2014 red Burgundy tasting w/ incredible whites served blind

Six of us got together to drink/assess the 14 red Burgundy. This was the first comprehensive 14 tasting that I participated in and, IMO, the 14 is a great classic vintage. The wines are pure and transparent yet also sweet and concentrated. The 14’s concentration is expressed via excellent viscosity and silkiness where the 15’s is expressed via dense and packed sweet fruit. The tannins are extremely fine. The 14s will age beautifully for the next two decades or more. Perhaps the repeat of the 91 or 93. It is a very perfumed vintage similar to the 01 or 07 but showing better concentration and better mid-palate.

This was the first time Bryan joined our lazy Sunday lunch and we were speechless by his generosity. He served us four special bottles of white Burgundy. All the reds except the DRCs were served blind in two flights, all Gevrey as the first red flight and then MG plus Lucien Le Moine BM as the third/last flight. The wines showed so well that we checked the biodynamic calendar and….leaf day.

• 2015 Jean-Michel Guillon Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Champonnets 92 Points

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

  The Domaine that is new to me, Arrowine generously gifted to Ken for this event. According to Ken, the wines had been very modern with strong new oak influence until recently. The son made the 15. Perfectly ripe crushed blackberry, strawberry and rhubarb tart, a hint of licorice, sap and earth. Excellent concentration, packed ripe black fruit with a hint of cherry, bright acidity, strong earthy mineral and a medium to long crushed blackberry and sap driven finish. It is ripe, clearly expressing the vintage, but no noticeable new oak. It is a solid wine with excellent concentration. If you prefer lots of sous bois, it will require two more decades of cellaring.

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These were memorable, reminding us why we go crazy over them.

• 1989 Domaine Ramonet Bâtard-Montrachet 96 Points

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

  This is the first time Bryan joined our lazy Sunday lunch and he generously offers a number of whites double blind. The first note is Ramonet mint combined with candied lemon peel. With air, a hint of white peach, baked apple, smoked salmon, grilled fat, spicy spices and wet stone. Very youthful, energetic and focused palate, nicely layered generous yellow and white fruit, bright acidity, strong mineral presence and a long baked apple and smoked fat driven finish. I correctly calls Ramonet and thinking it is the Batard. Paul thinks the 08 due to the acidity and focus which I agree. Bryan reveals the label and we are flabbergasted as the wine is unbelievably youthful. With air, the palate gets sweeter and richer. Excellent showing.

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• 1974 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Ruchottes 92 Points

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

  The second blind white, courtesy of Bryan. Fully mature color, deeper yellow. The nose reminds me of mature Chablis, shy yellow fruit, apricot and yellow peach, burnt sugar, oyster jus, lobster poached in Sauternes, a hint of cinnamon and oyster shell/mineral. Fully integrated palate, subtle apricot fruit and oyster jus driven palate impression, slightly lean, bright acidity, good mineral presence via oyster shell and a medium to long subtle yellow fruit and sweet spices driven finish. Perhaps an old Chablis. No one expects this to be over forty years old.

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• 1986 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles 96 Points

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

  Third blind white. I notice Domaine Leflaive on the capsule so no longer blind for me. Incredibly decadent, slightly exotic yet energetic nose displaying apricot tart, lemon curd, medium ripe yellow peach, crème custard, honey, a hint of botrytis and limestone. Excellent concentration, very viscous and rich, decadent yellow fruit driven palate impression, good acidity and a long decadent yellow fruit driven finish. Ken guesses the 88. It helps me a lot but the ripeness and botrytis leads me to ‘83 or ’86. Unbelievably sweet nose with a hint of botrytis, and rich and concentrated palate make this very unique, slightly kinky and absolutely hedonistic. I believe Bryan cellared it since release, a great testament to the importance of proper cellaring.

