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2001 Gevrey-Chambertin Grand Cru Dinner
Kheam Hock Road
Tasted April 17, 2015 by Paul S with 537 views
Introduction
This was a repeat of a dinner that I had back in June 2008 with another group of friends. We had a wider representation of the 9 Grand Crus of Gevrey back then, but the quality of the line-up this time round was a few notches up.
What a night we had this time round though – Ming San cooked up a storm, with some Michelin-worthy dishes, and many of the wines were starting to sing. While my notes from 2008 consistently remark that the wines needed significant amount of time yet, the 2001s now seem to be just on the cusp of maturity, and already gave tons of pleasure on the night. The Armand Rousseau quartet, in particular, really shone. Although I should say that there were no slouches on the night.
On a more personal note, I have always had a soft spot for Gevrey-Chambertin. A bottle of 1997 Jadot Clos de Beze was actually my gateway drug into the world of Burgundy wines. A Gevrey may not have the vivacious floral charm of a Chambolle or the luxuriously spiced depths of a Vosne. Its Grand Crus are arguable less consistently good then those of its neighbour, Morey-St. Denis. Yet Gevrey is almost always the go-to for me when I am not sure what to pull out of the cellar – there is something very satisfyingly familiar with the mix of red fruit with nuances of earth and meat, maybe a bit of spice here and there, and the sense of a real structure and firmness behind the wines of the commune. And, of course, with Chambertin and its sister, Clos de Beze, Gevrey has two of the crown jewels of Burgundy. As tonight showed, when these are on song, they can be amongst the very best wines in the world.
Flight 1 - WHITES TO START (2 notes)
White
2001 Domaine Ramonet Bâtard-Montrachet
95 points
Superb. I actually did not take to it when first poured – I thought the more ready 2001 Leflaive Batard we had alongside was far better. Over the night though, this just grew and grew as it sat in the decanter, and I found myself being bowled over each time I took a break from the reds to return to it. By the end of the evening, this was absolutely superb – one of my wines of the night in the midst of what was supposed to be a red wine dinner. Even from first pour, it had a big, gorgeous Batard bouquet, with rich, slightly honeyed tones of yellow fruit and cream alongside chalky mineral and a touch of talcum powder. An alluring nose. The palate suffused the mouth with a warm, rich glow of honey and butterscotch and yellow-fruited flavours, all wrapped in a creamily textured depth. I found it a bit too big and a little unwieldy for my taste at first, but it seemed to come together quite miraculously with time. By the end of the night, this was a display of effortless power and balance, with fresh acidity giving the wine an energy and buoyancy that belied its strength and depth. Notes of white chocolate and little sprinkles of cumin and ginger then emerged past the midpalate, adding nuance and complexity. Fantastic. There was a little heat right at the end at first, but this too faded with time to reveal a long, long finish full of mineral and little nutty notes. Brilliant stuff, starting to show well now. This has a long life ahead of it though – I would leave it aside for a few more years yet, but if serving now, do remember to give it some time in the decanter.
White
2001 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet
94 points
It has been some 5 years since I last had this. It is still a gorgeous wine, but does not seemed to have improved all that much from the last bottle in April 2010. It had a lovely nose, typical Leflavie, with whiffs of gunflint and chalk and earth swirling around a core of yellow-fruited aromas, and then a little sprinkle of herb alongside. Lovely, complex stuff. As with the last bottle, it was the marriage between the rich, creamy depth of a Batard with the lovely freshness of the wine that really made it stand out on the palate. Here, mouthfilling layers of apple and pear and sweeter stone-fruit were pierced by a lovely acid spine that lent the wine a sense of prickly freshness and energy, with fresh lemony flavours driving through the fleshier tones and into a long finish laden with chalky, stony, ever so slightly bittersweet mineral notes that trailed away into the distance with a tiny little kiss of spice right at the very end. This was very good indeed – I just loved the clarity and focus that it had. I think this is about at peak – while the initially grumpy 2001 Ramonet Batard that was served with it grew and grew in the decanter through the night until it quite overshadowed most of the other wines, this started out on a strong plateau and pretty much continued in same vein throughout the evening.
