Some Wines from a Spring Trip to France
Paris and Burgundy
Tasted Saturday, April 4, 2015 - Saturday, April 11, 2015 by drwine2001 with 808 views
Introduction
These were just some miscellaneous things that we had along the way. I've separated out the notes from visits to individual properties.
NV Nicolas Feuillatte Champagne Brut Réserve
France, Champagne
(4/4/2015)
Medium yellow. Toasty nose. Full, moderate dosage but good dry finish. Hard to get excited about this.
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2011 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
(4/5/2015)
Full red. Immediately attractive nose of ripe cherry and earth, but as it opens, more menthol and camphor come roaring in and wind up distracting and detracting. Same story on the palate-lovely, sweet, sappy red fruit at first, but an increasingly aggressive, distinctly peppery finish with raw acidity. I worry about this one.
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NV Jacques Selosse Initial
France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru
(4/5/2015)
Disgorged May, 2011. Lush, complex, full of gingery flavors and bitter citrus, just unbelievably creamy. Superb bottle.
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2009 Domaine Dujac Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Malconsorts
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru
(4/5/2015)
Deep ruby. Urgent aromatics of brambly red and black fruit and less menthol. Typical plush, ripe feel of the vintage plus some earth, cinnamon, and rising tannins which make it feel as though it will be much better in 10+ years. Excellent but not wow tonight.
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2007 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard
France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas
(4/5/2015)
Inky, incredible depth. Kaleidoscopic aromatic display-blackberry confit, olive, green herbs. Big but round and completely harmonious. Chocolatey richness. Not even a trace of overripeness or alcohol. Impeccably balanced-delicious now, delicious in 20 years. Monumental Cornas!
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1994 Zind-Humbrecht Riesling Rangen de Thann Clos St. Urbain
France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru
(4/6/2015)
Deep yellow. Viscous, medium weight, off dry, peachy fruit, excellent acidity and flintiness. Mature but fresh with only a trace of nuttiness at the end.
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2010 Foreau Domaine du Clos Naudin Vouvray Sec
France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray
(4/6/2015)
Light yellow. Pear and a whiff of smokiness. A bit lighter weight for Chenin Blanc but still very textural. Dry but not quite as bracing as it was several years ago. Really coming into form nicely.
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2000 Alain Voge Cornas Vieilles Vignes
France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas
(4/6/2015)
Medium center with some bricking. Fabulous, exciting nose-some attractive volatile elements, great violet florality, mixed red and black fruit. I might have guessed Cote Rotie. Excellent depth but elegant weight, savory fruit, moderate tannins and great minerality. Marching toward full maturity in a few years. No savage, rustic wine here. A real find on a list.
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2010 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Gris Heimbourg
France, Alsace
(4/6/2015)
Yellow. Apple and citrus nose. Just off dry, alluring texture-slightly viscous but not at all heavy. Pure fruit, excellent acidity and mineral focus. Having stepped away from these wines recently, I must say that I like the restraint of this rather than the sweeter, more powerful style I recall from the past. Very tasty.
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2013 Jean-Louis Dutraive (Domaine de la Grand'Cour) Fleurie Champagne Cuvée Vieilles Vignes
France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Fleurie
(4/7/2015)
Light red. Very explosive aromatics. Floral, delightful light red fruit, a twist of strong acidity, and a dash of soil and animal. Not a big wine but high on the deliciousness scale. Another impressive 2013 Fleurie.
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2012 Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon Mâcon-Milly-Lamartine
France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Mâcon-Milly-Lamartine
(4/7/2015)
Medium yellow. Some would but lovely citrus and spice too. Terrific fruit, not too exuberant, and the wood proves to be much less prominent tha the nose suggests. Very good.
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2009 Jean-Claude Rateau Beaune 1er Cru Les Reversées
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru
(4/7/2015)
Light red. Ripe cherry aromatics and entry. Light but a bit of sap, fairly easygoing with low acidity. Joined by some soil on the finish that tails off fairly precipitously. Overall good at a village or lower Premier Cru level.
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2000 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
(4/7/2015)
Deep yellow. Fantastic array of honey and herbs. Beautiful glycerine richness with a prominent aspect of black licorice, tremendous acidity, and a long, mineral finish. Grand Cru feel, complexity, and length.
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1997 Louis Jadot Clos Vougeot
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru
(4/7/2015)
Freakishly primary deep ruby. Meaty, masculine, strapping black fruit and anise with a significant tannic burden to resolve. A youthful, typical Clos Vougeot. I would dare anyone to identify this blind as coming from a vintage with a weak, insipid reputation.
