine expression. Very good concentration, coiled white fruit, bright acidity and a clean pure white fruit driven finish. Certainly Chardonnay and more than likely French. I don’t detect limestone mineral so I eliminate Chablis. I am thinking a young Meursault Perrieres that is shutdown. This shows the limitation of double blind tasting. It may have been a bit easier, if served in a formal single blind tasting. It is a solid well made white Burgundy. (91 pts.)

07 Raveneau

  • 2007 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
    The first note is honeysuckle and mint. Beautiful youthful nose displaying lemon curd, lemon oil, honey, spearmint, beeswax, light caramel, saline and wet stone. Gorgeous harmonious palate, rich yet pure, precise and energetic, finely layered oily citrus, bright acidity, strong limestone mineral and a long sweet yellow citrus fruit driven finish with honeysuckle and a hint of caramel at the end. This is drinking beautifully. A bit richer and more focused than the 07 MdT. (96 pts.)
  • 2007 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
    Expressive nose displaying sweet yellow citrus, lemon oil, lemon curd, also a hint of granny smith, a hint of perfume and cedar, honey, saline, mint, beeswax and wet stone. Beautifully integrated palate, finely layered sweet yellow citrus, worm and round yet also precise and energetic, bright acidity, limestone mineral and a long sweet yellow fruit driven finish with a hint of cedar at the end. This is more “user friendly” and rounder than the Valmur but not as focused and as concentrated. Based on this flight, the 07 Raveneaus have come together nicely, gaining weight and becoming more complex. Both are reaching the peak and drinking beautifully. (94 pts.)

10 Dauvissat and Raveneau

  • 2010 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
    Beautifully focused and energetic nose displaying pure sweet white fruit, pear, a hint of lemon curd, honeysuckle, beeswax, perfume, saline, sap, crushed rose and crushed rocks. Excellent concentration, nicely layered ripe clean white fruit, rich yet pure, precise and focused, bright acidity, strong mineral and a long sweet white fruit driven finish with crushed rock and rose petal at the end which is beautiful and haunting. I have had bad luck with Dauvissat recently. Lacks the opulence and sexiness of Raveneau but displays exceptional focus and precision. This is a classic GC Chablis and a classic Dauvissat. (96 pts.)
  • 2010 Dauvissat-Camus Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
    Incredibly focused and energetic nose displaying fresh white fruit, pear and apple, with a hint of lemon oil, beeswax, spearmint, saline and limestone. Excellent concentration, coiled concentrated white citrus fruit, excellent focus, energy and precision, bright acidity, good limestone mineral and a long pure white fruit driven finish with a hint of spearmint and honey at the end. This seems even more focused than the Preuses. Another classic GC Chablis, very Dauvissat. It would be interesting to taste next to the Dauvissat bottling. (95 pts.)
  • 2010 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
    Gorgeous classic Raveneau nose displaying perfectly ripe succulent white fruit, white peach, pear, granny smith, honeysuckle, a hint of spearmint, beeswax, cool mountain stream and limestone. Exceptional balance, finely layered generous delicious white fruit, opulent yet energetic and focused, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, and a long perfectly ripe white fruit driven finish with a hint of beeswax at the end. This is fuller and more opulent than the 07 MdT. It is really educational to compare to the 10 Dauvissat. Very different but equally enjoyable. Absolute pleasure. (96 pts.)

88 DRC

  • 1988 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
    Perfect mature complex nose displaying slightly dry red fruit, raspberry jam, dry cherry, cherry pie, dehydrated strawberry, perfect amount of sous bois, soy, light caramel, grilled cep, Vosne spice and earth. Fully integrated palate, very finely layered subtle sweet red fruit, silky and polished, bright acidity, good earthy mineral, still showing slightly dry tannins and a seamless long subtle sweet red fruit driven finish with sous bois at the end. The nose is too die for. However, the palate reflects the masculine vintage character with a hint of rustic tannins and the bright acidity. Everyone prefers to the Richebourg. (96 pts.)
  • 1988 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Richebourg - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru
    Really muted nose, ripe red fruit, plum, cherry, cedar, sap and earth. Extremely masculine impression. This appears to be correct. Real disappointment. (90 pts.)

90 Bordeaux

  • 1990 Château Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse) - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
    Fully mature nose displaying decadent black fruit, blackberry jam, black cherry, a hint of plum, mocha and earth. Fully integrated palate, nicely layered sweet black fruit, soft and round, subtle acidity and mineral, fully resolved tannins and a long sweet black fruit driven finish. This particular bottle is fully ready. Very enjoyable. (95 pts.)
  • 1990 Château Léoville Las Cases - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
    Corked.

