Lieu-dit Cru "Blind White" Dinner Featured the Wine of Henri Boillot

The Lieu-dit Cru, my Burgundy tasting group, convened for our mostly annual "blind white" dinner. One main theme, organized in very narrowly defined flights, with a few ringers thrown in to maximize the confusion. Our pal, Gridrocker organized this dinner around the wines from a somewhat controversial producer of both domaine and negociant wines, M. Henri Boillot. But the wines must speak for themselves and they mostly spoke very well indeed (other than the obligatory 2 corked and 2 prematurely oxidized bottles, out of 19).

All of the white Burgundies were opened around 3:30 PM, assessed for cork taint, then the corks re-inserted. First white Burgundy flight was served at approximately 7 PM, with about 45 minutes in between each subsequent flight.

Another sensational meal at L2O, with every course matching wonderfully with the wine.

Served with Geoduck Clam, Manilla Clam, Lime

• NV Roses de Jeanne / Cédric Bouchard Champagne Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs Côte de Val Vilaine 90 Points

  France, Champagne

  Great side-by-side comparison tonight with another Bouchard NV Blanc de Noirs, the La Parcelle. Val Vilaine started with concentrated fruit aromas and a bready, yeasty character. Palate also showed good concentration but that toasty/yeasty character was in the forefront and was a bit one dimensional.

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• NV Roses de Jeanne / Cédric Bouchard Champagne Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs La Parcelle Côte de Béchalin 91 Points

  France, Champagne

  Great side-by-side comparison with another Bouchard Blanc de Noirs, the Val Vilaine. This iwne was slightly floral with apple aromas and some strawberry hints. Somewhat lean fruit on palate but an overall vibrant character, then some hints of sweetness at the very end. I slightly preferred this to Val Vilaine, but most others disagreed tonight, but I generally prefer a brighter styled Champagne and the Val Vilaine had a more intense toasty, yeasty element.

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Served with Tuna, Avocado, Caviar

• 2001 Jean Boillot & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Tasted blind in a flight of Boillot Mouchère. Huge floral start, fair amount of good oak spice and some apple and peach. Similar fruit profile on palate that showed modest advancement, in a very impressive place for a 2001, with equally impressive supporting acidity. My 2nd favorite of the flight, almost everybody's 1st or 2nd favorite along with the wonderful 2005.

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• 1986 Jean Boillot & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère 85 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Tasted single blind a vertical flight of Boillot Mouchère. Tired. Drinkable, but not exciting in context of the flight.

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• 2005 Domaine Henri Boillot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Tasted blind in a vertical flight of Boillot Mouchère, Spice-driven start with good floral, new oak and mint contributions along with fat, lush stone fruit. Peach and apricot flavors, very rounded, fat, lush and powerful. My favorite of the flight, and most people had this as either their favorite or 2nd favorite tonight. An impressive 2005 that is in its peak drinking window now and should drink well for another 5+ years.

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• 1996 Jean Boillot & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Single blind in a vertical flight of Boillot Mouchère. Good floral start with mature fruit. Easy to enjoy. Time to drink up.

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• 2002 Jean Boillot & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Modest orchard fruit and spice, similar to the others in the flight but shorter and simpler. Flawed bottle perhaps? 89 point wine tonight.

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Served with Risotto, Hearts of Palm, Black Truffle

• 2005 Henri Boillot Corton-Charlemagne 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Tasted blind in a (mostly) Boillot Corton-Charlemagne flight. An exceptional Corton-Charlemagne with lots of classic and intense character. Apple and lemon aromas with plenty of oak spice. Great density and intensity on palate, but also sensational acidity, energy and minerality. Long and powerful finish. Still has some upside from here, but close to its peak drinking window.

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• 2004 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Corton-Charlemagne Quintessence 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Tasted blind in what was supposed to be a (mostly) Boillot Corton-Charlemagne flight. Lush and powerful aromas of stone and tropical fruit along with bursts of new oak spice. Also lush fruit on palate, subtlety supported by good acidity.

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• 2002 Henri Boillot Corton-Charlemagne Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Corked.

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• 2001 Henri Boillot Corton-Charlemagne Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Oxidized.

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Served with Black Bass, Black Olive, Tomato, Basil.

• 1999 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Le Montrachet 97 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served blind in a Montrachet flight. Incredible perfumed and floral start with great orchard and citrus aromas. Ripe fruit on palate with lemon and lemon peel coming through at end with a very long, intense and balanced finish. Wow! Even better when our group had this same wine 3 years ago, then also served blind in a 1999 Montrachet flight. Sadly, my last bottle.

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• 2001 Henri Boillot Montrachet 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Tasted blind in a Montrachet flight. Slightly advanced aromas and flavors of apple and pear. Slightly lean, well textured, but short with a moderate finish. Somewhat lost sitting in between the amazing 1999s from Boillot and Girardin. Still not nearly as good as a great bottle (from the same case) I opened in January. Sigh...that's white Burgundy.

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• 1999 Henri Boillot Montrachet 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served blind in a Montrachet flight. Ripe orchard fruit, with plenty of new oak, floral character and baking spice in support. Beautiful wine, even if classically Le Montachet. Great power and concentration. Mature, ripe character makes me think this probably isn't a long-term cellar hold from here. Better than the last bottle I opened last summer.

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Served with Turbot, Andouillette, Galette, Bibb Lettuce, Metelote Normande

• 2000 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

  Tasted blind in a Chevalier-Montrachet flight. Fat and ripe, seemingly more Batard-like to me tonight than Chevalier. Fruit was moderately advanced on palate, not quite as fresh as the best 2000s I've had this year.

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• 2002 Louis Jadot Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

  My good luck streak with this wine this year has come to an end. Oxidized.

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• 2001 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

  Tasted blind in Chevalier-Montrachet flight. Big stone fruit start with slightly pronounced new oak. Dense fruit start on palate, finishing more classically with precision and energy. Much like another bottle I opened earlier this year.

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• 2002 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

  Slightly floral start with lots of ripe and concentrated orchard fruit with background spice. Apple and pear flavors, slightly sweet, very intense. Great power from middle to end. Very balanced and integrated.

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Served with Lobster Tail, Beef, Spring Onion, Brioche, Sauce Civet

• 2004 Jean Boillot & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Corked.

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• 2004 Henri Boillot Montrachet 95 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Tasted blind in a Boillot 2004 flight. Some overt new oak to start with great orchard fruit aromas. Fat, lush and spicy from start-to-finish with an expanding, powerful finish that shows the same orchard fruit as well as some lemon and lemon peel. Fantastic side-by-side with the Chevalier-Montrachet.

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• 2004 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

  Apple, pear aromas with hint of lemon zest. Simultaneously powerful and precise, with great energy and textured. A very refined wine.

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• 1969 Bouchard Aîné & Fils Chambertin-Clos de Bèze

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru

  Earthy start but also muddy. Faded quickly. Not sure if this is representative of a wine past its peak or just a bad bottle.

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• 1976 R. López de Heredia Rioja Gran Reserva Viña Tondonia 92 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Aromas of mushroom, earth, leather, figs. Mature black fruit on paalte with very good textures, balance. Will keep for a long time going forward. Not quite as exciting as the 1976 Bosconia I've had a couple of times in the past year.

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