Hope you enjoy the notes below. Thanks to the group for coming over and mixing up some things and having some fun. Here is a link to a few photos I took, as well. Thanks for reading.
This is the second time we have assembled this group, this time to do some comparative tasting through burgundy varietals. None of the group knew what each other had contributed to the event, although as the orgainzer I knew what was being poured to ensure we did not have duplicates. However, when I wrapped all the wines, I subsequently mixed them up and then numbered them. In doing so, I for the most part removed my bias, as well. We had Fratello’s do the food for us, using complementary cuisine that would support the flavors: chicken marsala, pasta primavera with garlic and finished with the Dr Mrs chocolate cake.
We scored the results and used a descending award scale for 1st, 2nd and 3rd: 5 pts, 3 pts and 1 pt, respectively. Within the notes below, assuming you view this event in Cellartracker, I have put some of the scoring with the wines at the end of my TNs. The Chamapagne Flight
Served with 5 different cheeses, marconi almonds, dried apricots, duck breast, prosciutto.
The White Burgundy
Continued with the cheese course
2008 Wind Gap Wines Chardonnay- USA, California, Sonoma County
Nice mix of pear, soft tones of apple and brioche. Seemed to lack some complexity for me. The group seemed to like it better than I: 2 1st place votes, 17 total points and finished a strong 3rd overall behind the Sauzet and Carillon.
2008 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Champ-Canet- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
Mineral tones, lemony with good citrus and a zingy core. Lithe with honeyed edges, and kind of a metal shaving/anise seed thing in the long finish. This wine was my WOTF and I scored it my first place. Total of 4 1st place votes, 31 points and the group’s 2nd place. Really showed well.
2007 Wind Gap Wines Chardonnay Brosseau Vineyard- USA, California, Central Coast, Chalone
I am going to call this bottle flawed. It came from my cellar and I selected it based on my last note I logged on the wine: I thought it would compete. However, something was off, as it seemed dumb, perhaps even oxidized? A bit of butter with unripe pineapple. Disappointing. I have one more bottle that I trust will be much better, as the wine showed nothing at all last night like it did the last time I had it. Got one 3rd place vote, 1 point total, and finished last. NR (flawed)
2008 Rhys Chardonnay Alpine Vineyard- USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Thanks to Kevin for helping me secure one of these for the dinner–awesome customer service. I found a fair amount of oak on the wine, but had a nice pure lime core, with pear, pineapple and some mint, along with vanilla from the oak. Certainly needs time to let whatever wood Kevin put on the wine to soften in. 1 first place vote, 10 total points, finished 5th overall.
2008 Louis Carillon Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrières- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
What an excellent bottle of wine. Was damn near my #1 wine of the night but between this wine and the 2008 Sauzet Champ Canet, I took the Sauzet as my #1 and finished this one #2. Citrus, orange rind, green apple/pippin and lots of mineral and complexity. I am fortunate to have bought a couple of these already so I can enjoy this wine a few more times in the future. With only one person not voting for this wine at all, it surely got the attention of the table: 6 1st place votes, 44 total points and overall winner of the white flight. Excellent bottle and for me why I’m on a straight path for more Puligny.
2009 Domaine de la Pépière (Marc Ollivier) Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Sur Lie Vieilles Vignes Clos des Briords- France, Loire Valley, Pays Nantais, Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine
This was Wet Rock’s ringer. Not chardonnay but muscadet. Good core of pear, spicy and present, energetic and minerally. Very nice. I scored this as my #3 wine. The group took a liking to it, as it got 8 votes but nothing for 1st place. 14 total points and finished in 4th place. Would have done better, I suspect, but it just was an unfair fight with the two Pulignys of the flight.
The Red Burgundy
Chicken marsala, pasta primavera with olice oil and garlic and the Steve Williams mac and cheese (which kicked ass!)
2008 Weber Wine Company Pinot Noir Kelley Family Vineyard- USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
We rung this bottle in at the last minute. It actually was a pop and pour and started the flight as first around the table. Bit of oak, perfumey, raspberry, hint of cranberry and smoky. Tight finish but the fruit was bright. Was told this wine is around 20 bucks-ish. It got one 1st place vote, 5 points overall, finished in 8th place.
