I’m new to the forum, this will be my first post!
Tasted this 1999 Beaune 1er cru, Clos du Roi the morning of New Year’s Eve.
-Garnet around a ruby center
-Strong sour cream scent from malolactic fermentation, dissipates after 2mins
-Nose was a bit shy after the sour cream dissipated, but after another minute, I was greeted by dried cranberries, dried raspberries, plum and even blueberries, in that order
-Tertiary notes came immediately after, sous bois, truffle, licorice, leather, a whiff of game/balsamic/blood
-Secondary notes were persistent throughout but a blast of spices would come into the foreground every now and then in the recognizable form of cinnamon and cloves, but also some nutmeg, mace, and even turmeric!! Very aromatically complex
-A bit of dustiness would show up every now and then, along with the note of tea(something I covet very much in Burgundies)
-Tannins are well integrated and are in near perfect balance with acidity
-13% alcohol on the label, seems fair
-Overall very balanced, pronounced and complex. I feel that the tertiary aromas can mature a little more, with peak drinking window beginning around 2029 and should continue drinking well until 2040.
-Main critique: Perhaps too concentrated and will never truly resolve. Although the wine is near complete, its components are integrated together in a way the feels nearly claustrophobic. It reminds me of a way a friend of mine described Biondi Santi’s Tenuta Greppa as being too brooding for its own good, always just shy of truly blossoming.
Welp, that was the note! Besides being lengthy, please let me know if there’s anything else I can improve on
Hey- welcome, and thanks for the detailed note. Sounds about right for that wine in '99.
I’ve had better luck with Ampeaus whites from the 90s than reds; they were popping up everywhere for a while. Pretty good value wines. Cheers.
Well, yes, quite a nice note! Congratulations on your first post. I’ve also only had their whites, which can be eye-openers, though not always. From you note, I’d happily drink the Clos du Roi, despite your qualms. And it does sound like a little more time wouldn’t hurt.
-Strong sour cream scent from malolactic fermentation, dissipates after 2mins
I like that you picked up on this. I haven’t had the wine yet but I am pretty sensitive to lactic notes in wines.
Thank you for the warm welcome!
I should also mention this was my 2nd bottle, the 1st being badly oxidized. I also had a 1999 Volnay-Santenots that was badly corked- the highest amount of TCA I’ve ever experienced. I did have a 2001 and 2002 Volnay-Santenots that were both singing so I’m currently 3/5 with the reds. Maybe winemaking practices cleaned up after the 90s. Cheers!
This wine is definitely very enjoyable and is offering phenomenal value! This was my 2nd bottle, the 1st being badly oxidized and from what I understand these wines from Robert Ampeau often suffer from faults so do be careful!
I should also mention that the strong sour cream note comes back every now and then when the wine warms up in the glass. I believe this note from malolactic fermentation is what lends the wine its signature sous bois flavor profile but I could very well be wrong. Even though I’m not sensitive to lactic notes, I still found myself needing to see the forest for the trees with this wine.
