Birthday bash tasting

A good wine buddy had a birthday, so some friends and I got together, planned out some flights, and had a killer evening. Too many epic wines that I felt each one deserved more time and air on it's own. So many special wines in this lot!

• 2008 J.L. Vergnon Expression 93 Points

  France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

  Doughy and rich yet so precise with minerals, slate, mountain stream. Lemon and green apple fruit mixed with biscuits and saline. So pretty.

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• 2010 Jacques Lassaigne Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature Clos Sainte Sophie 95 Points

  France, Champagne

  Wow, this is exceptional. So complex and intriguing. Zesty and zippy but lots of depth, richness and nutty elements as well. Ginger, honey, dried flowers, clove, minerals, fresh biscuits. Lovely, unique stuff.

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• NV Ulysse Collin Champagne Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut Les Pierrières 94 Points

  France, Champagne

  So focused and razor-like, but shows fruit and depth to balance it out. Chalky, nervy, pithy, salty. Man I love this stuff. Based on the 2012 vintage.

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• 2013 Jean-François Ganevat Les Grands Teppes Vieilles Vignes 95 Points

  France, Jura, Côtes du Jura

  This stuff rocked me. So pretty, such tension. There's a ton of textural richness but the acidity is so clean and bright. Gorgeous lemon curd laced with saline, minerals, herbs. I knew this was going to be good, but this was a shockingly gnarly wine.

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• 2013 Jean-François Ganevat Côtes du Jura Marnes Bleues Les Chalasses 94 Points

  France, Jura, Côtes du Jura

  Peaches and candied ginger drizzled in lime, topped in sea salt, candle wax, salted almond, hay, spiced tea. I mean, the complexity is amazing, but the wine is just so vibrant and exciting, that it goes down way too easily. I'd love to see what this does over the next five to ten years.

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• 2013 Jean-François Ganevat Côtes du Jura Vieilles Vignes Les Chalasses 93 Points

  France, Jura, Côtes du Jura

  Nervy, salty, chalky, dry with bitter lemon and orange peel. Complex hay, saline, crushed rock notes. A real treat that deserves more time and attention than I was able to give it.

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• 2010 Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Vosne-Romanée Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée

  Corked - damn.

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• 2010 Domaine Roblet-Monnot Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

  This showed really well, with a lot of youthfulness. Not as beefy and spicy as I was expecting, but a lot going on. Grippy tannins with fresh acidity, tangy raspberry and cherry fruit. Lots of rose petals, clove, anise, sooty-earthy tones. Could use some time to mellow the tannins, and those tertiary Monnot notes I love are still a ways off.

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• 2010 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin Vieille Vigne 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin

  Apparently I tasted this on my birthday six years ago - pretty cool, but it's gotten even better. Cherries, raspberries with rose petals and complex pepper, iron, mushroom and iodine notes. A cool minty-floral element contributes to this airy quality, despite the fact that the wine shows a lot of grip. Still plenty of time ahead, but this was very expressive and pretty.

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• 2010 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Clos de la Maréchale 93 Points

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

  Really young, but very good. Intense and grippy, it was a bit hard to coax things out of this wine. But I love the juicy raspberries and cherries with smoky, mineral undertones. This could use a lot more time.

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• 1992 Zilliken (Forstmeister Geltz) Saarburger Rausch Riesling Spätlese 90 Points

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  A bit tired, but still nice, showing a lot of attractive aged characteristics. Crisp yet lush with apricot and spiced tea notes. I get this distinct pine sap note that is pretty cool.

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• 1985 Domaine Huet Vouvray Moelleux Clos du Bourg 94 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray

  Sweet and plush with candied pineapple, honey, mint and clover notes. Acidity is really refreshing and the wine still shows a youthful buoyancy. Nothing tired about this wine - it showed wonderfully!

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• 1997 Domaine Huet Vouvray Moelleux Le Mont 92 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray

  Rich and plush with lots of candied fruits and marmalade, glazed peaches, honey, tropical nectar. But it also has some freshness and those cool, aged Chenin notes of tea, ginger and such.

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• 2003 Joh. Jos. Prüm Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Auslese 96 Points

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  Wow, this blew me away. I was expecting a rich and unctuous 2003 Auslese (and there's plenty of that for sure) but I had no idea this wine would show such freshness. Apricot, orange, peach, gorgeous, pure fruit and lots of honey, lamp oil, clove, sweet tea, etc., but underlying all this is bright acidity, racy minerals, and effortless balance. Maybe this was a fluke excellent bottle or something, but this particular bottle was pristine, exceptional, and had plenty of life ahead.

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