Burgundy & other stuff from the cellar

A gathering of friends at the house to taste some wine and see how some of the wines from the Vinotemp are aging. Nine attendees total, with mostly old world aficionados, with a couple of new-to-wine-tasting California, fruit forward lovers. A friend brought his Vinturi, a wine aerating device, which was an interesting experience. Served simple food. Used Riedel glasses of various types to match the wines. Used the Vinturi on all red wines only. A big thanks to Sam and Bennett at The Wine Country in Signal Hill, CA for helping me with ordering and cheese pairings.

A bit of Chenin Blanc and a couple of White Burgundies.

• 2004 François Chidaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Les Choisilles 89 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Montlouis-sur-Loire

  Medium nose of honeyed white fruit. More honeyed white fruit in the mouth, with apples predominating. Very nice, sensous mouth feel with a nice, clean medium length finish. Still some acid present. Good purity and by no means over the hill, with years left to mature, although certainly transitioning out of a fruit forward stage.

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• 2004 Paul Chapelle & ses Filles Meursault 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

  Big nutty, citrusy honeyed nose. Very big, mouth filling, smooth, round tropical and citrus fruit. Slightly viscous, sensuous mouth feel. Nutty, fat medium length finish. Big and sexy. Still acid left, although not a lot, seemed ready to drink but not over the hill or even on a downward slope.

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• 2002 Domaine Jomain Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrières 93 Points

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

  Clean, clean minerally nose with a hint of sweetness. Very pure fruit, with minerals and citrus, almost Chablis like. Very good depth and some complexity with a very focused, clean, medium length, minerally finish. Plenty of acid, although not too much to bring any sourness. Still young and I will wait at least 2 years before opening another. One of my two favorite WOTNs and a great example of what is right and good about Chardonnay. Just delicious.

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The focus of the evening. An indicator of my changing tastes and a lesson for me in judging the ageability of Burgundy, upon which I still don't really have a handle.

• 2000 Domaine Chandon de Briailles Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru Ile des Vergelesses 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru

  Big, sexy nose of red cherry and minerals. Big, clean red cherry fruit, with some depth and complexity. Very clean and pure with soft tannins and decent acid, with a medium length finish. A nearly perfect example of 1er cru Burgundy for me, with everything I look for in such a wine. Could certainly age longer, but showed very well, particularly with the prime rib and Comte. A WOTN for a couple of the attendees.

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• 1999 Domaine Camus-Bruchon & Fils Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Les Gravains 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru

  Big nose of red fruit and dirt. Earthy red cherry fruit of medium weight and some complexity. Plenty of tannins and acid. Medium length finish with more dirt and red fruit. Seemed still young with some potential and I won't be opening another bottle for at least a couple of years.

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• 2000 Domaine Chandon de Briailles Corton-Bressandes 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  Very big, deep nose of red fruit and dirt/terrior. Big, tannic, red fruit with more minerals and dirt and with very good depth and complexity. Long, smoky, complex finish. Very young and a classic Gr Cru Burgundy. I can imagine this will develop for another 5 to 20 years. An obvious step up in class to me and one of two WOTNs.

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• 1998 Domaine de Montille Volnay 1er Cru Champans 89 Points

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

  Subtle, yet deep nose of minerals and dirt. Very good terrior in the mouth, with more minerals and dirt but little fruit. Thin, yet with decent depth, if you were looking for it. Moderate acid and tannins; almost sour, but not quite. Medium to long finish with a hint of complexity. A controversial wine, with many unable to get over the thinness and lack of fruit, but others impressed with the obvious terrior, beguiling nose and overall class of the wine. One of the wines I don't really have a clue about in terms of further development, although I've been told by others with more experience in these matters that it could mature into some really interesting secondary flavors in 5-15 years.

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• 2000 Mongeard-Mugneret Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Orveaux 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru

  Another big dirty nose. Big dirty red fruit with decent complexity and depth. Noticeable wood for the first time in the evening, with somewhat chunky tannins and the slightest hint of vanilla. The wood added an interesting note the medium length finish. Seemed a little disjointed and needing more time in the bottle, but still very promising.

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• 2000 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Clos de la Roche 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru

  Huge, seemingly extracted nose of red fruit. Very big sweetish red fruit of exceptional quality and depth. Very round in the mouth. Obvious new wood. Huge tannins and big acid. Big sweet finish of decent depth and length. Very New World. BIG. Wine seemed heavy handed, at least at this stage of its development. Seemed out of place compared to the other Burgundies we had already tasted. A slap in the face compared to the other more traditional Burgundies and another controversial wine, with it being WOTN for some (not me). Certainly needs time in the bottle and may turn into something very interesting, given the quality of the fruit, wood and vineyard. Tasted this wine again 2 days later and it was much more integrated and I would rate at 91-92.

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I've been trying to try the Vieux, it is the first bottle of my vertical, and had one remaining bottle of the Deydier for comparison.

• 2000 Domaine Jean Deydier et Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Les Clefs d'Or 83 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Big earthy nose. Thin, tannic fruit with a OK, bordering on harsh, finish. The lamb couldn't even make this a decent wine. Over the hill.

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• 1999 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau 92 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Very big earthy nose, with minerals and blood. Very big, dirty, earthy fruit, with very good depth and complexity. Medium long finish with more terrior and dirt. Good acid and tannins. Still young but showing good promise. Great with the lamb.

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Oh well. Can't win them all.

• 1999 Stags' Leap Winery Petite Sirah 81 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Big woody nose. Sweetish, thin tannic fruit with a thin and shrill finish. I certainly aged this one too long.

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At least the Ladera was good.

• 2000 Ladera Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain 92 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain

  Very big nose of pencil lead, with some vanilla. Big round fruit with good complexity and depth. Very well integrated, sweet tannins. Medium finish with decent complexity and a hint of sweet vanilla. Very good with the prime rib. A very good example of California Cab. Not overdone and drinking very well. Not sure how much better it would get, but not over the hill.

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• 1999 Marston Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 86 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Spring Mountain District

  Big spicy nose, with some depth. Big woody fruit, with a hint of sweetness. Some complexity. A little too tannic and acidic. Just slightly over the hill, which is a shame, because the fruit did have some interesting complexity and depth, but just wasn't in balance with the tannins and acid. Another one I over aged.

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A fun event, with much laughter and good cheer. A good learning experience for me, as some of the wines I procured early in my wine loving career (I've only been serious for around seven years), proved to be over the hill and/or no longer to my taste. Another step in my learning process about ageing wine. The Vinturi, which, depending on one's prudishness, made an either hideous or hilarious noise during use, seemed to improve all the ones but one, the Marston, and I might have to buy one. I was also talked into opening a couple of German Rieslings to finish off the evening, but didn't take any notes, although the '95 JJ Prum Auslese was mighty good, and still quite young.