1992 Etude Pinot Noir Estate Carneros- USA, California, Napa Valley, Carneros
Has a barnyard note on it, stalky nose. I think several at the table guessed french. Juicy with the fruit hanging in pretty well for almost 20 years old. Smoked cherry. cedar and finishes with a sweet edge and barnyardy, old bones flavor. No votes and no points. Call it 9th place.
2006 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Vineyard- USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
I was told this got a good decant before the event; however, for me it still showed as oaky. My comment to the table was aftershave/cologne-like. Clove. With some leftover wine from last night still in the bottle, I retasted just now. Fruit still is a bit muddled, with raspberry, strawberry and a toasty/oaky note that kind of cloaks the fruit in. Got no votes last night, no points. Call it 9th place.
2006 Craggy Range Pinot Noir Te Muna Road Vineyard- New Zealand, North Island, Wairarapa, Martinborough
This was a ringer, placed in by Robo. Graham cracker, black cherry, dark fruit, dark cranberry, spicy, some richness. Unfortunately, the group did not take to the wine, as it got no votes and no points in terms of the scoring. Call it 9th place.
2003 Domaine des Lambrays Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Les Loups- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Morey St. Denis 1er Cru
Ah-hah! Now we have a wine to vote on, as the 4 wines that preceded this wine got only 1 vote in total. Erasing all of that misery, smells like burgundy. Delicious, great fruit and balanced, complexity–all there. Finishes with nice acidity and some herbiness. Certainly got the group’s attention: 6 1st place votes, 37 total points and was the first place wine of all the reds. I also voted this as my #1 wine, too. Thank you bringing, Mr London.
2009 Wind Gap Wines Pinot Noir Gap’s Crown & Griffin’s Lair- USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Young to open but I wanted to see what the raw material is in the bottle. Let’s note that the alc on this is pretty low, listed at 12.5%, which is just a tenth higher than the Woodruff that Pax made in 2008 from the SCM ava. It’s also 100% whole cluster. Darker in color than the 08 August West Graham I drank the night before: purple and crimson. Some whole cluster emerges through the aromatics but it’s in the mid to background. There is a mixture of juicy red fruit, like chery and blueberry, then also a sappy or smoother element in the form of a cranberry. An herbal quality carries into the finish with some crisper red fruited acidity and hint of mineral, along with some mushroom and soil joining the acidity. Certainly leaner in tone but also brings along the sappy quality. I’ll be interested to see how this wine ages but I like it and seems to have a good solid foot into the Old World with a mixture of New. NOTE–the TN here is from me enjoying the bottle the night before, as I saved the other 1/2 of it for the burg dinner. Got two 3rd place votes, 2 total points, call it 8th place. Perhaps since it was sandwiched in between the 2003 Lambray (WOTN) and 2007 Dublere (2 first place votes), maybe the Wind Gap here didn’t have a fair fight!!!
2007 Domaine Dublère Volnay 1er Cru Pitures- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
god, this wine showed so different last night, as opposed to the bottle I tasted and wrote up just less than 2 weeks ago. That bottle I drank over an entire day and I really sat with it. The bottle I am writing on now was tasted through the burg dinner and was preceded by and was followed by other french so perhaps the CA-like inflections I got in my note 2 weeks ago was drowned out by some bias/tasting influence of where the wine contextually fit in last night’s dinner–the wizardry of tasting wines, I guess. I found the wine last night quite french-like, with fine grained tannin, sour cherry, herb and fresh but was certainly more like its place than the bottle a few weeks ago. The group gave it 2 1st place votes, 10 total points, finished in 4th place so not bad, although if you look merely at the attention the wine got, it only got voted on by 2 of 11 people.
