Summer Pavilion, Ritz Carlton, Singapore
Tasted Wednesday, February 12, 2020 by Paul S with 188 views
Grands-Echézeaux is one of those vineyards in Burgundy that I had never really gotten a handle on in the past - the wines were just too rare, and the few producers who make good examples too expensive, so much so that they quite rarely show-up en masse at a tasting. This then was a rare, and wonderful opportunity to taste a whole lot of bottles assembled from our individual collections: from a great range of top makers, and some very nicely matured examples as well.
Like its bigger neighbour, Echézeaux, Grands-Echézeaux is often associated with the great Grand Cru vineyards across the village border in Vosne-Romanee. It is, however, technically in the village boundaries of Flagey-Echezeaux, and actually just next to the top (and arguably finest) part of the Clos Vougeot. Like Clos Vougeot, this vineyard was created by Cistercian monks of the Cîteaux Abbey, and much later got its AOC Grand Cru status in 1936. It is, incidentally, a single lieu-dit, widely acknowledged as being the best of the 12 that make up the Grand Crus of Flagey (the remaining 11 being merged to form Echézeaux). You can tell that in the wines too - they are consistently grander, and finer than those from Echézeaux.
In terms of character, these wines lie somewhere between a top Clos Vougeot and one of the more muscular Grand Crus of Vosne- Romanee - say Richebourg. Here, one gets a range of red to darker berry fruit meeting secondary notes of earth, meat and warm spice. Quite of the few of the wines also had a hint of dried roses about them. In terms of structure and feel, the best examples all showed an elegant purity and transparency about them, but also almost always a sinewy, muscular strength. This is certainly terroir capable of producing wines of great finesse, but of velvet rather than silk.
What did strike me as well were how consistently good the wines were - it may have been a function of the winemakers represented (all quality), but I think a lot also has to do with the terroir itself. A very proper Grand Cru then, which is not always something you say about parts of Clos Vougeot or Echézeaux.
Special mention must go to the pair of champagnes we had as well. Both were very good indeed, with the Salon knocking my socks off - in the midst of a red wine dinner, that was probably my favourite drink of the night.
2000 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 93 Points
France, Champagne
Very solid, but just a touch more oxidative than I thought it would be at this stage of its development. This was clear from the nose, which had typical Krug notes of red apples yeast and bread, along with sweet honey and caramel aromas, but all this edged with some browned fruits and an oxidative, rather savoury rancio character. The palate was really full and generous, with a muscular seam of powerful flavours filling the mouth - sweet red apples and ripe lemons, yeast and some cream, a dollop of honey, and then touches of spice and mineral pulling away into a long powerful finish. The mousse had tamed into a soft robe, and the oxidative notes were in there somewhere as well, showing in a bit of browned pear notes. Overall very good and still solid, but this was really drinking as though it was leaving its peak window behind.
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1996 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut 95 Points
France, Champagne
Wow - still a long way away from peak, but this was absolutely lovely. The nose was pure Salon, with sleek, alluring aromas of red apples laced with flinty, stony minerality, and just that shade of yeastiness coming out at the edges. The palate was bursting with strength and energy, with a spine of juicy, lemony acidity racing its way through snappy flavours of red apples and some white fruit, all this still carried on a bed on fine, vigorous mousse, into a finish that had a lovely flint and mineral length to it. Sleek, polished, and full of sinewy tension and effortless strength - this showed a lot youthfully than the bottle I had a couple of years ago (which had the benefit of double-decanting and a couple of hours of air). This bottle seemed to be just about coming out from its awkward adolescence at the moment. All still quite tight then, but this is a superlative wine in the making. I would easily lay this aside for another 6-8 years on this showing.
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