2001 Paul Pernot et ses Fils Bâtard-Montrachet- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
Lots of flinty lemons and limes on the palate. Big and brawny, this screams Batard. The palate was ripe and powerful with some tangerine, peach, wet slate, and lemons. Probably a bit more advanced than you’d hope to see, but I found it enjoyable. (91 pts.)
1986 Château La Mission Haut-Brion- France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Dusty, and ripe nose with blackberries, lots of smokey earth, and minerals. The palate buzzed with tannins. Think chewing on a wool sweater. Nice composition to the palate though with layers of dark fruit, violets, some earth, and minerals. In a really good spot. (92 pts.)
NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Blanc de Noirs La Côte Faron- France, Champagne, Aÿ, Champagne
Lots of earthy umami tones, some nuttiness, and lemons. Super intense and precise with lots of length and layers of citrus, florals and earthy notes. Awesome. (93 pts.)
2002 Jacques Selosse Champagne Millésimé- France, Champagne
Tons of energy and precise citrus, florals, with an ever-present waxy nutty note on the end. Love the energy here and its elegance. Just off the charts from an elegance standpoint. Lots of life ahead of it. (94 pts.)
NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Cuvée Exquise- France, Champagne
Lots to like about this wine…has that funky, nutty nose to it with some sweet lemon tones too. The palate is sweet and delicious and part of me just wishes it had more acidity. Very exotic! (91 pts.)
NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Brut Initiale- France, Champagne
Always a treat! Peaches, lemons, limes, floral notes. Gorgeous from start to finish. I’m a fan of the nutty notes these wines have, so this was right up my alley. (92 pts.)
2009 Domaine François Mikulski Meursault 1er Cru Charmes- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru
Really ripe. Lots of peach, pears, apples and kinda low on the acidity. Would like it more with more acidity. (85 pts.)
1998 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Auxey-Duresses Les Clous- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Auxey-Duresses
Wow. What a nose! Definitely some sulphur tones and gorgeous lemon and lime notes. Tons of balance and charisma…my first d’Auvenay and hopefully not my last! (93 pts.)
2005 Henri Boillot Corton-Charlemagne- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
Dazzling nose that combines some whispy sulphur notes with pristine and precise lemons, flint, and limes. The palate is razor sharp. Acidity is off the charts here and feels almost like a crisp Chablis. Lots of love here and if premox wasn’t an issue, I would say leave this alone for 10+ years. (94 pts.)
2007 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
Really beautiful. Cool slate, soft and precise floral notes with a nice pear and lime tone to it. Great acidity too. Very good. (92 pts.)
1988 Domaine Dujac Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Aux Combottes- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
A bit roasty, with some tomato notes on the nose. The palate seemed a bit tired with the tomato thing driving the palate, too.
2005 Paul Pernot et ses Fils Beaune Clos Du Dessus Des Marconnets- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune
Really gassy nose, but there are glimpses of red fruit, dried florals and earth peeking through at times. The palate is smooth as silk with lots of red berries and earth. (91 pts.)
1996 Château Lafleur- France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
Lots of brambly red fruit, some cranberries, and smoke. The palate was sappy and had some drying tannins. I liked its cranberry and cherry tones on the palate and with its soft rose tones, thought it was showing very nicely. (91 pts.)
1988 Emmanuel Rouget Echezeaux- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru
Superstar wine. Lots of earthy red fruits on the nose. Forestal tones of pine, some cedar and damp earth accompanied the floral and fruity tones. The palate was silky and in a great spot with a great combination of spicy red fruit, earthy notes, and soft floral tones. Big thanks to Alan for sharing! (96 pts.)
1994 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve- France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Lots of dusty red fruit, earthy and floral notes. Only had a quick taste, but this was gorgeous. I’ve always loved 1994 Southern Rhones and this was one of the finest examples I’ve had to date. Perfect balance. (95 pts.)
1989 Pierre Gonon St. Joseph Les Oliviers- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, St. Joseph
Hadn’t had this in 3 years and still found it beautiful and thought-provoking syrah. Nose had some meaty elements but what I found most interesting was the elegant floral and red berry tones. Certainly a more feminine syrah, but damn, is it gorgeous. (93 pts.)
1997 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie
Lots of dark berries, meat, and coffee tones on the nose. A very dark and burly Cote-Rotie that has a warmish profile to it. (90 pts.)
