WineBerserkers Bay Area Burgundy Tasting

Overall this was a wonderful tasting of red and white burgundies. All the wines showed superbly well, and the company was fantastic. We shall do this again soon!

An extra wine brought by a wonderfully generous participant. This was a very good to excellent champagne with balance, and it managed to straddle the fine line between fresh/refreshing/acidic and more full bodied/fruity/flavorful to very good effect. Very nice.

• 2004 Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Brut Millésimé 92 Points

  France, Champagne

  Light golden color; fresh citrusy but also full bodied and rich on the palate, earthy; palate is full bodied but fabulous acidity, citrus, fresh in the palate; finish is medium length. Very interesting, full bodied, slightly gamey style (pinot meunier?), overall a champagne that straddles the acid-bomb and the fruit-bomb, lacking only a bit of persistence to make it superb. This was a treat. 91-92

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The Fevre was mine. Both were pretty good, but I think my stylistic preference lies solidly with the more acidic chablis rather than the more ripe and full bodied white burgundy. I have more, and the wine would certainly do well with more age... but when will the premox monster bite? No one knows...

• 2004 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

  Light golden-yellow color; nose has oily citrus fruit, bright, very slight minerality, moderate intensity; palate is medium bodied, fantastic acid without an unpleasant bite, balanced out well with some white peach fruit, slight chalky and mineral towards the end; finish is medium length, fresh citrus and great cleansing acidity. Very good overall, still a bit young, very fun to drink but not the most intense or flavorful Fevre that I have had. 91-92
  1/20/14: Day 2, and this is drinking just as well. The crazy high acid has integrated a bit more, and the nose and palate have both fleshed out with some early secondary notes, caramel, and still plenty of fruit; palate is very well balanced but still fresh with good acid. Lovely to drink, and my other bottles could probably use a few years. 92+

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• 2003 Maison Bertrand Ambroise Corton-Charlemagne 88 Points

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

  Deeper golden-orange color; rich, biscuity, honey, toasty; slight oak, vanilla, secondary notes, thins out on the midpalate; medium finish. Nice nose, disappointing on the palate, seems overall like not complex enough to be of grand cru quality, relatively low acid for burgundy (though not as much as the average California chard). 88

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All of these were truly superstars. A wonderful lineup, and I enjoyed each one in its own way. I think that the Hudelot-Noellat Richebourg was truly special with an exotic and very complex nose, though it could use more age. Similarly, the Clos des Lambrays was very dense and seemed like it could also use another 5-10 years of age, though it was great to try it now. The Taupenot-Merme was a great surprise for me. It's just an example of a superb burgundy opened at just the right time showing just the right mature characteristics. Though it's the same age as the Clos des Lambrays, if you have both you should definitely let the Clos des Lambrays rest and drink the Taupenot-Merme now... you will certainly enjoy them a lot now.

• 1996 Louis Jadot Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques Domaine Louis Jadot 93 Points

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

  Medium ruby color; not much bricking; nose has wonderful red cherry fruit, some green stemmy notes, slight spice, very complex; palate is light bodied, tannins give it a bit of density, well integrated, flavorful, nice fruit through the midpalate, acidity kicks in and cleans up the palate; finish is medium length. Wonderful, very good burgundy. 92-93

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• 2000 Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Richebourg 95 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Lively young ruby color; nose is very complex with exotic spices, sandalwood, deep, minty, menthol; very smooth texture, defined cherry fruit, needs time to open up, young, dense through the midpalate; medium finish. This is a truly superlative wine, perhaps the best of this tasting, and it needs a lot of time to continue its evolution. Truly a joy to drink, and very complex on both the nose and palate. 94-96

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• 2001 Domaine des Lambrays Clos des Lambrays 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru

  Very deep nose with black fruits, slight smoke, olive; palate is dense but great acidity, fabulous red fruit, very well balanced; finish is medium length, flavorful but very clean. Lovely, and still very, very young. 93-94++

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• 2001 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Bel-Air 93 Points

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

  Lovely mature nose with olive, meaty, earthy, strong core of red fruit; wonderful palate with superb complexity, good acid, mouthwatering red fruit, palate is a bit more primary than the nose; finish is medium length. This was a pleasant surprise. Just a superb wine, a wonderful red burg, close to maturity, and overall just a bottle opened at the perfect time. This was one of my favorites from this tasting, and I think was even drinking as well as the Clos des Lambrays today (though the Lambrays likely has more potential for the future). 93-94

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• 2006 Prince Florent de Merode Corton-Bressandes 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  Deep young ruby color; nice balanced spice and red fruits, seems a bit closed, elegant; palate is medium bodied, very good acid, fresh, but not that unique; short-med finish. Very nice, young, still very enjoyable now, but unclear whether this will ever turn into anything great. 91

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Thanks everyone! These dinners are always a lot of fun.