Fantasmic White Burgundy night (and one 04 red burg) at the EMC

WINE TALK
1

Dr. Chien, Dr. Jones, Counselor Goldman and I decided to try out the new seafood hot spot in Koreatown in Los Angeles, EMC Seafood & Raw Bar to go with a copious amount of white burgundy.

We took down 24 assorted oysters (kumamoto, Kusshi, Beausoleil, Sol Azul), two uni pastas, a 10oz prime rib eye, two 2lb maine lobsters (crispy and charboiled), a steamed dungeness crab, abalone congee and an uni congee. Heavily asian influenced prep on the food, but still really delicious.

All wines other than the Raveneau were popped at least 2-3 hours beforehand. All wines showed very well with no problems. The only wine that didn’t “show” as expected was the Henri Boillot Chevalier Montrachet, but not in a negative way, more in the sense that it was slightly shut down. Great dinner, real treat that everyone opened some fabulous wines. Also got blinded on a really tasty 04 red from Fred.

A couple of fun quotes from the evening
Bryan: The only way to eat this crispy lobster is with coche dury. (whitepeopleproblemsamirite?)

A conversation with my wife after telling her about Dr. Jones’ success at getting the hostess’ phone number.

Wife: ew, an old guy picking up on a young hostess?
Me: He’s 26 years old.
Wife: You’re hanging out with people that aren’t over 50 now at your wine dinners!?!
me: -_-.

  • 1986 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
    This is a wow level wine. Popped the cork 3 hours before dinner, but the wine didn’t really get going until 2 hours into dinner. It turns into this delicious expansive palate of heavy complex flavors. Deep concentration of fruit and nut with a touch of mushroom showing a hint of its age. The craziest thing about this wine is how powerful the acidity is, mixed in with the minerality belies a level of tension that is astounding. Balance it all with the depth of flavor and you have your WOTN!
  • 1992 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru (2/2/2014)
    This wine is a testament to the fact that older whites need air. Popped about 3 hours before dinner, but showed slight oxidative notes. Not until it was tossed into a decanter at dinner did the wine blossom. As other notes have indicated, it really firms up with significant air exposure. Beautiful light gold color. Freshness with medium concentration of tropical fruit, really round on the palate. The wine has a seamlessness to it that just glides on the palate.
  • 1999 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
    The baby of our white burg dinner. Fred opened it 4 hours before dinner, it never really gave up much. Had a steeliness on the palate that seems typical of 99. As the night went on, I felt like the power that H. Boillot is known for was trying to peek out as you can start to taste that density of fruit but the wine just needed time. There was a zest in the background, but still needing more time. I was actually very surprised how little it was giving up as the 00/02/04 chevs have been drinking wonderful in the past year or so.

But who can complain about a 99 white burg being too youthful? :wink:. Seems this wine is built for the long run.

  • 2000 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet (2/2/2014)
    I strongly believe that the Enseigneres is the most satisfying village wine that Coche Dury makes. In every vintage it shows off so much power and complexity. Wine was double decanted a few hours before dinner to let some of the SO2 dissipate.

The palate was so powerful and deep. There were so many intense fruit flavors going on with that prickly back end of zesty minerality that coche is known for. Long concentrated finish. This wine has stuffing for dayssssssss

  • 2010 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru (2/2/2014)
    Served blind. Popped and poured into a decanter. Fabulous wine. Even in its youth, might be one of the best 1er Chablis I’ve had in a long while. This vintage does the wine well. It tempers the ripeness of the fruit with plenty of acidity. There is a fullness to the wine and wonderful structure. A touch of oak framed the palate but I think with age this is gonna be a hell of a wine.
  • 2004 Domaine Georges Mugneret/Mugneret-Gibourg Ruchottes-Chambertin - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
    Tasted blind. Apparently opened 12 hours before serving. I originally guessed something from 2008 as there was this slight stemminess to the wine on the palate. But there was a copious amount of bright red fruit. Slightly clipped on the finish, but it was a very tasty drink on the mid palate as the flavors really flow on the palate. Would not have guessed 04.
2

Thanks for doing the heavy lifting again on the notes Fu! Food was surprisingly good. I felt the oysters were okay in quality. Not “not fresh” but not the most pristine either. Skip that and the rest of the meal was dynamite. Honestly, I liked the grilled lobster better than the version at Connie and Ted’s.

Another wonderful white burg dinner with great company. There really is something magical about white burgundy when it’s on.

Adding my notes:

The blinds (kinda):

The lineup:

  • 2000 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet (2/1/2014)
    Opened 2 hours prior, this just continued to improve over the night. The Coche matchstick predominated at first but the fruit and acidity showed nicely on the palate. With time the sulfur blew off to reveal a beautiful bouquet of white flowers. My WOTN. This village out punched everyone tonight for my tastes. It really does go perfectly with that grilled lobster.


  • 1986 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
    Second time trying this and this performed better than the first. Faint mushroom scent with plenty of richness and fruit on the palate. This picked up acidity over time and became brighter and more youthful. Impressive.


