Good evening all,
A small gather tonight of Krug fans in Dallas at TJs Seafood Market. Bronzino is now permanently on the menu, and the chef did a whole fish preparation that was astonishingly good. It was also lobster night, so we ate well.
Krug Grand Cuvee 165eme
pale champagne color, sexy and toasty nose, ripe orchard fruits, cranberry, brioche, on the palate still as alluring as it was last year but with a more obvious large scale structure, sweet oranges, great length, floral notes have gone into hiding, growing in stature and the mousse is just starting to develop, last year I thought this a worthy companion to the 164 though they are very different wines- and tonight proved that out as this wine is becoming a rather formidable Grand Cuvee in need of many years in the cellar but still with its almost exotic raciness and decidedly feminine character, tiny production this year and worth seeking out now because it will be a rare find down the road.
(*), 2025++
Krug Grand Cuvee 166eme from half bottle
bright champagne color, sensual dark mousse notes dominate the nose, elegant, on the palate again the mousse is already fully developed and the dominant presence, notes of crisp apple with time and a tart finish with good length, as noted in other TNs from a full bottle the mousse is not there yet but this half bottle is just as generous and forward as the two we tried last year.
****, now to 2030+
Krug Grand Cuvee 167eme from half bottle
bright champagne color, sweet nose, orchard fruits, primary and as yet not highly defined, notes of white blossoms, on the palate a fine luxurious cream is already evident and starting to unfurl, soft mousse notes, great length, a calm Grand Cuvee and yet exciting in its way, a great example of why it is dangerous to judge this wine by its base- if this develops as I hope it will be a shining and very classic Grand Cuvee, lacking the singular nature of the 164 and 165 but qualitatively every bit as good.
(*), 2025++
Krug Rose 22eme
bright salmon color, very quiet on the nose at first, on the palate an assertive berry note, good persistence but also very primary and linear at present, fine long finish with cherry and berry tones, quite dry for a Krug Rose, while I thought it showed promise earlier this year and rated it accordingly- this was not a fun wine to try at the time in a pop and pour setting, with some age on it plus time to evolve in glass after an hour this began to show quite well, it remains more taut and less layered than usual but has a great depth and persistence of cherry and strawberry, grapefruit as well, it seems a bit less defined than it did earlier this year but also more powerful, as Krug Rose goes this is on the powerful side, I am not sure it will develop the degree of mousse or cream that other examples possess- but it has a rare persistence and savory nature, this one needs careful pairing- with the right food it will be sensationally good.
(****), 2030++
Krug Rose 23eme
deepish salmon color- unusually deep for this wine, gorgeous strawberry-driven nose, soft creamy edges, on the palate a very pretty Krug Rose already showing nice layering and hints of cream, cherries and slightly tart berries, toasty notes, strawberries, lush and generous but also with a good firm structure, it is not quite as grand in its posh ways as the 21eme but is a more classic rendering and one that I think will drink well all of its long life. As with the Grand Cuvee 167eme tasted this evening (also 2011 base), a reminder that the genius of the Cellar Master is more important than the base vintage in evaluating the quality of an MV wine- and indeed in determining whether it is to your personal liking.
*(), 2025++
1999 Chateau Magdelaine
medium deep red color with bricking starting to show at the rim, pepper and mulberries on the nose, darkest cherry notes, secondary bramble notes that remain somewhat hard, on the palate a very pretty cassis and mulberry fruit with forest notes, mid-weight with slightly hard edges, with time it develops intense spice notes, this has a great vivacity to it akin to the 2001 and 2011 but with that liveliness more driven by the pepper notes, bright acids, despite the secondary development this still has a good bit of youthful tannin, a very pretty if slightly hard Magdelaine that is drinking well now but I suspect may go out of balance to some degree in 15-20 years time, worth holding a couple long term to see what happens but also the youngest Magdelaine vintage out there which I think is currently fully ready to enjoy now and showing all it has to offer.
***, now to 2035.
2008 Willi Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Riesling Auslese #11 Auction from half bottle
medium yellow color just barely starting to gold in decanter, when first opened it was like apple juice, after an hour in decanter and 2 additional hours resting in an open half bottle it came alive, decadent creamy custard on the nose, honeyed oranges, intense core of ripe blood orange just barely showing, where it was luxurious and flowing on the nose- on the palate this wine was truly afire, blazing orange stars rounded in honey, honeysuckle notes, vanilla tones, custard, sweet lime tarts, superb length, this is just starting to unfurl and is truly magnificent, a long and grand life ahead.
*(), 2025-2040+