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• 2002 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet 98 Points

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

  After having the memorable ‘86 Pucelles, we lament the fate of Domaine Leflaive. Bryan insists on opening the 02 Leflaive Chevy. Explosive nose displaying intense yellow citrus fruit, lemon curd, canned pear, white flowers, honey, whipped butter, spicy spices and limestone. Intense yet harmonious palate, beautifully layered ripe white and yellow fruit, creamy yet pure and precise, bright acidity, strong mineral presence and a long unbelievably intense finish. It perfectly combines incredible energy, intensity, purity, freshness and precision. For Ken, this represents the perfect maturity as it has gained complexity without losing intensity and energy. Incredible showing but too risky to source at auction.

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• 2006 Taittinger Champagne Comtes de Champagne Rosé Brut 97 Points

  France, Champagne

  Having had the 06 CdC rose for a few times, the consistency and deliciousness are quite remarkable. The fruit at this stage is quite bright and sweet, strawberry, candied strawberry and cherry. It is very Burgundian. There is a hint of sous bois and also sweet spices. The palate is nicely integrated and polished, very fine generous mousse, perfect amount of acidity, nice mineral expression and a seamless sweet red fruit driven finish with a hint of copper at the end. It is so darn delicious now but will age gracefully for another two decades or more as there is a lot of fruit and acidity.

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• 2014 Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg Ruchottes-Chambertin 97 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru

  Absolutely exquisite nose displaying pure black fruit with a hint of red, crushed blackberry, crushed black cherry, raspberry, rose, sap, espresso bean, sesame, incense and vosne spice. Very pure and energetic palate, finely layered perfectly ripe blackberry, bright acidity, excellent mineral presence and am incredibly long pure black fruit and espresso bean driven finish. It is beguilingly rich and viscous yet also subtle and weightless. I drank a small pour of the 14 Vosne the night before and the overall expression is quite similar, although naturally more complex and layered. The purity in fruit and impeccably balanced palate lead me to MG Ruchottes.

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• 2014 Domaine Fourrier Griotte-Chambertin Vieille Vigne 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Griotte-Chambertin Grand Cru

  Big scale and slightly masculine nose displaying very ripe red fruit with a hint of black, strawberry and rhubarb tart, cherry pie, a hint of blackberry, a hint of spearmint that quickly dissipates, sap, sweet spices and earth. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of rich concentrated red fruit, good acidity and earthy mineral, very fine tannins and a long concentrated red fruit and sap driven finish. The overall expression is masculine initially but softens up after a couple of hours. According to Ken, decanted for three hours. I am not a fan of decanting young red Burgundy as it tightens the nose, losing the opulent primary fruit and perfume/floral expression. The earlier CT notes indicate a lot of finesse. This particular bottle is masculine and dense, especially compare to the Mugneret-GIbourg and Rousseau Ruchottes. This is a big scale wine that will require two more decades to reach full maturity. My guess is correct.

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• 2014 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Ruchottes-Chambertin Clos des Ruchottes 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru

  Beautiful harmonious nose displaying crushed blackberry, a hint of raspberry, caramel, sap, espresso bean and limestone. Already showing beautiful harmonious palate, silky and fluid, finely layered fresh blackberry and espresso bean driven palate impression, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, incredibly fine tannins and a seamless pure black and red fruit driven finish with a hint of sap and espresso bean at the end. My guess is the Fourrier CSJ but the finesse makes me to quickly correct myself as the Rousseau. With air, the nose and palate become sensual and perfectly harmonious.

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• 2014 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques Vieille Vigne 95 Points

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

  Similar nose as the Rousseau initially but a bit more meatier and riper. Expressive nose displaying crushed blackberry, fresh cranberry sauce, a hint of strawberry and rhubarb tart, strong sap and earth. Excellent concentration, packed perfectly ripe blackberry, dense, bright acidity, strong earthy mineral, very fine tannins and a long crushed blackberry driven finish. With two hours of air, the fruit gets brighter, more precise and redder. This will also take two more decades to reach the peak. Really nice showing.