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1978 Domaine des Baumard Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru
France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru
(4/7/2015)
Opened 2 nights ago. Deep golden color. Somewhat funky aromatics, quite volatile but no botrytis. Ripe pear, moderate sweetness. Interesting more than enjoyable. It has held up remarkably well though.
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1996 Joseph Drouhin Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Mouches Rouge
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru
(4/8/2015)
Light red, no fading. Wafting red berry scents. Medium weight, lovely fruit and some soil. Integrated acidity and soft tannins. This is in a really good place now, seemingly fully mature and very expressive. Better than Meadows' note leads you to believe-very glad we tried this.
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2010 Lucien Le Moine Volnay 1er Cru Caillerets
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
(4/8/2015)
Deep ruby. Prominent smoky aromas. Tremendously deep cherry fruit with great penetration and balancing acidity. The wood recedes somewhat. I have mixed feelings about this wine. There is tremendous material and stuffing, but with the scale and the charred wood, it is hardly recognizable as Volnay.
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2010 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
(4/8/2015)
Light yellow. Enticing aromas of white flowers and a bit of wood. Medium weight, subtle citrus, great finishing stone. Delicate and fine, not the powerhouse that the 2000 Combettes was the night before. I'd love to try this with 5 more years of age.
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2009 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Clos de La Bussière
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Morey St. Denis 1er Cru
(4/8/2015)
Deep, even ruby robe. Explosive, forthcoming kirsch aromas. Full red fruited entry that is ripe and even a bit confected. Then followed by snappy acidity and a finish drenched with soil. Substantial tannins, but the strength of the fruit still lets the wine sing. A powerhouse which will improve for decades, but amazingly refined for Morey. Outstanding bottle.
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2012 Domaine François Legros Chambolle-Musigny
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
(4/9/2015)
Medium red. Typical Chambolle red fruit nose. Ripe and pliant entry, very tart, acidic back end. Good for current drinking.
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2007 Domaine Roulot Meursault Les Luchets
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault
(4/9/2015)
Yellow. An initial impression of oak gives way to a mix of clove and lemon. Medium weight, crisp acidity. Very nice, lighter style Meursault that is drinking well and doesn't need more time.
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2012 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Chambolle-Musigny
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
(4/9/2015)
Deep ruby robe. Incredibly complex nose-ripe strawberry, blood orange, menthol, and black pepper. Medium weight, sappy, concentrated fruit with that great mix of strong acidity and soil. Caressing and long. Miraculous for a mere village wine. In anyone else's hands, this would be a high end Premier Cru. Superb now, enough stuffing to evolve for 20 years. This brought tears to my eyes.
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2012 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Chatenière Blanc
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Saint-Aubin 1er Cru
(4/9/2015)
Nice ripe tropical fruit with good underlying structure and moderate weight.
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2013 Domaine Bernard Morey et Fils Chassagne-Montrachet
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet
(4/9/2015)
Lime aromatics. Not sweet at all. Medium weight, good cut. Good village wine.
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2012 Domaine Marc Morey & Fils Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Chenevottes
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru
(4/9/2015)
Sulfur and lemon. Woody base but the fruit still speaks. So so in terms of balance and potential.
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2011 Bruno Colin Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Chaumées
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru
(4/9/2015)
Lower pitched orange oil scents. More weighty and extracted but not as bright as it could be. Enjoyable but not one to hold.
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2010 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
(4/9/2015)
Floral. Viscous with herbs and butterscotch. Broad and very tasty, but not a Puligny of refinement or worthy of aging.
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2012 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru La Maltroie
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru
(4/9/2015)
Light yellow. Focused beam of ripe lemon fruit with the usual great, silky texture of this producer. This grew in complexity and completely avoids the heavy tendencies of the vintage. Excellent.
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2009 Domaine de Montille Beaune 1er Cru Grèves Flawed
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru
(4/9/2015)
Light ruby. Funky aromatics of brett and aldehyde with suppressed fruit and astringent finish. It tried but could not overcome these flaws.
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2012 Domaine Henri Naudin-Ferrand Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits
France, Burgundy, Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits
(4/9/2015)
Even red. Simply put, a light, clean, red fruited delight. New World in its exuberant fruitiness.
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2010 François Raveneau Chablis
France, Burgundy, Chablis
(4/10/2015)
Pale yellow. Exceptionally pure lemon, clean, refreshing acidity, and beautiful texture. Without tasting the wines side by side, in my recollection, this is better and has more depth than the first few vintages produced of this cuvee.
