Montrachet & more (Drouhin, Jadot, Taittinger CdC, La Tache, Vogue, Leroy ...)

Brad England pulled a few of us together to determine if Montrachet is to our liking. Sadly, Heidi's -- our go-to restaurant -- burned down a few weeks ago so we shifted to La Belle Vie. Food and service were exemplary, and the chef's tasting menu worked perfectly with the wines we brought.

Brad graciously shared another of these beauties to kick off the night. While still excellent, this bottle wasn't quite as well put together as the previous bottle.

• 1995 Dom Pérignon Champagne Oenothèque 94 Points

  France, Champagne

  Disgorged in '06. The color is pale yellow. The nose is exuberant with soaring aromas of lemon, tropical fruit, smoke. On the palate this struck me as more acidic and "zingy" than the last bottle. Flavors expand amazingly, and the finish is long and satisfying. Delicious stuff.

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The main event (or is it).
Other than the oxidized '05 Jadot these showed amazingly well and offered plenty of proof why this is one of the most revered vineyards in the world.

• 2002 Marquis de Laguiche (Joseph Drouhin) Montrachet 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Spectacular nose -- huge and expressive, featuring citrus flavors mixed with spice. On the palate this is smooth and elegant with clean, expansive citrus flavors taking over every taste bud. Light on its feet and perfectly balanced. The finish goes on forever (I wrote long three times). Probably the best of the Montrachets on this night.

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• 2006 Marquis de Laguiche (Joseph Drouhin) Montrachet 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  The nose gives a big wallop of mineral in addition to citrus fruit and nut/almond aromas. On the palate this is cut from the same mold as the '02, but is thicker/heavier and (surprisingly) more advanced. Great flavor intensity and nice finish, although not as crisp as the '02.

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• 1983 Louis Jadot Le Montrachet 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Darker color than the other Montrachet, but no hint of oxidation. The nose is elegant and subdued with floral notes, honey, nuts and smoke. Really draws you in. On the palate this is mid-weight with an amazing texture and good flavor intensity, (although a bit more compact than some of the other Montrachet) and an excellent long finish. There was some debate regarding how long this wine held on in the glass, but mine was long gone before I could find out.

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• 2005 Louis Jadot Montrachet Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  We gave this wine plenty of time to right itself, because it bore some similarities to the '83 (including that lovely floral note), but in the end a verdict of death by prem-ox was unavoidable.

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• 2003 Louis Latour Montrachet 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Lovely nose offering fresh fruit, spice and a healthy dose of oak. While mid-weight, this stuck me as bordering on fat on the palate. Packed with fruit and oak, compact fruit expression, and then delivers a a killer finish. Initially this seemed to be hanging well with the other Montrachet, but upon closer inspection it lacked the pizzaz of the other wines.

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• 2006 Bouchard Père et Fils Montrachet Domaine 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Awesome nose featuring clean fresh fruit that filled the glass and begged to be smelled. On the palate this seems light despite some girth and is already silky smooth. Flavors expand across the palate delivering great fruit intensity and an enticing burst of acidity, leading to a long, beautiful finish. It's unbelievable how complete this wine is at such a young age.

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• 1999 Marc Colin et Fils Montrachet 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  This bottle was singing from the moment the cork was pulled. Huge, expressive nose featuring clean, tropical fruit complimented by spice and oak. On the palate this is mid-weight with some obvious oak but tons of flavor and enough acidity to keep things moving. The finish goes on and on. This is everything you could hope for from Montrachet.

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These were served blind and it was a fascinating sight to see. Neither wine was much to look at and I was impressed that everyone even bothered to take the challenge seriously. I was shocked that nobody guessed champagne based on the bottle shape alone. They also must have been preoccupied when I popped the corks. Steve and Craig seemed totally uninterested but Jeff and Brad zeroed in on the '71 almost immediately and were thrilled by it. While it was scary to serve these blind it proved to be a lot of fun.

• 1971 Taittinger Champagne Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut

  France, Champagne

  Not much of a looker. Deep amber color. The nose is surprisingly bright and airy despite delivering aromas dominated by nuts and sherry. On the palate this is equally light given expectations. Barely mid-weight (with no mousse/bubbles to speak of) but there is great flavor intensity, excellent balance and a long finish. I had no idea what to expect from this and what I got was a singular experience.

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• 1981 Taittinger Champagne Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut

  France, Champagne

  When poured this looked to be the winner of this flight. Lighter amber color with plenty of tiny bubbles streaming up. Similar aromas to the '71, but maybe a touch less sherry and less complexity. Delightful bubbles tap the palate. Flavors are similar to the '71, but this seems lighter and less structured despite having really nice balance. Upon further review this is clearly a big step down from the '71.

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A stellar line-up that for the most part delivered one compelling experience after another.

• 1990 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche 97 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru

  Opened about 45 minutes before serving. Delivers a beautiful nose featuring red fruit, spice and mineral; definitely La Tache and every bit as exotic smelling as you would expect. On the palate this is silky smooth with more red fruit and spice that are unique and thrillingly expansive. Seems light in the mouth, but concentrated, balanced, and palate coating with a long lingering finish that seemed to go on forever (if only!). This is my third time with this beauty and while my expectations were extremely high this wine delivered the goods.

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• 1996 Domaine Leroy Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Beaux Monts 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru

  Flighting this with the '90 La Tache looked like a pancake in the making, but this more than held its own. The nose delivers an intense melange of red fruit, spice, earth that struck me as much cleaner than the previous bottle of this I had. Really impressive. On the palate this was really in a good place; mature red fruit coat the palate and there is just enough structure. I found this much better for my tastes than many of the '96s I've tasted (which usually strike me as overly structured), including a previous bottle of this wine.

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• 2000 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes 85 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  The nose delivers clumsy red fruit with oak -- aromas that could come from anywhere. Delivers more of the same in the mouth. Given all the great wine available I opted to dump most of this.

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• 2001 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Far superior to the '00 served beside it. The nose still has some obvious oak, but it is complimented by effusive red fruit, spice and brown sugar. Very enticing. On the palate this presents as packed with fruit, maybe a bit simplistic, but with enough structure to keep this exciting. Acidity builds by the finish which is long and memorable. A lot of '01s have been drinking well lately, but despite a good showing this is one that many more years in the cellar.

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• 2001 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru

  Corked.

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• 2001 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Richebourg 98 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Opened about 90 minutes before serving. My notes are sketchy at this point but wow, what a wine. The nose is classic DRC with both red fruit and spice playing dominant roles, but with a constantly evolving character. Awesome. The taste is equally profound with perfect balance and no hint of oak to be found. Pure but with some secondary nuance already appearing. Great finish. Awesome stuff, and probably my WOTN.

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• 1999 Domaine du Clos de Tart Clos de Tart 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de Tart Grand Cru

  Awesome nose that's a bit more stern than the DRCs, but with excellent dark fruit, spice and coffee. On the palate this shows some oak and coffee along with dark fruit and spice. Struck me as very structured and probably a bit closed, but excellent nonetheless.

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• 2004 Rhys Pinot Noir Family Farm Vineyard

  USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County

  Served blind at the end of the night meaning it didn't get the attention it deserved. I wrote awesome if that's any help (although that may well be a commentary on the whole night, not just this wine).

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Thanks to everyone for their generosity in making this one of the more memorable wine nights I've ever had. Wine after wine delivered the goods. It's hard to pick a WOTN among this embarrassment of riches, but I'd say the '01 DRC Richebourg was my favorite followed closely by the '90 La Tache, '96 Leroy LBM and the '02 Drouhin Montrachet.