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• 2014 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Echezeaux 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru

  The first note is strong DRC stem. Youthful yet sensual and exotic nose displaying rich black fruit, blackberry, black cherry, espresso bean, crushed pepper, caramel, licorice, Vosne spice and earth. Already showing beautiful harmony and balance, subtle yet decadent black fruit driven palate impression, strong stem in the palate as well, silky and sensual, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, very fine tannins and a long perfectly ripe blackberry driven finish with strong stem and Vosne spices at the end. This has gained weight and became more expressive since July, 2017. Already absolute pleasure to drink but will age beautifully.

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• 2014 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche 97 Points

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

  Very complex nose displaying more red fruit than black, strawberry and rhubarb tart, a hint of perfectly ripe blackberry, stem but not as strong as the Echezeaux, Vosne spice, grilled fat, cinnamon, clove, a hint of licorice, caramel, sap and tree bark. Very broad and rich yet pure and precise palate, unbelievably layered ripe red fruit with a hint of caramel, silky and fluid, perfect amount of acidity and stem/mineral, beautifully integrated very fine tannins and a seamless long red fruit and caramel driven finish with clove and Vosne spice at the end. This seems broader, more complex and more red fruit driven than the Echezeaux. Perhaps not as enjoyable as the Echezeaux at the moment. I suspect this will be a very pure and classic La Tache perhaps like the 96 or the 08 but with more generous and slightly riper fruit?

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• 2001 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Echezeaux 95 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru

  Very youthful expressive nose displaying sweet red cherry, raspberry tart, a hint of Vosne spice, a hint of coffee, grilled steak, sweet spices and earth. The stem note has been fully integrated and perhaps expresses as cinnamon. Nicely integrated palate, excellent concentration, generous ripe red fruit driven, bright acidity, strong earthy mineral, a hint of fine tannins and a long ripe red fruit driven finish. This particular bottle is very youthful and can benefit from another decade of cellaring.

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• 2014 Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg Vosne-Romanée 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée

  Having had a small sample via Coravin the night before, it is easy to identify. Very pure and energetic, fresh blackberry, roasted coffee bean, sap, rose and earth. Very clean and pure, silky, perfect amount of acidity and mineral and a long clean black and red fruit driven finish. I am amazed by the stylistic consistency of three MG wines. This will be a nice wine to understand the style of ’14 Mugneret Gibourg wines.

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• 2014 Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Chaignots 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru

  Expressive nose displaying rich black fruit, blackberry, black cherry, coffee, sweet spices and earth. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of black fruit, silky and polished, pure and precise, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, and a long ripe yet pure black fruit driven finish. This seems bigger than the third wine, so my guess is the 14 MG CV. Excellent showing.

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• 2014 Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg Clos Vougeot 94 Points

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

  Initial impression is very polished red and black fruit with sweet spices and sap. Medium concentration, silky and polished, subtle sweet raspberry fruit driven palate impression, bright acidity and strong mineral, and a medium to long subtle raspberry and sweet spices driven finish. Based on the initial impression of the concentration, I mistaken pick this as the Chaignots. With two hours of air, beautiful sweet spices like clove and cinnamon emerge also coffee and light caramel, and a hint of Vosne spices. With air, this becomes very polished and precise. The initial rating of 92 pts and 94 pts at the end.

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• 2014 Lucien Le Moine Bonnes Mares 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru

  This is a manimal! Perhaps the biggest wine of the night. The initial note is mint but it dissipates. Intense nose displaying very ripe coiled black fruit, blackberry cooked in sugar, fresh black cherry, licorice, coffee, root beer and earth. Excellent concentration, densely layered black fruit, unctuous but not heavy, bright acidity, strong earthy mineral and a long intense dense black fruit driven finish. One the mint note dissipates, it settles down but remains a concentrated big scale wine. Very impressive but also very unique.

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As usual, we had such a great time that the lunch ended at 6 when the dinner crow came in.