Charleston Day 1

[MChang]

The beginning of our annual weekend here started at Perrone’s in Pawleys Island getting us off to a great start.

Notes in progress as usual.

Flight 1:

Roses de Jeanne Cotes de Val Vilaine VV20

Rounded mouthfeel, with lovely stone fruits and a hint of ginger. Most robust of these wines.

Roses de Jeanne Cotes de Val Vilaine VV21

Super precise, focused, and brilliant, with purest lemon zest; like a chevalier Montrachet with bubbles.

Roses de Jeanne Cotes de Val Vilaine VV22

A bit richer than the super angular VV21, but more precise than the 20, really blossomed with some time in the glass.

Flight 2:

2014 Pierre Yves Colin Morey Chassagne Montrachet 1er Chenevottes

Struck match and white peach on the nose with beautiful balance, length, and elegance. Lovely acidity.

2014 Pierre Yves Colin Morey Chassagne Montrachet Les Ancegnieres

A streak of energy with super focused acidity and quiet power. Even more struck match reduction than the Chenevottes. This was WOTF for me, just stunning.

2014 Pierre Yves Colin Morey Puligny Montrachet 1er Perrieres

Much rounder and riper than the other two wines, didn’t have the struck match and had yellow peach on the nose. This was pleasant but so different than the other two wines.

Flight 3:

2009 Frederic Esmonin Ruchottes Chambertin

On most days this would be a pleasant drinker, however, they also didn’t seem to handle the heat as well as the other two producers. This was a bit plummy and the palate was pleasant enough, but felt ponderous in this company.

2009 Mugneret Gibourg Gevrey Chambertin 1er

This dropped the hammer with such powerful aromatics. Purest red strawberry and currant fruit, with a lot of focus and precision. Lithe and supple finish.

2009 Mugneret Gibourg Ruchottes Chambertin

Much more power and drive than the Gevrey, with beautiful forest floor and dark currants to go along with the red currants. The palate was powerful and intense and the finish was infinitely long.

2009 Rousseau Clos de Ruchottes

Took the longest to open up, although it was aromatically firing from the start. After a couple hours in the glass it exploded with power and was firing on all cylinders. Super powerful mid palate and stunning finish. These two were a tough comparison but by the end of the night I give the edge to the Rousseau.

Flight 4:

2017 Hudelot Noellat Romanee Saint Vivant

Some sweetness on the nose, with ripe strawberry fruit, not much stem influence. A bit of mid palate punch but much less weight than the other two wines, quite elegant.

2017 Domaine de la Romanee Conti Romanee Saint Vivant

This was phenomenal; beautiful aromatics with some Chinese 5 spice, some red and dark currants, and lovely fine knit texture. Lighter bodied than the confuron but so elegant, precise, and long. Tremendous finish.

2017 Jean Jacques Confuron Romanee Saint Vivant

This was a bruiser both aromatically, structure wise, and on the palate. Younger feeling than the bottle from may, this felt like it needed some more time to fully unfurl, but demonstrated immense potential and power. Superb length. While this wasn’t the clsss of the flight as it was in San Antonio, it was still quite beautiful.

Flight 5:

1978 R Lopez de Heredia Tondonia Gran Riserva

Some James brown funk with some beautiful fruits, surprising length.

1980 R Lopez de Heredia Tondonia Gran Riserva

Corked

1981 R Lopez de Heredia Tondonia Gran Riserva

Stunning with open knit structure, lovely fruits and perfectly integrated tannins with great length.

Flight 6:

1982 Chateau Haut Brion

Absolutely tremendous wine. This was decanted a full 5 hours and went from strength to strength as the night went on. Purest cedar, tobacco, and beautiful red plum on the nose, with super fine, elegant tannins and a truly monumentally long finish.

1982 Chateau Pichon Lalande

This was an aromatic wonderland, although it seemed to peak after about 3-4 hours in the decanter and I would have preferred to pour it a bit earlier; that said it was still drinking at absolute prime with a more Burgundian nose with red cherry fruit, some tobacco and some graphite. The finish was also near endless and the palate wasn’t quite as robust as the haut brion or mouton but this was still incredible.

1982 Chateau Mouton Rothschild

So young in the glass after 5 hours in the decanter. This could’ve been a 2016. Stunning raspberry and cedar on the nose, with more beautiful fruits and super intense mid palate and such a pleasurable finish. Wow. This flight really has three winners. I wish I could’ve sat with these wines for a couple more hours.

Flight 7:

1993 Chateau Yquem

Surprisingly advanced, but pretty with brown sugar, passion fruit, and vanilla. The palate was intense and the finish was long.

1986 Chateau Yquem

Another stunning showing for this lovely beauty. Some crushed overripe pineapple and lovely papaya fruits, with exotic fruits, incredible mid palate presence and incredibly long finish.

[MackS]

Hell yeah.

[Kris_Patten]

Decent start.

[Robert.A.Jr]

Yall need some food!

[MChang]

The food was phenomenal, someone will post a picture of the menu I’m sure.

[wbkeene]

I’m gathering the HN RSV suffered a bit in comparison to the other 2?

[MChang]

Not necessarily; I mean, I think the DRC was the clear best wine on this day (although in SA I think the confuron was clearly best and the hudelot was 2nd best) but I think most people thought the confuron and hudelot were both really good but they’re VERY different and it would really depend if you want power/aromatic intensity versus finesse/elegance.

[wbkeene]

Good context, thank you.

[J.Durham]

@MChang

2017 Hudelot Noellat Romanee Saint Vivant

Some sweetness on the nose, with ripe strawberry fruit, not much stem influence. A bit of mid palate punch but much less weight than the other two wines, quite elegant.

