2002 BURGUNDY DINNER - Chef Chan’s, Singapore (16/4/2019)
Yet another one in our dinner of single vintage explorations - this time the great vintage of 2002. Always a wonderful way to get a grip on how a particular vintage is doing at particular points of its evolution.
2002 has always been my favourite vintages in the last couple of decades, for both reds and whites. However, some whites have started feeling quite advanced recently, while the reds on the other hand have often seemed quite tight and shutdown. This opportunity to revisit my impressions with a larger sample-size gave me more hope for the whites, but reinforced my recent experiences with the reds.
At their best, the white Burgundies of 2002 are fabulous. Ripe yet juicy, with plenty of depth, and yet enough acidity and minerality to keep them defined and focused - this is really a Burgundy drinkers’ white wine vintage, and the smashing trio of whites that we had on the night really reinforced that. While they were all opened for business, I would also have no hesitation waiting a bit. In fact, a couple of the wines would have done better with even more time in the bottle. The only fear, of course, is premox; and 2002 has had a pretty bad record on that front across many makers in my cellar. Well, cest la vie.
I have always loved the 2002 reds as well. At their best, they are classically shaped Burgundies in the very best sense of the word - pure, transparent wines with deliciously juicy fruit, yet also showing really nice depth and balance, with lots of fresh acidity and very fine tannin structures. The issue I have had is that many of the 2002s, especially on the Grand Cru level, have been asleep for some years - sometimes showing as obdurate, rather opaque or one-dimensional shadows or their former selves. Thankfully, it was not so bad at this tasting. I must say that many of the reds did feel a bit tight and certainly needed more time, but even then, they really felt like flowers just starting to bloom. I had very little of that sleepy, opaque, one-note feel, and much more of the charm and deliciousness that I loved about the wines in their youth. Good news then - the reds definitely seemed to be coming out of their awkward adolescence and into a lovely maturity. We just need to wait a few more years yet for the rightest of them to catch-up.
BUBBLES TO START
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2002 Dom Pérignon Champagne Rosé - France, Champagne
A wonderful start to the dinner. This was a step-up from an already very nice bottle drank almost exactly 5 years ago; the extra development has certainly helped to round out and integrate the wine even more. The wine had a great nose on the night, with a rivulet of gentle earth and mineral tones running through lovely aromas of strawberries, cherries, and some freshly cut flowers. Lovely. The palate was a nice echo of the nose - with a gentle creamy mousse and lovely soft acidity wrapped around more of those delectable strawberry and red berry tones, all lined with a lovely gentle minerality. It had a quietly long finish as well. Round, generous and palate-enveloping, yet impeccably balanced thought - this was wonderful rose. Delicious stuff, drinking fabulously now (94 pts.) -
2002 Pierre Péters Champagne Grand Cru Cuvée Speciale Blanc de Blancs Les Chetillons - France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
A superb showing. This took awhile to get going, but with some time and air - wow! The nose was very Pierre Peters, with ripe white fruited apple notes along with a slightly oxidative lilt of white meat. Not bad. The palate though. Round, fleshy, grippy; with firm bead and a real spine of lemony acidity pierced through a truly large-scale, muscular mouthful of fleshy white fruit and citrus flavours, all this resolving in a lovely minerally finish. Delicious stuff. A wine of both power and definition, with all its weight and depth held in a lovely tension and balance by the sheer amount of dry extract, and that lovely spine of acid and mineral that gave it such a lovely shape. Super stuff. It needed a good half-hour in the glass before showing off its chops on the night. On this showing, I would actually put aside any bottles for a good 5-6 years at least before broaching again. (94 pts.)
ONE FOR THE FISH
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2002 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Corton-Charlemagne Quintessence - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
This needed more time in the bottle. The quality was evident, but we rather felt that the enjoyment factor was not quite where it would be with say another 3-4 years in the bottle. There was certainly still quite an obvious lash of new oak on the nose, with vanilla bean aromas swirling swirling otherwise very attractive notes of ripe yellow fruit, chalk and a lift of florals. An attractive bouquet, but served blind, this could well have been mistaken for a new world Chardonnay with those aromas. The palate was very singular - round, ripe and powerfully yellow fruited, with a buttery, almost oily texture to it. In spite of that plump fruit though, the wine was always decently balanced, with nice spine of fresh acidity and mineral carrying it into a spicy finish, where more of those toasty new oak notes peeked out again. Lots of lees and perhaps some battonage on this I thought. All in all, this was a wine of quality, marrying great power and depth to quality fruit and and a nice sense of balance and effortless strength. It needs time though - still a lot of puppy fat and oaky accents wanting to tone down and integrate. This would be nice to try again in around 2022 / 2023. (93 pts.)