2004 Privé Vineyard Pinot Noir Le Sud- USA, Oregon, Yamhill County
This was Silk’s bottle, the only Oregon in the tasting. I found the wine to be a bit volatile in aroma, rich and funky, and my note says “seemed off?”. I did not warm to this wine but in terms of the group, it actually did very well, getting 5 votes which included on 1st place vote, picking up 13 total points, and coming in 2nd place overall. A very good showing, Silk.
1999 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Charmes-Chambertin- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru
Corked. Ramon had high hopes for this but several us got the taint before the bottle had even circled the table to hit the rest of the glasses. Dumped. Damn. NR (flawed)
2006 Copain Pinot Noir Monument Tree- USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
This was Robo’s bottle. Well decanted before the event and served in the decanter, too. Seemed still a bit grippy to mel. Red apple, a soil note which I liked and very nice length and medium weight. Was actually my #2 wine of the red flight and for the group, got 5 votes (no 1st, however), 11 total points and finished overall in 3rd place.
2005 Nicolas Rossignol Volnay 1er Cru Santenots- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
Romo’s bottle. My notes say pebbly, nice crunch, full of nice acid, driven red fruit. As there was some leftover of this wine from last night, retasting now. Note of spice on the aromatic but fairly subtle. I really like the palate of this wine–gentle, sleek with a pure cherry and raspberry kind of expression. Just a beautiful, finessed type of expression and finish. If I had sat with this wine more last night, I may have ranked it higher, as it was my #3 wine of the reds but is certainly better than that tasting it now. The overall group was one 1st place vote, 3 total votes, an overall score of 9 points, call it 5th place.
2007 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Chambolle-Musigny- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
Ryan’s bottle. And based on his reaction last night, he think he’d rather it not have been! For me, it lacked definition, had some crunchy red fruit, the acidity seemed kind of sharp to me. The group gave it two votes, a total of 4 points and call it 7th place.
1999 Domaine Georges Mugneret/Mugneret-Gibourg Echezeaux- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru
This was Ramon’s 2nd bottle, to replace the corked Taupenot-Merme mid-way into the dinner. This Mugneret got very little air, although it did finish the entire red flight going last so it got some decanter time between being opened and then being served, maybe 30 mins. Fresh and vibrant, hitting the whole palate with some rocky tannin on the finish. I got the impression that the wine was very balanced but we surely didn’t give it the fair due. The group voting still picked up the caliber, as it got 4 votes, a total of 8 points and it finished in the latter half of the placing but given its ‘johnny on the spot’ role, it did quite fine. Thank you, Ramon.
The Wrap Up Wines
To go with or preceded the Dr Mrs chocolate cake
1961 Bouchard Aîné et Fils Chambolle-Musigny- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
Had to add this vintage to CT, as it was not listed. Ramon pulled this bottle at the end of the flight, so we passed it around and enjoyed it. I certainly did. Still shows fresh nearly 50 years later, with watermelon, strawberry and cedar. I would have not guessed this kind of bottle age. What a treat, Ramon!
2008 Rivers-Marie Cabernet Sauvignon- USA, California, Napa Valley
I pulled this at the end of the event, to go with the Dr Mrs chocolate cake. Cocoa on the nose, opulent. Seemed a bit less heavy than the 2007 version and we drank it down pretty fast. I liked it with the cake, as it leaned down the wine and the two together actually seemed like a nice complement to me.
1993 Turley Petite Sirah Hayne Vineyard- USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena
Drank after the 2008 Rivers Marie cab. This did not get decanted and honestly, it did not need it. I was surprised with the 13.5% alcohol on the label and was also pleased with the wine’s taste. This is no longer (maybe never was?) modern day Turley or petite, as it showed a juicy blueberry, cedar and spice box but whatever weight or shoulders were on this wine have certainly faded off and it drank like an older styled red with good flavor. It finishes with a brushing of light chocolate and some remaining stuffing so I see the wine going further. No hurry but it is getting into a secondary expression, for sure.
2002 Hartwell Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon- USA, California, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District
The last and final bottle of the post-tasting goodies. Was a pop and pour, as Ramon had finished a trade of a bottle and said “why not, lt’s open it”. Some people around the table say soy sauce, steak sauce. I got the A-1 note on the aromatic, I can see their point. Black cherry and nice fruit.
