Champagne, Burgundy and Rhone

WINE TALK
#1

Had a very enjoyable dinner with friends recently at One Market Restaurant in SF. The restaurant was excellent and highly recommended. The wines were definitely eye openers. Did not take notes during the dinner, but brief recollections follow:

White WOTN: 2001 Bouchard Chevalier Montrachet
Red WOTN: 2001 Guigal La Turque

Champagne Flight:

1988 Salon - The Salon was medium gold in color with a yeasty nose that hinted at a well aged wine. On the palate and nose, picked up some initial oxidation, but not altogether unappealing. As the wine opened up, and put in a more bowl style glass, showed more roasted nut and creamy citrus fruit characteristics. The acidity is still pretty firm in this wine, and have we had more wine, expect it would have continued to improve over the evening. A very enjoyable and thought provoking wine.

1996 Philipponnat Clos des Goisses - Thinking it would be hard to top the 1988 Salon, sure enough, it happened with the Clos des Goisses. This wine was simply outstanding. Definitely in the top 10 Champagnes I have ever tasted, it was perfectly balanced and richly flavored. Light straw colored, the wine was crisp with plenty of mineral, citrus, and apples. Was refreshing to drink and reminiscent of other excellent 1996 Champagnes. This wine should age extremely well for a considerable amount of time!

White Burgundy Flight:

2000 Bouchard Chevalier Montrachet La Cabotte - Having had so many excellent experiences with Bouchard whites, was looking forward to tasting this wine. Initially showed a light body, but good balance and complexity. Had a feeling it would put on weight and improve. In a relatively short period of time, started to fade, and only went downhill. Oxidative notes became more prevalent in time. Unfortunately, not a great showing.

2001 Bouchard Chevalier Montrachet - A gorgeous Bouchard, it showed considerable balance and complexity with boat loads of citrus, pear, floral characteristics and minerals. This young wine had plenty of acidity, which was well in balance with the wines other components. Overall, an elegant, classic beauty that will age gracefully for many years.

Red Burgundy Flight:

1995 Bouchard Corton - The Corton was a little disappointing. Ok, a lot disappointing. Not a lot going on in this wine. Was lean, earthy, dry and not likely to ever get any better.

2007 Lucien Le Moine Clos de Vougeot - A young, but surprising ripe wine that was approachable now. Primarily red and black fruit driven, a very enjoyable wine.

Rhone and Sweet Ending Flight:

2001 Guigal La Turque - A huge meaty, earthy, dark berry, thick and rich wine. This is a wine to age considerably longer, and it will improve a great deal over time.

1989 Rieussec - A good, but not great end of meal wine. Perhaps a little too young or a little too sweet, did not really have the complexity or uniqueness I had hoped.

Cheers!

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#2

How long did you decant?

#3

It was a pop and pour Berry, tasted over the span of a little over a hour.

#4

I don’t know about that particular wine, but Ive gotten to the point that I open any red burg at least 5+ hours before drinking them. So often do they have no fruit at all but gradually awaken with slow air. If they seem alive when I open them I’ll just put the corp back in but usually I like to pour out a half glass and then slowox the rest. I’ll pour into a carafe if it doesnt seem likes its moving fast enough.

#5

This one was pretty lean Berry, and pretty sure it was never going to come around. Your point is well taken however. More often than not, agree a lot of patience will do wonders with Burgundy! Cannot even begin to tell you how many wines I wanted to dump on the first few tastes, only to discover later in the evening what a big mistake that would have been . . .

#6

very great choice of wines, among wines that I personaly adore.

I have had more chance with La Cabotte 2000 which is a great wine.
And Le Corton Bouchard is generally a great wine. The 1959 is a great wine !

I share your taste for Salon and Clos des Goisses.

Bravo !

#7

'88 Salon can be astonishing, but most of my bottles have been totally oxy and DOA.
'96 Clos de Goisses is a wonder, so classy. Refined, with effortless power. What a wine!