What a fabulous line up. I’ve got to attend one of these HDH auctions in person.
I followed the action on the Internet and came away with a few nice lots. Focused on some older burgs ands baroli. I wonder if I would bid more in person.
Based on watching pricing, it seemed like big name Burgundies (DRC, Jayer, Rousseau) continued that stratospheric rise. There was a huge amount of bidding up Dujac wines that priced me way out pretty quickly.
NV Billecart-Salmon Champagne Brut Sous Bois- France, Champagne
What’s going on here? This is trying too hard to be Krug. This is very fruity and there’s a meyer lemon acid component that sticks out like a sore thumb. It’s somewhat oxidative in style without the nutty and bready elements. Weird stuff; not a fan. (85 pts.)
1986 Château La Mission Haut-Brion- France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
A very dirty and animal nose – some at our table thought it was flawed; I thought it was just manure at the first. But the palate was just so empty, and not at all like the other LMHBs I’ve had in the past. There was none of the mineral quality, nor was there fruit. Kind of like chewing on leather… NR (flawed)
1999 Louis Jadot Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru
I got a good whiff of peaches and baked apples on the nose, and that same note carried through on the palate. This is very ripe and rich, with a good bit of umami tossed in for good measure. There’s good acidic balance to hold all that in check, so it’s never flabby. The oak is quite detectable though. (90 pts.)
2001 Paul Pernot et ses Fils Bâtard-Montrachet- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
When it’s on, this white Burgundy stuff is on. A lovely nose of peaches and almonds, and a hint of vanilla egg custard (I always pick up this note in Pernot). The palate has lots of racy acidity, with some delicious green apple notes. Linear and precise, and although this did not have the heft of a Batard it did have the elegance of a Chevalier. (93 pts.)
2002 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
This is a real fat bastard of a wine (seems to be a theme of the last few days). There’s still a good whiff of sulphur at the start. The palate is quite ripe, with lots of tropical fruit characteristics – pineapple seemed to dominate here. The finish came off a little bitter however. (90 pts.)
NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Brut Initiale- France, Champagne
Disgorged May 5, 2010. This had an intense bready nose. The attack is simply explosive with citrus and stone fruit, followed immediately by a massive wave of chalky limestone extract, to the point it dries your mouth up. The bubbles were quite light – they completely dissipated in my glass over the space of a half-hour. A fantastic showing. (93 pts.)
NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Blanc de Noirs La Côte Faron- France, Champagne, Aÿ, Champagne
Disgorged January 27, 2010. Copper colour. This was somewhat disappointing to me. Kruggy. Lots of almonds, currants, raspberries, and roses on the palate. All the elements were there – minerality, acidity, fruit, concentration, but this bottle seemed to lack cohesiveness. I don’t really know what happened here… (90 pts.)
NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Cuvée Exquise- France, Champagne
Disgorged November 24, 2008. I thought this was the top of the three NV Selosses that we drank today. This has the same attack as the Initiale, with a cornucopia of fruit, but it’s modified by the presence of the significant dosage, which puts in a very attractive element of sweetness. The wall of mineral and chalk then catches up to the fruit and integrates into what is pretty much a complete wine. Despite the concentration, this is not a heavy wine. Finishes very long. (95 pts.)
2009 Domaine François Mikulski Meursault 1er Cru Charmes- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru
Likely overshadowed by all the Selosse wines that preceded my tasting this, I found this had plenty of fresh fruit and almonds on the nose. The palate however was quite fat and hot. Could have used a bit more acidity to round things out. (85 pts.)
2005 Henri Boillot Corton-Charlemagne- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
From half bottle. Smells like Coche’s popcorn. Thought it was Coche based on that nose. But then when you taste it you see where the difference lies. This is big and brash, but doesn’t have the same concentration as a Coche might. This has lots of potential, and given the good hit of sulphur you get on the nose, I imagine I wouldn’t be too worried about the pox striking this wine. (93 pts.)
1997 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie Les Sommets d’Harys- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie
Classic syrah aromas of olives and smoked meat and stems. There is a very lush red fruit quality on the palate that counterbalances all these savory elements. There are clearly some secondary characteristics developing now, and I detected a bit of leather as well. This treads the line between jammy and restraint so well. (93 pts.)