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2009 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos
France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
(4/10/2015)
This note reflects my impressions of 2 bottles of this that we drank with lunch (lucky us!) outside on a terrace on a freakishly warm, sunny spring day in Chablis. Yellow/green color. Rich orange fruit aromatics. Both bottles had a superb, silky mouth feel with terrific acidity for the vintage (although not quite as blazing as that in the 2010 which we also tasted on this trip). The first bottle was leaner had a strong taste of quinine on the finish, whereas the second one had less of this and more of the rich citrus that carried through to the finish. I would have been surprised to learn that these were 2009's if I had tasted them blind. As has been my experience with the Forest, these have tightened considerably since their release. While they are delicious now, neither of today's bottles were close to full maturity.
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2002 Domaine François Cotat Sancerre Les Monts Damnés
France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Sancerre
(4/10/2015)
Full yellow/medium golden. Incredible nose of honey, tropical fruit, citrus, and cut flowers. Rich entry, lively fruit, little or no residual sugar. Great back end acidity. Continued to open and show more in the glass. Fascinating wine that is fully mature at this point.
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2010 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos
France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
(4/10/2015)
Pale yellow. Oh my, a constantly changing, swirling melange of broth, lemon, and green herbs. Gorgeous texture without any heaviness whatsoever, great acidity. We tried this partly because Isabelle Raveneau had told us earlier in the day how well the 2010's were showing. This is already very special, and it is easy to see how great this might become in another 10 to 15 years. Wow.
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2007 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Cras
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru
(4/10/2015)
We were talked out of trying the 2009 and encouraged to drink this instead-home run of a recommendation. Deep ruby to the extreme edge. Aromatically, a crazy quilt of perfumed red fruit, cranberry, and an expanding array of spices that smelled like a celestial Chai mix. All of this is also present on the palate-incredible depth and drive. Alive, vibrant, and constantly growing in the glass. It is a baby, but with this degree of balance and intense fruit, who cares?? Intoxicating and great, probably the single best bottle of red wine we had on this France trip. I only wish I had a few bottles to try in 20 years if I'm still alive. I recall the same thrill when I tasted the 2007 Bonnes Mares several years ago in New York. These must be amongst the very greatest wines of that generally so so vintage.
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2009 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
(4/10/2015)
Light ruby, it certainly looked more mature than the Roumier wine. At first, all wet soil tones, then muddled red fruit, ferric tones, menthol, and finally a bit of char-now that is a complex nose! Medium weight, not at all as big as the Roumier. Subtle, sinuous fruit. Really, this is much more about the savory side of Burgundy. Excellent acidity, nothing soft or overripe about it. Wonderful development in the glass and it really gained some flesh. Another wine that was a pleasure to taste and drink even at this early juncture. Outstanding now and better with 10 more years, but this is not likely to be a 30+ year wine.
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1989 Domaine des Gagneries Bonnezeaux Cuvée Benoit
France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Bonnezeaux
(4/10/2015)
Another great recommendation as I'd never heard of this property. Full of honey and high toned botrytis. Outstanding Chenin Blanc glycerine quality, but neither unctuous nor that sweet. Despite this, unusually fragrant and complex in the mouth. Only slight ding is that the finish falls off a bit unlike the greatest Loire valley dessert wines. Completely resolved and expressive at this point.
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2012 Alphonse Mellot Sancerre "La Demoiselle"
France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Sancerre
(4/11/2015)
Light yellow/green. Herbs and grapefruit. Medium weight (actually not that big for a Mellot), crisp acidity, pure citrus, no appreciable oak. It just lacks that extra measure of intensity and depth, but this is excellent now.
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2010 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux
France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
(4/11/2015)
Light yellow. Ripe lemon and blood orange scents. Tasted beside the 2010 Dauvissat Clos, this was almost fat in comparison. Of course, it is not, but it does have the telltale Raveneau creaminess and hazelnut. Terrific back end acidity and a hint of stone. Drinking surprisingly well now but built for the long run.
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2010 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos
France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
(4/11/2015)
Light yellow. Fascinating comparison with the Raveneau Butteaux of the same vintage. It sounds ridiculous, but you could almost smell the stone and eventually more green herbs than fruit. Lean, linear, compressed, and backward with a late touch of quinine. Powerful, enamel dissolving acidity and amazing minerality. This may well be the stoniest wine I've ever had with a lingering sense of crushed rock on the tongue. It opened very slowly but beautifully with underripe lemon. This is a very great Chablis that needs at least another 10 years of aging. I will try to take this advice to heart and be patient.
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2009 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Chatelots
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru
(4/11/2015)
Red with lighter edge. Gorgeous seductive aromas of sweet strawberry, rose, and mint. Medium weight, some upfront 2009 ripeness, but long, fine acidity, and a nice complement of soil. With decanting, this was excellent tonight. Not a wine that requires a lot more bottle aging. Much more delicate than the 2007 Roumier Cras we had the other night. This shouted Chambolle.
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