Well done Mr Murray. One minor note, the variety for the Pepiere is Melon de Bourgonge. The AOC would be Muscadet de Sevre et Maine. Very confusing to many and why I don’t use the AOC on wine lists as many people don’t order it believing it’s a sweet wine.
They make you a believer if there is any chance you’ll love white wines. My Puligny epiphany came at the age of 16 with my dad drinking some 66’s and explains why my cellar has 186 btls of white wine, mostly Chards from Puligny, Meursault and Chablis.
A fun read!
Craig
Frank said “Excellent bottle and for me why I’m on a straight path for more Puligny”
Nice notes Frank.
We had that 2008 Rivers Marie Cab last night late in the night after 30+ Cru Boos and some Burgs.
It was an oaksicled abomination. Perhaps in large part due to the crowd of wines it followed, or perhaps it really is an abomination.
Not surprised you liked it with cake.
The theme was California versus Burgundy, white and red. Everyone contributed at least one bottle which was bagged and unknown to the group. We served them all in flights of three and did all reveals after each group was done(white and red groups). Not a lot of wows among the blind wines though many were very interesting. Some of the bonus end of the night wines were actually the most interesting with one being my WOTN.
Thanks again to Frank for setting up another great and fun night. Pre-Event Tastes
2008 Alice et Olivier De Moor Bourgogne-Chitry- France, Burgundy, Bourgogne-Chitry
Very steely and racy. Strong acidity and very clean. Could have used more fruit but is well made and would make a nice dinner companion.
1988 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut Vintage Rare- France, Champagne
The nose shows some oxidation along with mushrooms and yeast. Clean, balanced palate but not a lot of complexity for a wine so old. Nice and fresh still but it doesn’t appear to be improving.
White Flight #1
I voted:
1 - 08 Sauzet
2 - 08 Rhys
3 - 08 Carillon
2008 Wind Gap Wines Chardonnay- USA, California, Sonoma County
Served blind. Reticent nose with some pear and ripe tropical fruits. Touch of minerals. Rich with a very thick midpalate and clipped on the finish. Saying that, it wasn’t overdone though there was a touch of heat on the finish. Guessed Cali, maybe an Aubert.
2008 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Champ-Canet- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
Served blind. The sulfur/smoke nose screamed Burgundy to me. Otherwise the nose showed very little but the palate was very good. Tight and precise with an acid driven expression, even grippy across the palate. This lingers for quite some time and showed some minerals. I think its best days are ahead of it but it was the easy winner for me of the flight. Very good.
2007 Wind Gap Wines Chardonnay Brosseau Vineyard- USA, California, Central Coast, Chalone
Served blind. Tight nose of graham crackers and Gatorade. Odd, weak palate with some grip and butterscotch notes. This bottle was a mess. Best guess was Cali.
White Flight #2
2008 Rhys Chardonnay Alpine Vineyard- USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Served blind. Rich nose with smoke and caramel. Touch of heat. Rich palate with a nice clean finish. A pup still showing some oak but lovely for a richer Chard. Guessed Cali, most likely Rhys. I voted it #2.
2008 Louis Carillon Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrières- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
Served blind. The nose is reticent but shows some sushi salinity with funky earth. Funky mushroom note on a tight palate. There is powerful fruit lurking here underneath but its not exactly stitched together right now. Clearly needs some rest but the complexity and tight fruit are intriguing. I voted it 3rd.
2009 Domaine de la Pépière (Marc Ollivier) Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Sur Lie Vieilles Vignes Clos des Briords- France, Loire Valley, Pays Nantais, Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine
Served blind. Decanted about 5 hours before serving. Bright and big nose for the type showing pear and minerals strongly. Clean palate with a ton of minerality. Very good length. I recused myself from voting on this since I knew what it was. Definitely in contention for the top 3 even if it wasn’t Chard.
Red Flight #1
I initially had the 03 Lambrays marked for a top spot but a revisit made me rethink that. I also liked the Weber, Dublere and Rossignol besides what I voted for.