GEVREY-CHAMBERTIN
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2002 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Mazoyères-Chambertin - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Mazoyères-Chambertin Grand Cru
This was quite nice tonight. It had such an entrancing nose, with lovely sweet red cherries and berries, perfumed florals, a touch of mint, a bit of bramble, and just a tiny hint of earth and meat. Lovely Gevrey character here. The palate had a bit of a sterner feel than the nose suggested, with a firm spine of chewy tannins running through otherwise pure, lifted flavours of red berries, cherries and just a little bit of spice and bramble, all this enlivened by a tons of lovely acidity. Delicious, and very charming, but just a touch firm and rustically structured, with those woody tannins hanging around the edges of the wine. This unfortunately gave the wine a rather four-square feel. Still though, this was very enjoyable, and clearly the best showing out of the 3 bottles I have had in recent years. If anything, tonight’s tasting bodes well for the wine’s future. I would leave it aside for another 4-5 years; it should be drinking even better then. (92 pts.) -
2002 Faiveley Chambertin-Clos de Bèze - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru
This is generally rated pretty poorly on Cellartracker, but we actually found it really nice on the night. A much more masculine wine than the 2002 Taupenot-Merme Mazoyeres-Chambertin that we had alongside, the nose here had aromas of earth and meat, then bramble and spice, along with its dark cherries and berry fruit. The palate had that slightly dry, sinewy tannin structure that was pure old-school Faiveley, but this was clearly opening up, with fresh acidity enlivening pure, crunchy flavours of dark cherries and berries. Lovely clarity, focus and definition here to go with true Grand Cru depth. An effortless and graceful Clos de Beze I thought - reminiscent of a male ballet dancer, sinewy and graceful, yet with plenty of power. It had a good long finish too, with a chew of sinewy firm tannins to go alongside complex, whole-cluster influenced notes of herb and spice. Really nice stuff, which should continue to develop nicely in the bottle over the next decade and beyond. (93 pts.)
BATARD-MONTRACHET
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2002 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
Beautiful. This was classic Leflaive. The nose had that arresting flint and chalky mineral edge, along with just a light brush of funky earthiness speaking to the wine’s age, before a fragrant core of ripe red apples and honeyed pears with a yellow fruited accent took to the fore. If at all possible, the palate was both rich yet reserved at the same time, showing ripe red apples undergird with sweet lemon acidity and lovely mineral base - all beautifully integrated and wonderfully balanced, with really nice sense of cut and definition to it. Lovely chalky finish too, with a hint of spice coming out right at the every end. I have always found Leflaive’s Batards to be one of the most elegant expressions of a terroir that can come across a but heavyset, and this bottle was a wonderful. Intensity with balance I thought. Lovely stuff, and just right for drinking now. (94 pts.) -
2002 Domaine Michel Niellon Bâtard-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
Wow. This was a damn serious wine. I thought the lovely bottle 2002 Leflaive Batard on the same flight would be hard to beat when tasted blind, but this was actually a little step-up. A great showing from Niellon. The nose was richer and rounder than the Leflaive’s, with notes of butter and yellow fruit infused with perfumy florals and little dashes of spice by the side. Rich, ripe, but very nice smelling. The palate was classic Batard - big, powerful, deep, with a lovely intensity showing in its flavours of white fruit, ripe yellow lemons and kumquats, topped with just a dollop of vanilla cream. There was a tremendous underlying core of chalky mineral as well, all very nicely integrated with the fruit. For all its power though, there was never a lack of balance on the wine. In fact, it felt downright racy, with a deep seam of juicy citrus acidity that carried it into a wonderfully long, minerally finish. Lovely to drink and profound at the same time - this was very serious Batard indeed. While drinking well now, I think it has both the depth and balance to age quite nicely over the next few years. Bravo. (95 pts.)
