If there is one word to sum up the DRC GE wines today it is transparency. Each reveals so much about the vintage, the differences from year to year were quite substantial. It’s a textbook education in vintages to drink these wines, Mother Nature speaks so clearly through them. I feel incredibly grateful and honored to be able to drink these wines with dear friends, this was a day I’ll never forget.
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1988 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut - France, Champagne
Dense and exciting, intense pear and very lively. This is like a '90’s Leflaive with bubbles and a splash of pear juice. A “wow” Champagne to be sure.
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2010 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Corton-Charlemagne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
Served blind I guessed '11 PYCM Bienvenues Batard. It has the PYCM signature reduction in spades, but is riper and richer than their Batard or Chevalier typically. Very good, but the '14 Colin-Deleger Chevalier was a considerable step up today. -
2014 Michel Colin-Deléger et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru
Served blind, I guessed '14 Ramonet Chevalier Montrachet. Indeed a lot of the guesses at the table were Ramonet. For me it has the cleanliness and precision of a great Ramonet, some also noted a whiff of mint on the nose. This was the unanimous winner of the flight against a '10 PYCM CC and '12 Raveneau MdT, which of course were no slouches themselves. This is an excellent wine with tremendous depth, even opulence, but remains perfectly balance from start to finish. -
2012 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
Served blind and embarrassingly I had no clue what it was. Neither did anyone else at the table. So strange because normally Raveneau has a signature, in fact one of my favorite signatures in all of Burgundy. There was intense salinity on the long finish. A very good, if atypical, wine that was outmatched by the '14 Colin-Deleger Chevalier today.
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2002 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru
Served blind I guessed 1978 Leroy Montrachet. The color was so dark and the fruit so mellow, but despite all that the completeness and majesty of Montrachet could be found. Sweet wine with cinnamon aromas. Enjoyable as it was, the reveal was shocking. Just had this wine last month and it bore absolutely no resemblance to today’s oxidized bottle. I enjoyed it, but remain quite frustrated by the high oxidation rate in Ramonet’s Montrachet. -
2006 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault
Served blind I guessed Coche Dury Corton Charlemagne as did several others at the table. My thought process: clearly evidenced the Coche style, but it was better than all the Meursault Perrieres we had in a recent vertical. So if you know it’s Coche, and it’s better than MP, must be CC right?
Never been happier to be so wrong. This bottle was a massive overperformer, and a testament to how great villages Meursault can be when given the attention it deserves.
The density and texture were spectacular. Only wines I have ever had with this type of mouthfeel are Coche Dury and D’Auvenay.
That said, I’ve never been as crazy for Coche Dury as many others are, I find them too inconsistent to justify the enormous premiums. But every once in a while you get one like this, and just have to applaud. Credit where credit is due, the winemaker is a wizard.
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1999 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
The opulence and density are breathtaking. This is a 50 year wine easily. It’s quite dense now, almost chewy but not tannic. The more time it had in the glass the better it got, but we probably could have given it 24 hours to reveal its true colors. Bottom line is you can open these now and be delighted, but the longer you wait the more fireworks you’ll experience. -
2000 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
The first whiff and sip made me howl with delight, literally. Aromatic fireworks of classic Vosne spice and rose petals, so effusive one had the sense we were drinking at the absolute peak. It’s in a perfect state of evolution. Upon first pour this was the best of the flight vs 2002 and 1999. A couple hours later this seemed to be fading where the '99 was just picking up steam. If you want one vintage of GE to enjoy now as a pop and pour, this is the one. -
2002 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
Cloudier than the other vintages, with classic '02 stemmy animale notes. I love the style of this vintage, but this wine comes out as a bit angular at first. It absolutely needed the time in glass to come together, and with air became more rounded and balanced. The layers and detail were impressive. In sum, don’t judge this right out of the gate; give it ample time to stretch its legs, and you’ll be rewarded.
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1993 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
Pure magic, this is salacious all sex and sauvages. Impossible not to love this. Did fade a bit over time, where the '96 seemed to just keep getting better, but that’s nitpicking this is lovely. -
1996 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
The most “classic” wine served today. So bright and balanced, clean and precise. The table was going gaga for this, calling it the best '96 red Burgundy they had ever tasted. I liked this more the longer it was in the glass, and clearly this has a long and brilliant life ahead of it.
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1978 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
Fake bottle, ouch. And not a well done fake at that: someone put sherry in a DRC bottle, no resemblance whatsoever to the genuine wine. NR (flawed) -
1985 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
Perfect aromatics, and I don’t use the term perfect lightly. Glorious, clean, precise and elegant wine. The rose petals dance around my head, and put a giddy smile on my face. The epitome of great Burgundy.
