A spectacular evening- Part 1 98`/07` Taittinger CdC, 00` Dom P2, 96` Krug

Our dinner group recently celebrated our 22nd annual Millennium dinner typically held in December of each year, but postponed last year due to COVID restrictions. This event compliments each year`s worth of weekly dinners by bringing top tier wines across the board and as has always been the case, we had many spectacular wines.

Our usual venue has been the private and wine themed Cork Room at one of our favorite local restaurants, bouchon; however, on this occasion, we sat outside up on an upper deck over looking the back secluded courtyard. The restaurant not only graced us with this regal like private deck, but assigned a dedicated server and their top somm to serve us and prepared a special prefix menu to pair with the wines. See photo.

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I`m posting the notes for each flight independent of the others for more specificity and ease in reviewing.

We started off with 4 champagnes:

1996 KRUG BRUT- I bought 2 6 packs quite a few years ago and have worked my way 10 bottles; the first 6 were superlative and the last 3 have been oxidized beyond my degree of appreciation although there are some who enjoy those advanced notes; my comeback is if I wanted to drink sherry, I would have bought a sherry; nonetheless, about this bottle- the color was a gold yellow with an amber haze; the nose had mild notes of brioche and citrus and stone fruit which on the palate translated more specifically into lemon and peach with some ginger and a mild toasty accent; it seemed less than full bodied and energetically; my take is that it has lost some of its power and although drinkable, it never approached the previous bottles; interestingly, I sat my glass aside and 30 minutes later went back and found it actually had expanded and became richer and more energized. An atypical 96` Krug, but so much better than the last 3.

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1998 TAITTINGER COMTES de CHAMPAGNE- the color on this was amazing in that it was a youthful light to medium yellow; the nose had really nice and inviting surprisingly close to primary lemon and lime notes which continued on to be joined by hints of ripe apple and pear with a honeyed undertone; the frothy mousse and extended finish sealed the deal to receive a consensus for being the favorite champagne of the 4 in the lineup, the others being 96 Krug, 00 Dom P2 and 07` Comtes, pretty stiff competition.

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2007 TAITTINGER COMTES de CHAMPAGNE BLANC de BLANC- with a lot of other stellar vintages of Comtes drinking so well presently, the 07 has not received a lot of love, but I’ve enjoyed every bottle and love to pair it with the 07 Rose for double the pleasure; this one had very enjoyable citrus notes with a touch of slightly toasted brioche and spice being delivered in a creamy mousse; there seemed to be a touch of sweetness, not to a fault, but remarkable in that I do not recall any in past bottles; its bright acidity, taste profile and texture all serve to please and allow for this to be another fine Comtes.


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2000 DOM PERIGNON P2 PLENITUDE BRUT- 52% Chardonnay, 48% Pinot Noir: disgorged early 2016; this is my 3rd bottle and it was somewhat different from the other 2 in that it seemed to be a little closed and just not ready to give up all of its immense treasures; even then, it was rich and full bodied with bracing acidity and the toasty brioche laden citrus fruit provided a decent taste profile.

For comparison purposes, here’s my notes for the last P2 I had in December, 2020 which indicate some of the distinct differences:

2000 DOM PERIGNON P2 PLENITUDE BRUT- 52% Chardonnay, 48% Pinot Noir: disgorged early 2016; it comes packaged in a classy, regal like hard plastic heavy black box that resides inside a draw string cotton bag; this was my 2nd bottle of this opulent bubbly and it was such a treat with each sip resulting in an amazing experience that might be considered by some as being in Champagnes version of nirvana; it’s intense, full bodied and super rich, but its hallmark is its texture which is most clearly described as lemon oil; the nose is redolent of baked apple and there’s loads of buttered and toasted pear, citrus, peach, caramelized ginger and honeysuckle that keeps showing up all the way to the back end; for over an hour, it just kept on giving and holding a steady course offering the same or similar pleasing nuances; righteous stuff here. I read where a MW stated this should be made available only by prescription. Im happy to be able to go to my local wine shop instead of the local CVS.

