As per tradition I’ll let you know January 1st.
Oh, and Berns is this weekend…might have a few more to add to the lengthy list.
Have fun you dog. ![[berserker.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/8/8600bbd4810d342b8fbd4ffb62b4f0026275fd37.gif "berserker"){kind=small}
My New Year’s resolution will be to write notes and log them in CellarTracker.
Here are my top wines from what I recall:
1970 Marques de Murrieta Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial
1973 Cune Rioja Gran Reserva “Imperial”
1977 Mayacamas, CS
1997 JL Chave Hermitage Rouge
1999 Vega Sicilia, Unico
2000 Vilmart Coeur de Cuvee
02 H. Billiot Grand Cru
07 Didier Dagueneau Silex
07 Pierre Boniface Apremont
08 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rosé
NV Ganevat “Oh” Cremant de Jura
NV Krug Grand Cru
NV Pehu-Simonet Blanc de Blanc Grand Cru
Ode to E syrah
Atlantis syrah
2005 Saxum Rocket Block
2006 Maybach Materium
Heart Chorea
JFTLOI
1983 Yquem
1998 La Mouline
2007 Janasse Chaupin
2005 Alban Lorraine
89 Dominus
91 Dominus
92 Dominus
(All the Dominus so close in quality that I can rate them in any order. In my limited experience this is the greatest California Winery. The best of California and BDX in one wine.)
07 Donnhoff Felsenturmchen Spatlese
03 Chante Cigale VV
06 Clos Des Pape
95 Grand Puy Lacoste
What about the 06 Raven Grenache?
I forgot to add my 10 top Spanish wines for 2009. Unthinkable to leave out the wines of Spain!
1989 La Rioja Alta Gran Reserva 890
1987 Unico
2001 Baron de Chirel - still very young but with excellent potential.
1995 C.V.N.E. Imperial Gran Reserva - a teenager, but also wonderful.
2003 Descendientes de José Palacios Moncerbal
1982 Bodegas Toro Alabalá Don PX Pedro Ximenez Reserva
1995 Marqués de Murrieta Dalmau
2001 Bodegas Muga Prado Enea Rioja Gran Reserva - young but already delicious!
2008 Laxas Albariño - I never get tired of drinking this.
1999 Bodegas Olarra Cerro Añon Rioja Gran Reserva - An excellent QPR Rioja Gran Reserva.
One of my dreams is to taste Alzero. Please, a little more about that wine!
Favorite Wine (New to Me): 2002 Clos Rougeard ‘Breze’ – First time with the producer and wow. A discovery that will cost me a lot of money down the road.
Favorite Wine (Young/Potential): 2007 FX Pichler Loibner Berg – Admittedly a bit short on finesse and perhaps not the ‘most perfect’ young wine I had this year, but man is it fun to drink. I hope I can hide this from myself for a while.
Favorite Wine (Context Driven): 1999 Movia Puro Rose – Great food wine from a great evening that complemented company perfectly.
Favorite Wine: 1997 Richbrau Barleywine. I’m cheating, but this was one of the most astonishing beverages I’ve tasted in the last 4+ years. A freak (the brewery isn’t particularly known for otherworldly beer) in the best sense and an argument for trying everything, because you never know when inspiration will strike.
In absolutely no particular order.
1999 Leroy Corton Renardes
1993 G. Roumier Bonnes-Mares
1995 G. Roumier Bonnes Mares
1991 Claude Dugat Charmes Chambertin
1981 Chateau de Beaucastel
1986 Pol Roger Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill
1995 Pol Roger Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill
1996 Salon
1981 Lanson Brut en magnum
2000 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Rose en magnum
1983 Chateau Haut Brion
1937 La Tour Blanche
1989 Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle
WOTY 1986 Margaux
after that in no particular order:
1990 Ducru Beaucaillou
1990 Leoville Las Cases
2004 Vineyard 29 Estate
1997 Caymus SS
2002 Merus
2002 Kobalt
2002 O’Shaughnessy
1981 La Mission Haut Brion
1989 Château Clerc Milon
1997 Luneau-Papin Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Le L D’Or
1993 Château de Pommard Pommard Cuvée Jean-Louis Laplanche
1997 Ornellaia
1997 Sassacaia
2003 Harlan Estate
1996 Podere La Cappella
My two wine experiences of the year was the day Serge introduced me to Burgundy and my trip to Italy and visiting Tuscany for the first time.
Love how I was there for 4 of these wines…does that make this your best (wine) drinking night ever?
Great list… not so typical for these types of posts, but a bunch of great wines!
Red- 95 Rays
White- 88 Leflaive Batard
Eye Openers
66 Latour Corton Grancey
79 Jocelyn Jayer Echezeaux
94 LMHB
73 Heidsieck Extra Brut
Five. And one of the best nights ever.
I edited to add two bottles that I temporarily forgot about (both as part of another hedonistic night). This was a nice+ year.
01 Kistler Camp Meeting Ridge Chard
02 Ramey Jericho Canyon
02 Amon Ra Shiraz
01 Insignia
96 Dalla Valle Cab
03 Robert Foley Claret
01 Clos Mogador Priorat
04 Peay Chard
04 Kosta Browne Kanzler Pinot
06 Switchback Ridge Cab
No particular order, but the 01 Kistler Chard was other-worldly.
In no particular order:
'53 Domaine de Chevalier from Magnum - I was at the same dinner that Neil Martin wrote about, the wine was fantastic as was the '47 and '29. Thanks to Olivier for opening the '53 after the off bottle of '55.
'78 Mondavi Reserve from Imperial
'49 Mouton from Magnum
'00 (1900) Petrus from Magnum - who knows if it was real, but it was great.
'89 La Miss
'90 Cheval Blanc
'90 Haut Brion
'05 Montrachet DRC
'64 Krug Private Cuvee
'95 Rayas, better than any bottle of '89 or '90 Rayas I have had
'00 (2000) Latour
'03 Chave
'06 Chave Blanc
'96 Krug Magnum
'90 Krug Magnum
'66 Krug
'29 Cheval Blanc Magnum
'82 Latour (makes the list every year)
'91 Ridge Monte Bello (New Year’s Eve, almost didn’t make the list for '09)
'29 & '49 Yquem
'49 Vogue & Leroy Musigny
'59 Haut Brion and Lafite
'85 DP
It was a very good drinking year.
Some sick stuff Jon…really sick.
Jack,
It will be tough for me to top '09. Met a lot of great people too. If I had to pick the best bottle, I would say the '53 Chevalier. Whereas with the other bottles I expected them to be great, I had no expectations for this bottle. The provenance was perfect and according to Olivier this bottle was the last '53 in the Domaine’s cellar, so it would be impossible to repeat.
Regards,
Jon