My votes:
1 - 04 Prive
2 - 99 Mugneret-Gibourg
3 - 09 Wind Gap
2008 Weber Wine Company Pinot Noir Kelley Family Vineyard- USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills
Served blind. Piny spice on a bright nose with reductive stank coming out later on. Sharp and biting on the palate with more reduction. The nose made me think of a Rivers Marie. The palate feel short.
1992 Etude Pinot Noir Estate Carneros- USA, California, Napa Valley, Carneros
Served blind. This bottle clearly showed aged qualities on the nose and the palate though the color was still very dark with not much bricking. Rich nose with notes of meat and oxidation. Dark cherry and tea palate with plenty of oxidized notes. Still good grip. Interesting but past its prime.
2006 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Vineyard- USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
Served blind. Decanted about 6 hours prior to serving. Tight nose with notes of cranberry and juniper. Lean feeling palate with more cranberry. This showed far less than I would have expected. Seemed perfumey on the nose later on but the palate still seemed in its shell being acidic and tart. Guessed Cali.
Red Flight #2
2006 Craggy Range Pinot Noir Te Muna Road Vineyard- New Zealand, North Island, Wairarapa, Martinborough
Served blind. Big dark fruits on the nose coming with a baked quality and notes of sassafras. Bright big fruits that are juicy and baked with a touch of heat. Would have bet on Cali.
2003 Domaine des Lambrays Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Les Loups- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Morey St. Denis 1er Cru
Served blind. This was intriguing early on with its complexities and I initially marked it as a possible favorite. A revisit after tasting all the wines wiped that hoped away as the ripeness showed in an ugly way with some volatile acetone notes dominating. Very dark in color. Complex with subtle qualities. Notes of dill and wood. Balanced palate showing lots of fruit but backed by a strong acidic core and lots of tannin for a Pinot. Guessed Burgundy initially but the revisit really threw me. Seeing the vintage on the reveal explained a lot. I think this is a drink now wine.
2009 Wind Gap Wines Pinot Noir Gap’s Crown & Griffin’s Lair- USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Served blind. Woodsy notes with pine, cranapple and sweet chalky characters. Juicy palate with woodsy lignified stem characters. This was interesting and balanced and probably needing a few years. I guessed Copain from Anderson Valley and voted it 3rd.
Red Flight #3
2007 Domaine Dublère Volnay 1er Cru Pitures- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
Served blind. Tight nose showing some rocky mineral notes. Juicy cherry with strong acids and minerals. Even with the mineral acids the finish came up weak and watery. Never took a stab on a guess in my notes. Hard to tell if it was a weak Burgundy or a Cali wine from a producer trying to go way restrained.
2004 Privé Vineyard Pinot Noir Le Sud- USA, Oregon, Yamhill County
Served blind. This was an interesting changing wine that had me guessing France for certain. Sharp nose with stems and apple skins. There is some volatility present also and a note of iron. Clean long palate with lots of acid and a sweet cherry finish. The more this sat in the glass the better it got also. The complexity and balance won me over and made me vote this one #1. Nice going Oregon.
2006 Copain Pinot Noir Monument Tree- USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
Served blind. Ripe baked fruits on a round candy like nose. Little bit volatile. Broad and clean palate. Very juicy at the finish. Clearly Cali. Never would have guessed Copain though this bottling has never wowed me as much as some of the others.
Red Flight #4
2005 Nicolas Rossignol Volnay 1er Cru Santenots- France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
Served blind. Nose shows some stewed fruits and sulfur. Lean acidic driven palate with a strong rip. Very tight as it gets towards the finish. I guessed Burgundy. Seems like a nice wine in need of more bottle time.
2007 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Chambolle-Musigny- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
Served blind. Ripe baked fruits on the nose. Ripe fruit on a tart palate. The finish at that acidfied sweet 'n sour quality. There was a touch of earth so I guessed New World instead of just Cali.