  • 1992 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru (2/2/2014)
    Medium-dark gold in color. Tasted a bit flat. Thought it was a goner. After decanting picked up some acidity to really balance out the hazelnut and honeyed notes. Liked this a lot.


  • 1999 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru (2/1/2014)
    Opened 4 hours prior to tasting. Light yellow in color. A bit of hazelnut to start but also some wood and bitterness. About 6 hours later, the wood resolved and the wine expressed some pear, honey, and hazelnut. This was supported by plenty of lemon acidity. Still very young. My second bottle can afford a 5-10 year wait. Wonderful.

Posted from CellarTracker
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3

Thanks for the notes! Will try some 2010 1e Cru Raveneau soon sounds great!

Btw,- Great venue with Happy Hour $ 1 oyster & $ 5 draft beer ! [basic-smile.gif]

4

Nice guys!!!

5

FWIW, the 1986 vintage is the best WB vintage, IMO, since I’ve paid attention to such things…from the 1979 vintage throught the 2007-8s…

sounds great

6

Awesome food, awesome wines, awesome company, and no premox! Really hard to pick a favorite out of this lineup, with the BdM, Lafon, Coche, and Raveneau all special in their own way. The Boillot should be great with more time in the cellar, and I was impressed by yet another 2004 red Burg.

Uni pasta was ultra savory and just spectacular, and that Coche-Dury was made for the crispy lobster! Also glad to have had some oysters for the first time in forever; the Raveneau was another perfect pairing. Overall these white Burgs have a certain special quality that is hard to put into words.

1986 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
Fully mature with deep and dark flavors lifted by tons of acidity. Flawless integration and tensely balanced. Mild tertiary mushroom notes. Improved as a the night went on into a stately giant of a wine.

1992 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru (2/2/2014)
Really improved with lots of air into an expansive and balanced wine with so much nutty character and tropical fruit. Great integration with lovely mouthfeel.

1999 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
So much breed and class were apparent, but this was holding back. Still tasted super young and in need of cellar time to open up. Racy and steely and taut with acidity.

2000 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet (2/2/2014)
Signature Coche with welcome sulfur and strong minerality. So much weight and power. Perhaps not as complex as the grand and premier cru bottles, but just as enjoyable. Stood up well to the more strongly flavored dishes.

2010 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru (2/2/2014)
Popped and poured after a short time in the freezer to get it down to temperature. Fred kept calling this “pretty” which really encapsulates it all: saline, chalk, and acid with bright white fruits and floral notes. Perfect with oysters and already a special wine.

2004 Domaine Georges Mugneret/Mugneret-Gibourg Ruchottes-Chambertin - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
Tasting this wine blind, the 2004 vintage never crossed my mind as a possibility. Only after it was revealed did I pick up on a faint herbal aroma. Power of suggestion, perhaps? Nice acidity and good weight.

7

The BdM’s of the 80’s are really good Charlie. Thanks for the notes.

Cheers
Jeremy

8

the 85/86 BdM duo makes for a great comparison, fabulous wines that have drunk well for two decades.

9

Nice one guys.

It doesn’t get much better than to drink a few great white burgs over a good meal, with good friends…

10

I actually would rate '82 just ahead of '86, a bit less richness but more line, if that makes sense.

Still, some really great vintages from the '80’s, with well cellared examples still drinking so well, and '86 sure was a classic year.

11

great lineup of wines guys. have to agree with the comment about Enseignères, Charlie. always seems to deliver.

12

Great food, great wines, great company. Dinner really was scrumptious, and the wines were on. Here are my (brief) notes.

1986 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
A “wow” wine from the first sniff, which just kept getting better. Enchanting bouquet with notes of butterscotch, mushroom, nuts, and florals. Concentrated, rich, with fantastic depth and acidic lift. Just edged out the Coche as my WOTN.

1992 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru (2/2/2014)
When first opened there were worrying hints of oxidation, but after several hours and some decanting, this really came into its own. Nutty notes with honeyed yellow fruit on the nose. Nice balance and palate presence. Good mature white Burg.

1999 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
As others have noted, this was a bit young, but there clearly is great material here that should shine in time. Right now, good citrusy acidity and tension.

2000 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet (2/2/2014)
This was just beautiful. Rich fruit and lovely sulfur notes with so much depth and power on the palate. This was hard to put down. Really knockout wine.

2004 Domaine Georges Mugneret/Mugneret-Gibourg Ruchottes-Chambertin - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru (2/2/2014)
Served blind. I had no idea what this could be from the nose, although it was obvious from the first sip that this was Burgundy. Definitely some '04 herbal character aromatically but good fruit and spice on the palate. Tasty.

2010 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru (2/2/2014)
Really gorgeous nose with white flower notes, tropical fruit, wet stone, and a hint of oak. Great balance and roundness on the palate. This was drinking fantastically and should only get better with additional cellar time.

Posted from CellarTracker

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I bought them without much knowledge of the quality of 86. After I bought them I was happy to have acquired them [snort.gif]

14

I guess I know which maggie to bring on March 1st. champagne.gif

15

Please decant 12 hours ahead from the maggie [snort.gif]

16

March 1st, 2024? [wink.gif]

Looking forward to it!