Dinner in Beaune the night of the auction. We tried to reprise at Ma Cuisine, but they were fully booked Sunday. Luckily, they were open (against usual practice on Monday) where the seven of us had a very nice closing night meal. On Sunday, we wound up at La Grilladine, a very understated place near the square on Rue Maufoux. It turned out the wine list was pretty reasonable and also interesting. We had, with our perfectly fine meal:
2007 Bouzereau Aligote - After tasting chardonnay after chardonnay, the aligote felt like a good change of pace at meals. While by no means spectacular, this wine was light, crisp and appealing and made for a very good starter.
2001 Faiveley Latricieres-Chambertain, Grand Cru - at around 60 euros, this was well worth a shot. Very nice spiciness and complexity on this wine, with a uplifting bouquet leading to black fruits supported by a bracing minerality. Maybe a bit young, but not too much so to prevent enjoyment this night. At the price, a steal.
1991 Bouchard Volnay, Les Fremiets, 1er Cru - This was a bit of a shocker. Wasn’t expecting a ton from the wine, but it delivered it. Soaring nose of red/black fruits, earth, rock and a hint of mushroom. On the palate, the sensations were similar, with an incredible balance and length of flavors. A superstar this night.
2001 Drouhin Clos de la Roche, Grand Cru - A much bigger wine than the Volnay, the dark fruits were huge and jammy, without being over the top. Rich and spicy, a nice way to close out the meal.
On the way home, a couple of late grabs at Magnum, just off the square.
1990 Ampeau, Blagny, La Piece-Sous-le-Bois, 1er Cru - From an odd group of parcels in Meursault in which pinot grows, the purchase of this wine was discouraged by a salesman. When I assured him I was familiar with Ampeau (and Blagny), he relented. I’m glad he did. Very impressive wine. An elegant spiciness to the red fruit with a bracing minerality made this wine, whose structure was still very much intact. A very nice surprise with a few years still ahead of it.
2003 Bruno Clair, Gevrey-Chambertain, Les Cazetiers, 1er Cru - To close out the night, a little (just a touch) of infanticide. Very ripe and rich wine, with notes of minerals and earth supporting the dark fruits. Because of the vintage, not much infanticide at all. The fruit was nicely framed.