1989 Pierre Gonon St. Joseph Les Oliviers- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, St. Joseph
This is definitely not modern winemaking. Stems all around! This is much more structured and restrained than the Jamet I had alongside. A bit low on the fruit for me, though there are mild hints of it beneath all those interesting stem qualities. A wholly intellectual wine, you have to sit down and contemplate this one. Still going strong, and I doubt this is going over the hill anytime soon. Went deliciously with Tru’s beef tenderloin. (90 pts.)
2004 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Goulots Vieille Vigne- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
This had a very perfumed nose with lots of spice notes – in fact, there was much more spice than stems or any sign of greenness. The palate’s not green, but there isn’t much to say about it either, just kind of empty, like an abandoned car lot. Not bad, but not good. I’m pretty indifferent about this one. (85 pts.)
1988 Domaine Dujac Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Aux Combottes- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
This has a spot-on Dujac nose with notes of ripe black fruit and spice. On the other hand, there is a certain vegetal component to it, which manifests itself even more prominently on the palate. There isn’t much else besides acid on the palate. Tired and on the way down. Drink up. (90 pts.)
2004 Domaine Ponsot Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru
Served blind. Smelled like old pinot noir (I was thinking '88 or '96) made with whole cluster fermentation in a relatively old-school style. The palate was mostly acid and tannin. Not very good, but not offensively bad like the taste I had a few years back. I couldn’t pick out anything particularly green, though this was certainly quite stemmy. (85 pts.)
1994 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve- France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
From magnum. This has a very flowery and perfumed nose, that is slightly reminiscent of Dujac (it matches both the darker fruit and spice quite well). The palate is surprisingly austere (think leather and earth) despite the nose, and has a slight astringency to it. This is good, but to me, was more a wine of intellectual interest than outright enjoyment. Probably the most reined-in Chateauneuf I’ve ever had. (90 pts.)
1988 Emmanuel Rouget Echezeaux- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru
This had a very deep nose with lots of darker fruit and some floral characteristics. The palate is quite light and airy, and wisps of different flavours dance across the tongue – red fruit, a bit of earth, a bit of Vosne spice. A surprisingly gentle and elegant wine given the vintage. (93 pts.)
1964 Bischofliches Konvikt Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling feine Auslese- Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
This had only a moderately golden colour – a testament to good storage and a decent vintage. A completely aristocratic and austere auslese, this is barely sweet, instead focussing its energies on presenting excellent mineral definition. A hint of gasoline. This was surprisingly dirty and earthy. On the other hand, the palate-coating texture makes it clear this has auslese-level pedigree. Very well structured. Excellent. (93 pts.)
1998 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Eiswein- Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer #16-99, 7.5% abv. Kaleidoscopic. Racy acidity, plenty of minerality and spice, fresh fruit, concentration, extract, complexity. Just an amazing bottle of eiswein that hasn’t shown its age at all – this is still unbelievably fresh now. (98 pts.)
1996 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande- France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
No discernible flaws on this bottle, but it clearly wasn’t very good. It’s like this was moving towards secondary characteristics, but the fruit had been abducted by aliens. Leather and brown spice, but absolutely no sign of anything else. The palate was similarly austere, with tannins that were just a bit too chewy. Probably an off bottle, but I’m not sure how or why it’s off. (85 pts.)
2001 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia- Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
This had a very dense and fruity nose, but needs a lot more air or time in the cellar. Quite medicinal on the palate, with juicy cherry notes dominating. Tannins will still need a long time to come around. (88 pts.)
A fantastic afternoon at HDH. Never had the pleasure of trying Selosse and get to try four bottlings in one afternoon. So fun to start with the Initiale, the complexity is just amazing. The Exquise did not come across as very sweet and I think the extra dosage adds something to this wine. The 2002 vintage was simply mind blowing probably the best champagne I’ve tasted.
Beyond the bubbles, the Germans really shined today. The 1964 Piesporter and 1998 JJ Chrstofel eiswein were fantastic.
Agreed, tasting so many Selosse wines side by side was really special. The two Northern Rhones were also great. Thanks to everyone who brought the wines – the Chicago group is one of the kindest and most generous communities I’ve had the pleasure of being a part of.
A big shoutout as well to the great staff at HDH and Tru for running such a splendid show.
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