2017 Domaine de la Romanee Conti Romanee Saint Vivant

This was phenomenal; beautiful aromatics with some Chinese 5 spice, some red and dark currants, and lovely fine knit texture. Lighter bodied than the confuron but so elegant, precise, and long. Tremendous finish.

2017 Jean Jacques Confuron Romanee Saint Vivant

This was a bruiser both aromatically, structure wise, and on the palate. Younger feeling than the bottle from may, this felt like it needed some more time to fully unfurl, but demonstrated immense potential and power. Superb length. While this wasn’t the clsss of the flight as it was in San Antonio, it was still quite beautiful.

Rematch!
Of note in SA the HN and Confuron were both opened 3-4hrs before (small pour to check but not decanted). I think DRC was pop and pour.

[Tom_Blach]

@J.Durham

I think DRC was pop and pour.

Which in the end and with all things considered is the best thing to do with red burgundy unless there are serious sediment issues.

[dbailey]

Let me know when you start on the real stuff.

[MChang]

In the case of these wines, the 17 DRC was much better this time after 3-4 hours of slow ox; all 3 wines were opened at the same time.

[Andrew_K]

@Tom_Blach

@J.Durham

I think DRC was pop and pour.

Which in the end and with all things considered is the best thing to do with red burgundy unless there are serious sediment issues.

That’s why the DRC finished last that night?

[J.Durham]

@Tom_Blach

Which in the end and with all things considered is the best thing to do with red burgundy unless there are serious sediment issues.

Yeah I’m not rehashing this. Been done ad nauseam

Mealy presenting data about why the same 3 wines may have shown a bit differently just a few months apart. In SA they weren’t treated identically.

[J.Durham]

It was killed so fast no one got a second pour.
Just showed terribly….

[Tom_Blach]

@J.Durham

the same 3 wines may have shown a bit differently just a few months apart.

The same 3 wines will always show a bit differently just a few months apart, happily.

[dcornutt]

That is a big start! Some very interesting wines. Thanks for the notes.

[John_Davila]

Here is the menu from Perrone’s in Pawleys Island.
Unfortunately I didn’t catch all the dishes, I’m missing the Iberico Presa dish. I’m also missing the handmade tater tot and caviar, mainly because I popped it in my mouth like a tic-tac and it was gone.

[John_Davila]

Here’s another picture of both bottles of D’yquem. They lasted two days and never really waivered.

[Karl_K]

A few notes on the wines:

Val de Villaine flight
20 - lithe with a nice lemon note
21 - strong line of acidity from the attack to the finish, leading me to think this will be the longest lasting of the thre
22 - the most generous of the three, in part due to the highest RS - as John said, don’t need food to enjoy it

2014 PYCM flight
CM Chenevottes - light straw in color, a faint oyster shell aroma followed by reduction, which moderated with time. John called out matchstick and a light pineapple note which followed through to the palate. Certainly pleasant.
CM Anceignieres - also light in color, slightly richer in tone than the Chenevottes. Also showing reduction. Had a density on the midpalate - without being heavy - the other two did not have.
PM Perrieres - medium gold in color, none of the reduction of the other two wines, some butter and butterscotch - did it go through ML (at least partially?)

2009 Flight
Esmonin- Certainly pleasant but without the complexity of the next three wines. A touch of brown sugar on the nose and palate, seemingly a nod to the ripeness of the vintage.
MG GC 1er - beautiful stawberry and red flower aromatics, matched on the palate. Full of life (well-integrated acidity) and lighter-bodied than the MG Ruchottes. On first comparing it to the Ruchottes, I prefered its elegance - with time, as the darker fruits of the Ruchottes started to assemble, I gave it the edge, as the MG GC 1er did not have the same fullness on the midpalate and finish, making it feel in comparison a bit short. To be expected from the younger vines in the wine, I suppose.
MG Ruchottes - This was the most powerfully aromatic of all the wines poured this evening. As Michael notes, a nice assemblage of darker fruit flavors. Just starting to hit its stride.
AR Ruchottes - More spice on the nose than either of the MG. On the palate, a touch of vanilla on the finish. A pleasant light charcoal quality both on the nose and palate. So tasty I didn’t give it time to evolve and come back to later as in Michael’s note, but it definitely gave the impression of being capable of evolving, both in the glass and in the cellar.

2017 RSV Flight
HN - Elegant, light, coiled - strawberries, of the three, the one showing the youngest. Continue to cellar
DRC - overall the most complete wine of the evening - I have not much to add to Michael’s notes aside from to say the five spice (star anise) quality stood out (and was a smell memory I had later that evening)
JJC - will echo Michael’s notes: powerful

LdH Flight
1978 - On the palate, had a pleasant combination of dark fruits and dark soil tones.
1980 - Some VA on the nose and then flatness on the palate: corked.
1981 - the most light-bodied, almost like a high-quality right bank Bordeaux, but with more bright blood orange lift and a special kind of dusty red earth quality which may be a LdH signature, I haven’t had enought to state with any level of authority.

1982 First Growths
HB - aromas of mint and tobacco leaf, on the palate dark soil tones and some ashiness.
PLL - the least structured of the three but providing on the palate a generous impression of fruit: my feeling is that this is what others have described as the signature of the 1982 vintage. I kind of cheekily called it the wine for the next twenty minutes while the Mouton is a wine for the next twenty years.
Mouton - what the English (I think) would call a wine of great breeding: restrained power galore, driving on and on in an upright combination of tannins, acidty, and a wide array of fruit and soil flavors. Not showy but complete. A wine to march to, or pat in your case stack in your cellar as you walk by.

d’Yquem
I echo Michael’s comments.

It was a great occasion and I thank John and Michael for the organization! I look forward to reports on Days 2 and 3! And it was great to meet Robert and Emily. Robert a trailblazer, founding his own industry . . .