1999 Domaine Georges Mugneret/Mugneret-Gibourg Echezeaux- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru
Served blind. This was decanted shortly before serving. Not much on the nose. Big yet pretty mouthfeel, well balanced with lots of grip. Concentrated with an acidic core and underlying complexity. I wish we had had this with more air but it was a winner even as tight as it was. I guessed France and voted it #2. Very good.
Some After Event Treats
The Bouchard was great. Incredible for a village wine to drink so well so long. Still don’t get the RM Cabs(love the Pinots!) and the Hartwell was a nice contrast to it even if it represents a more middle style. The Turley is a nice rarity. Worked nicely with the cake for me.
1961 Bouchard Aîné et Fils Chambolle-Musigny- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
Nose of tea, leather and mushroom. The fruits are still sweet and pretty and there is still tannin present. A terrific surprise that would have been fun among the blind wines. My WOTN.
2008 Rivers-Marie Cabernet Sauvignon- USA, California, Napa Valley
Rich, dense, thick and chocolaty. Not my type of hype. Prototypical modern Napa Cab.
1993 Turley Petite Sirah Hayne Vineyard- USA, California, Napa Valley, St. Helena
Dirty dry soil on the nose with some aged mushroomy notes. Lean and tart, bit clipped. Some nice soy notes. Pretty good and far lighter than we think of Turley these days.
2002 Hartwell Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon- USA, California, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District
Some graham cracker oak notes and leafy aromas. This got better and better in the glass. Classic Cab flavors backed up by strong oak notes and pleasing tannins. Much leaner in feel than the RM. I liked this though I think it best with more air or bottle time.
1998 Kalin Cellars Pinot Noir Cuvée DD- USA, California, Sonoma County
Nose of tea and mushrooms. Tart palate than seems passed it’s prime. I’m usually more impressed with the Kalin whites and find the Pinots variable.
Ha! I likes me some Oregon Pinots. Belle Pente and St Innocent come to mind as repeat winners. They just don’t often distract me enough to make me want to explore more. We got new Syrah producers 'n stuff to pay attention to.
For me the carillon was miles ahead of everything else in the white flight. I would have sworn the Sauzet was from california. It had tons of oak and pineapple. Not at all what a look for in burgundy. It was a good wine, but had no typicity.
The Lambrays was very good upon first tasting. The tiny retaste that I got at the end seems like the wine had fleshed out and gotten a little too “sweet” for my tastes. The mugneret gibourg was pretty backward, but you could tell it was going to be killer stuff. I rated it my number 2. I was very disappointed in the 07 roumier chambolle musigny. I was light in body without much depth in the middle. All red fruited with a touch of spice. It is definitely not worth the money. My least favorite of all was the Craggy Range. Seriously oaky and spoofy for my palate.
the wonderful thing about this lower alcohol burg dinner was that i could complete a sentence at the end of the night. at the previous Saxum vs The Field dinner we had in october? not so much.
the lambrays was the runaway winner in the competition proper, as was the carillon perrieres for the whites. however, as noted, the post-flights-wines were awesome and my WsoTN, especially the 61 Bouchard C-M and the 93 Turley petite, for different reasons.
it was very shrewd putting the muscadet into the white burg flight. i’ve long enjoyed this best-kept-secret in french whites for seafood. the pepiere held it’s own against these chards… at least the domestic ones.
the 04 prive surprised me (#2 rank) as did the 08 weber, maybe because i thought they were either CA or France, or maybe because they just weren’t that offensive. mad props to Oregon!
wind gap and copain did not show well in these flights for me. disclaimer: i prefer en haut to monument tree, and had never had a WG pinot, although i own this 09 that was rhubarb and celery with some herbs and cola/root beer.
i enjoyed the food with the wines but admit it is difficult to assess these wines, especially a burgundy, with only a few ounces over a few minutes. one key metric for a great wine is how it enhances or even adapts to the food and evolves over several hours. so much pinot, so little time.
The Sauzet is good wine, but it just isn’t what I look for in burg. It was an 08 and was wide open. I think it is like CA chard in that it will peak in a couple years, and be dead before its 10th b-day.