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As an aside, here’s some info about Plenitudes: Moet & Chandon rebranded their former Oenotheque in 2014 by calling each of the 3 stages of release Plenitude as in P1, P2 and P3. P1 refers to the first release about 8 years after harvest, P2 is about 15 years and P3 20-30 years. The P2 will spend 15 years on its lees as opposed to 6 years for P1. P1 is sealed with a crown cap which gives a steady and predictable oxygen transmission rate, at least for a decade and P2 is corked which seems to preserve the freshness better. Also, P1 is dosed at 7 gpl whereas P2 is at 4 gpl.

More about the plentitudes: As older vintages rest on the lees in the cellar, it does not improve steadily as might be expected and as many wines do. Instead, it remains relatively flat for years at a time and then when nature has had her ways, makes a quantum leap to a new quality plateau, where it again remains flat in terms of improvement for many years. Internally, the staff at Dom Perignon refers to these leaps as “plentitudes,” and have concluded that they occur just 3 times. The 1st plentitude takes about 7-9 years and results in the Dom Perignon most of the world knows, having made its first big improvement. The 2nd happens after another 10 years or so, the 3rd in another 10 years or so (these times are very subject to nature). After the 3rd, there are no more leaps but rather a slow and steady improvement, at least up to the nearly 100 year point they are still trying. Dom Perignon that is not resting on its lees never experiences the 2nd or 3rd plentitude.


Next up. 2 whites before moving into the reds:

2004 FE TRIMBACH CLOS STE HUNE RIESLING ALSACE
2008 PIERRE-YVES-COLIN-MOREY CORTON CHARLEMAGNE GRAND CRU

Now 3 flights of reds:

2004 DOMAINE LEROY VOSNE-ROMANEE
2002 DOMAINE MEO CAMUZET RICHEBOURG GRAND CRU

2008 GAJA CONTEISA LANGHE
1995 CHATEAU LA MISSION HAUT-BRION PESSAC-LEOGNAN
1998 HAUT-BRION PESSAC-LEOGNAN
1966 HAUT-BRION PESSAC-LEOGNAN #1
1966 HAUT-BRION PESSAC-LEOGNAN #2

2005 CHATEAU L`EVANGILE POMEROL
2006 VEGA SICILIA UNICO RIBERO DEL DUERO

Our fabulous evening culminated with 3 stellar dessert wines:

1989 CHATEAU d`YQUEM SAUTERNES
1998 ALOIS KRACHER WELCHRIESLING TROCHENBEERENAUSLESE NUMBER 11
1993 CHATEAU PAJCOS TOKAJI ESSENTIA

What a great night!. Everyone stepped up and then took another step to bring great stuff. The smiles around the table confirmed how much we all delighted in sampling one treasure after another and the last conversation was about our next Millennium dinner scheduled for December this year. Meanwhile, we continue to do our weekly thing and drink great wines, eat great cuisine and share great fellowship.

Cheers,
Blake

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Great dinner, Blake. Thanks for the notes on the Champagnes and the added bonus of the “tutorial” on the Dom plenitudes. Very interesting.

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I notice the Santa Barbara posse have done it again… [cheers.gif]

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Terrific notes on the bubbles, glad I still have a few of the '00 P2 in the cellar.

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Well done, Blake! So many nice wines in one evening! Thanks for posting.

Ed

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What’s a better word than spectacular?
sensational, breathtaking, wondrous, thrilling, splendid, remarkable, striking, astounding, fantastic, magnificent, dazzling, amazing, astonishing, marvelous, stunning, dramatic, miraculous, fabulous, grand, eye-catching.

Having read through your several posts about the evening, I think that “spectacular” was a pretty good word choice. IMHO
[cheers.gif]

I had a few options Jim that included stellar, extra stellar, stupendous, fantastic and the like; they all work.