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2007 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
Served blind. Light gold. Double decant then four hours air. No one picked the wine as a Chablis. Still, a high quality Chablis, very 2007. Reduction on opening. Bouquet of green apple, pears, grapefruit and some steel. Not a lot of minerality and no spice or exotic fruit nuances. On palate, fairly primary, tasters were picking it as younger than 2010 (2012?). Prominent acidity. Serious cut. Green apple, lime juice, greengage and grapey, with real phenolic punch. Serious structure and fruit weight. Finishing with a little phenolic bitterness (which I didn’t mind). Very dry, improved by the food. The next day it was drinking exactly the same. Good bottles like this are not at their peak yet and have many years ahead of them. -
2002 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Goulots Vieille Vigne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
Served blind. Double decant then four hours air. Deep red colour with brown tints. Almost russet. A superb 1er, showing very well on the night. “Grand Cru quality”, said Nick. A classic Gevrey nose with savoury, underbrush, musky, tobacco and dark fruited nuances. On palate, just beginning to turn secondary, adding detail and interest. Flavours reflecting the bouquet, umami and very dark. Earthy, rusty, with a little cigar leaf. A base of good, ripe fruit. Good concentration and power. Starting to fall over the next day. I’d drink another bottle in the next few years. -
1990 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Collina Rionda - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Double decant then five hours air. Rusty red. Served beside the Scavino. Nick and Wayne preferred the Scavino but I preferred the Giacosa. The less seamless, more idiosyncratic, wine of the two. An aged Barolo bouquet of dried red fruit, earth, balsamic vinegar, autumn leaves on the ground, dry bracken, creosote and cigar. Also, savoury cherry and a little dried Porcini. Hints of old English roses. On palate, clearly a 1990, fully ripe and rich fruit but with lots of secondary development. Elegant and refined. Earthy, red fruited flavours with tobacco leaf. Red liquorice and a rusty iron core. A lot of detail and complexity. Finishes very long, savoury and dry. It’s not the seamless integrated whole of the Scavino, but what you might see as disjointed and awkward, I saw as characterful and interesting … Drinking the same the next day. To drink when you’re ready. -
1990 Paolo Scavino Barolo Bric dël Fiasc - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Double decant then five hours air. Evolved colour but deeper and brighter red than the Giacosa. A much more primary, dark fruited nose than the Giacosa. More dark cherry, and blackberry, than red cherry. A little musk and a hint of violets, not roses. No discernible oak artefact on bouquet or palate. On palate, drinking younger. Very spherical, integrated and smooth. Opulent, ripe and rich, again showing the hot 1990 vintage, but in a different way. The oak seems consumed and integrated with the fruit. Ultra fine grained tannins. On the attack it’s dark fruited, with a hint of fruit sweetness. But on the back end it does show some development with a little tar, earth and balsamico. Tons of muscle and structure (below the sleek surface). Drinking the same the next day. No hurry to drink this Scavino.
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