HB and LMHB

  • 1990 Château La Mission Haut-Brion - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
    Intense nose displaying concentrated black fruit, cassis, crushed blueberries, black cherry, licorice, a hint of green, tobacco, cedar, lead pencil and scorched earth. Exceptional concentration, layers upon layers of intense sweet black fruit, unctuous, bright acidity, good mineral, the tannins are mostly masked by the concentrated fruit and a long intense black fruit driven finish with a hint of scorched earth at the end. Although it seems to be cellared ideally, there is a hint of band aid/brett. However, it is not terribly bothersome. Excellent showing. (97 pts.)
  • 1982 Château Haut-Brion - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
    My contribution. The cork is soaked through the top. Fully mature nose displaying sweet red fruit with a hint of black, strawberry, plum, black cherry, crème de cassis, tobacco, ash, milky chocolate, leather and earth. Very soft and round palate with subtle red fruit, silky and warm, perfect amount of acidity, subtle mineral and a medium to long sweet red fruit driven finish with tobacco and ash at the end. This seems to be the most ready of the 82 FGs. FWIW, the last bottle from December was from the same batch but was in perfect shape. (94 pts.)

I had to leave early but the guys were grabbing the famous burgers which is slowly becoming our tradition. I think RJ generously opened the 07 Leroy Beaux Monts.
Posted from CellarTracker

Awesome as always

I would say I am jealous of this tasting but that is forbidden.

Nice notes, heckuva tasting!

Nice

the 88 DRC story is an interesting one. Look at the bottle—Leroy’s name is there. In later years, though she is a part owner, it’s gone—name not on the bottle. She was also a distributor. She facilitated selling the Romanée Conti in Asia and dumping on the US market at low low (amazing) prices the remaining bottles. Many of us cleaned up. But the consortium owning DRC, including many of her relatives, was not happy with that or with her competition by buying the Noellat holdings and starting Domaine Leroy in 1988. So she was booted from her board position at DRC, though she remains a part owner. I’m sure there is more to the story than I remember or know. But those 88 DRC came in at prices a small fraction of prior years and it was a feeding frenzy.

Those were the days, my friend.

I used to swoop into Pacific Wine Company for 35 dollar DRC wines.

Damn.

I feel like Colonel Kilgore after the battle.

Thanks for the notes Kevin.

Kevin–nice to hear of some healthy Dauvissats (my last 2010 was premoxed). I unfortunately now approach that section of my cellar with apprehension instead of anticipation.

Your comment on the Dauvissat-Camus had me wondering a bit. Over the years there has been endless discussion about this, but after years of drinking these wines, I can tell no difference whatsoever. Per the estate they are the same wines. Way back when, they were the same but could be bottled at different times, but I have no idea now what the bottling schedule is now.

the only difference used to be a 30% discount on the D-C wines for those in the know. Same as with Bonnefond and Roumier, Chezeaux and Ponsot, though metayage is different.

EB?

:laughing::star_struck::heart_eyes:

no doubt.

Fabulous line up from beginning to end. Thanks for the notes and for posting.

Actually, I think the Dauvissat-Camus is the same as the European bottling, whereas the US bottling was historically bottled a bit earlier for Vineyard Brands. At least that’s my understanding. And I think that still applies to Tribut, if not to Dauvissat.

The myth to dispel is that the waxed bottles contain a different barrel selection to the capsuled bottles: Dauvissat assured me that isn’t the case, and folks in Chablis who have done side-by-side tastings insist they have identified no differences.

I’m a big fan of Cristal especially in off vintages. The '83 Cristal is the best '83 Champagne I can recall drinking although many producers didn’t make a vintage that year especially for their top cuvee.

Nice lineup.

William,
The waxed bottles that I buy in Europe are always fresher. Also a hint of beeswax a la Raveneau, weird.
Kevin

Just opened a trio of Dauvissat 2002 (Sechet, Clos, Vaillons) earlier this week and served blind. The Clos was outstanding, Sechet almost as good, and the Vaillons a bit above average. Those participating all thought the wines to be about 2011 to 2012 vintage.

Yeah–that’s the way it should be, and was. But for me, since about 2006, there has been a lot more premox. Have no idea why, and why this hit Dauvissat late, in comparison with other estates (eg Fevre).

I agree with Kevin that the waxed Dauvissat bottles with the green French tax stamp glued to the top seem to show fresher. Don’t know why. Maybe it’s just some sort of perception or placebo effect. What I find crazy about Dauvissat is that, as John says, in the last 15 years or so there are some badly premoxed bottles. I have found a higher rate of premox in the grand crus than the premier crus. But what is really odd is that I have opened bottles from the same source, and some of the bottles show very fresh and painfully young, and other bottles are completely sherried and dead. I have never seen this degree of variation in any other producer. The spectrum between dead Dauvissat bottles and pristine Dauvissat bottles in the same vintage is bizarre to me. With other producers who are vulnerable to premox there tends to be more compression of expression, such that even the “good” bottles are a little advanced.

We’ve had this experience, too, Kevin. Also with champagne, the bottles we buy in the UK and France are almost always fresher and younger-seeming.

I agree. I thought the 08 Clos was one of the best young Chablis. I have had a few premox bottles and perhaps only one out of ten reflects the original promise.