The 61 bouchard chambolle was fun to taste, but it had some of that tinny/metalic taste that red burg seems to get as it loses its fruit.
Some good discourse on the dinner–thanks guys for making it a fun night, too.
Tonight, the Dr Mrs made some potato pancakes and lightly roasted veggies for dinner and I went back over about 6 of the wines. Those showing the best improvement for me was Romo’s Rossignol Volnay, which is really a nice wine as I commented on earlier today. And, the Dublere Volnay really improved through the day and is much more like I recall it. It still shows quite a bit of acidity but it’s more pure today and more focused–I like it. I did not see any great improvement on the Rhys Alpine or the Copain Monument Tree, both showing a bit more brawn today and shoulders.
I’m starting to really like Volnay a lot, something early on in my burg discovery that seems to be suiting me. I have to start buying and trying some older D’Angerville, some with some age.
Hey Curry and Rock, it’s to see you guys debating the two Pulignys but they were both very good. I believe Sauzet uses about 1/3rd new wood on their 1ers, right…so maybe that seasons the wine to Ryan’s disliking but for me, the Sauzet did great, as did the Carillon. Hell, they were nearly 1 and 1A for me and I purposely retasted them at the end of the flight before we voted to try and break the tie, and it was pretty much a toss up.
I’m starting to really like Volnay a lot, something early on in my burg discovery that seems to be suiting me. I have to start buying and trying some older D’Angerville, some with some age.
it’s a great village, along with pommard, south of beaune, that shows enormous restraint with reds that can pair with even the lightest foods. i was in volnay for the Elegance de Volnay festival a few years ago and they (volnay-ers) pride themselves on the differences between their delicate reds and the bigger reds of the cote de nuits.
Santenots is interesting because it’s a red wine vineyard technically within the village of meursault. but because meursault is prohibited from producing red wines, they call it a Volnay. would be interested in any history or other facts folks may have here… as my memory is sketchy on the details. but technically, it’s a red meursault.
and in terms of aged d’angerville, i’ve had 85 and 87 (forget the vineyard… maybe clos de ducs?) and they are just other-worldly. not big in any sense, but extraordinarily unique and complex of all secondary and tertiary notes of mushroom, herbs and cobbler. the fact that it’s pinot is mind-blowing.
FMIII, You’re almost a member of the card carrying Anti-Flavor Wine Elite … been following your notes since 2006 … funny how our preferences change over time.
I was Thinking the same thing David! FM, good to see you opening up some excellent wines, as usual. Also a pleasure to see the thoughts on the wines by the other attendees.
This was a great evening. Thanks again to FMIII for hosting.
From the white flights, what struck me was how similar in style the 08 Wind Gap was to the Carillon Puligny. I had these wines as my #1 and #2 (with the Muscadet #3) and what stood out for me on both was the long, strong mineral driven finish. I am so enamored with the sharpness and acidity of the citrus flavors and the minerality of the French whites.
The red flight proved to me yet again that my palate has changed dramatically over the past year. The cola and root beer notes of the California pinots were very off-putting to me. The spice notes of the Oregon pinots were very pleasing to me. The dust, earth, mushroom and cranberry notes of the burgundies that I chose as my top 3 (in order, 03 Lambrays MSD, 05 Rossignol Volnay, 99 Mugneret-Gibourg Echezeaux) are now my preferred taste profile.
The champagne starter (1988 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut Vintage Rare) and the 1961 Bouchard Chambolle-Musigny were treats to taste. The champagne carried nice acidity and a yeasty element even with its slight oxidation, and the Chambolle had this freshness to it that belied its age, along with flavors of evergreen, leather, sage and mushroom.
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to see you guys debating the two Pulignys but they were both very good. I believe Sauzet uses about 1/3rd new wood on their 1ers, right…so maybe that seasons the wine to Ryan’s disliking but for me, the Sauzet did great, as did the Carillon. Hell, they were nearly 1 and 1A for me and I purposely retasted them at the end of the flight before we voted to try and break the tie, and it was pretty much a toss up.
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