BONNES MARES
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2002 Nicolas Potel Bonnes Mares - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru
This has been consistently good over three bottles, tasted over the course of 7 years or so. From a magnum this time, this had a lovely nose of blueberries and violets, earth and spice, with a just a touch of burnt rubber and a hint of meatiness to it. Lovely stuff, and quite characteristically Bonnes Mares to my mind. The palate was nice and approachable too. Perhaps a touch sterner, less charming than the nose, but very drinkable nonetheless. Here, plump flavours of blueberries and black cherries played against a backdrop of spice, mineral and earth. There was a nice sense of breezy freshness lent to it by some juicy acidity, but there was also an underlying structure of slightly drying, woody tannins that came up more as the wine moved into its long spicy finish. Altogether a yummy, if not quite complete Bonnes Mares. This did falter a bit against tough competition its flight-mates (superb 2002 Bonnes Mares from Mugnier and Vogue), but that would be nitpicking. This was very nice on the night. I did think that it should be drank sooner rather than later though, lest the fruit fades behind its structure. (93 pts.) -
2002 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Bonnes Mares - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru
Very lovely, even if this felt a tad young. It had a wild nose, with bits of funky meat and sous bois, and wafts bramble and spice, all wrapped around a fragrant core of dark cherries and blueberries. Nice. The palate was still a bit backward, maybe even a bit sullen compared to that expressive bouquet, but boy there was tons of quality on it. This just felt really polished, with velvety tannins and gently integrated acidity forming a backdrop for truly mouth-coating, Grand Cru-scale flavours of dark cherries and blueberries. There was also a firmer underbelly to the wine, with fine, but firm tannins showing up more obviously towards a long, fresh finish of black cherry peel seasoned with a touch of brambly wood spice. Really impressive, but this needs time though; it will be lovely in 4-5 years. (94 pts.) -
2002 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Bonnes Mares - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru
The best of a strong trio of 2002 Bonnes Mares, this was elegance personified. It had a lovely perfumed nose, with green stalked florals nestling amidst blueberries, red cherries, and then gentle tones of damp earth and meat. Beautiful. The palate was what took my breath away though. It was almost ethereal in the way its wonderful pure, transparent tons of cherries and blueberries floated across the mouth on a bed of silky tannins and wonderfully integrated acidity. Completely weightless - it was as if the structure was barely there; just a whisper of tannins and a suggestion of acidity, but all keeping the wine very nicely framed and defined even as it glided of into soft, gentle fading finish. Such wonderful finesse here - almost more Amoureuses than Bonnes Mares, if not for the sense of Grand Cru depth that this offered. I have always found Mugnier’s Bonnes Mares to be on the lighter side, sometimes to its detriment, but with a strong vintage like 2001, this really came into its own. It was drinking perfectly on the night as well. A wine of wonderful finesse and rare elegance; I could drink this by the bucket-load. (95 pts.)
VOSNE-ROMANEE
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2002 Domaine Jean Grivot Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru
Very impressive. A muscular wine, still rather tight and unyielding; but this already significantly better than the bottle I had a couple of years’ back. The nose was a rather clenched bouquet of earth and savoury meat along with dark berries and a bit of spice. Deep, compelling, but still tight. The palate was still quite clenched as well. There was a delicious core of dark cherries and blackberries infused with Vosne’s wood spices, but this was tightly wound-up with a great structure of fine-boned tannins and fine acidity. What really impressed me though was how transparent and pure the wine was - really fine and very complete for an Echezeaux. It had such an impressive finish too: tight and sinewy as with the rest of the wine, but at once also effortless pure, transparent and impeccably balanced as it wound its way through the back-palate. The raw material of a great wine is definitely here then, and it was certainly no crime to have drank it now - but this has just so much more to give. It really should be given tons and tons of time yet - 6-8, maybe a little more, and it will be lovely. (94 pts.) -
2002 Domaine Robert Arnoux / Arnoux-Lachaux Romanée St. Vivant - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru
Absolutely superb again - this was probably the best wine of the night amidst a fairly strong line-up. What a nose it had - everything you would expect an RSV to be - wood spice, fragrant dried florals; dark cherries and plums; dried earth, some meatiness; and then little lifts of menthol and orange peel. Wow. Like so many of the wines tonight, the palate still felt a little tight, a little young, but boy was it seriously good. Transparent, pure, with a wonderful stone of fresh orangey acidity running through quietly compelling flavours of black cherries and blackberries, plums maybe, and then a lovely seasoning of Vosne’s wood spice, which drew the wine into a long, earth and mineral infused finish. With time, a lovely flush of dried violets came out as well. Fine-boned, almost sinewy tannins still gave the wine a serious, rather muscular frame. But above that, this was just a beautiful pure, elegant expression of its terroir. I have really been drinking my bottles too fast - while so delicious now, this great RSV really does deserve at least another 4-5 years in the cellar. (95 pts.)
Posted from CellarTracker