Flight 2 - FLIGHT 1 - ROUSSEAU PART 1 (2 notes)
Red
2001 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques
94 points
The first of the reds, this was quite a start. It had a beautiful nose, with dark cherries riding on a backdrop of earth, spice and wet stone. With time, some savoury notes of meat stock and umami started drifting out alongside the fruitier notes. A rich, heady nose; on the darker side of Gevrey, but very lovely. I really liked the wine on the palate as well. It showed lovely clarity and freshness, with its rich dark cherry notes ringing with energy, but also touched with a classic Clos St Jacques coolness and undergirded by a nice, stony minerality. Past the midpalate, the wine seemed to ease into a long, gentle finish, but this quickly gave was a to a nice strong grip of fine tannins. I really liked this wine. It was very complete, at once having tons of strength and yet also to a clarity of fruit that I have enjoyed in the best 2001s. This was much, much better than when I had it back in 2008. However, while drinking quite nicely, the structure and balance of the wine wed to a hint of CSJ austerity that is still there now makes me think that it really needs another 6-8 years more before showing at peak. Very good though – this could easily pass-off as a top Grand Cru anytime.
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Red
2001 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Ruchottes-Chambertin Clos des Ruchottes
94 points
Very enjoyable. This played the pretty teenage girl to the Clos St Jacques’ rather adult, more masculine reserve and strength. It had such an attractive nose, pure Gevrey, with a little touch of wet earth and then lots of pretty notes of red-fruit flecked by a nice dash of spice and just a little twist of herb. Rather lighter scents than on the rich nose of the CSJ, but this was really quite gorgeous. The palate had a lovely deliciousness to it. It was soft and silky, with wonderfully pure flavours of red fruit and spice and a tiny touch of earth wrapped together with fresh acidity and the very finest tannins in a wonderfully integrated package. While showing a nice sappiness on the attack, the wine did lighten up quite a bit past the midpalate, where I thought it lacked a bit of Grand Cru punch. However, it certainly made up for that with its lovely openness and clarity, which made it such a fun and delicious wine to drink. I have had this three times now. The first bottle in 2008 was tight and grumpy, the second in 2012 really lovely – I am glad to say that this bottle shared more in common with the later than the former. For all its forwardness here, there was just a little chew of tannins at the back-palate, which suggested that the wine can go on for sometime yet. I would not delay if you have a few bottles of this though – it is showing well and drinking ridiculously yummily.
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Flight 3 - FLIGHT 2 - THE NEGOCIANTS (2 notes)
Red
2001 Faiveley Chambertin-Clos de Bèze
93 points
This was another wine that I have had numerous times over the past few years. The last bottle (popped barely a few weeks ago) showed wonderfully with a bit of time in the decanter. However, just when I thought this was about ready for showtime, along comes this bottle, which was quite tight and still not giving much. The nose actually showed good promise, with rich notes of red berries, and then earth and spice and a hint of boiled herbs filling the bouquet with a complex, whole-cluster character. Quite lovely. After that though, the palate seemed a little raw and austere, with fine but grippy tannins and bright acidity taking the fore. The lovely lush fruit that I remembered from the last bottle was still there, as was the admirable clarity and a good amount of Grand Cru strength in its dark cherry and red berry flavours, but this all seemed slightly buried under the structure of the wine this time round. Towards the finish, a more austere edge showed up, with earthy tones wed to a twist of brambly herb. On this showing, the wine needs lots of time yet; 5-10 years easily. It is definitely a wine of quality, but this was not showing on the night.
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Red
2001 Louis Jadot Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Domaine Louis Jadot
93 points
Very good, but while this was the more ready of the Clos de Beze pair, it still needs some time in the bottle yet. Like the Faiveley bottling, this had a lovely nose - rich, deep and earthy, showing heady, almost liquered tones of dark cherries and berries, heady, with little hints of gentle spice on a bed of sous bois. The palate was rather less expressive. It showed a sweet attack of cherries and red berries, before clamming up slightly over the midpalate, revealing instead a bedrock of minerality and some fine, slightly powdery tannins that stretched into long, fine finish seasoned with a little touch of spice. It was not quite lean; austere may be a better word I think, with lots of sinewy muscle that shaped the wine into an elegant, graceful, yet masculine interpretation of the Clos de Beze terroir. This needs plenty of time yet. I would give it no less than 4 or 5 years more in the bottle – it should make a very nice wine then.
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Flight 4 - FLIGHT 3 - ROTY (2 notes)
Red
2001 Domaine Joseph Roty Charmes-Chambertin Très Vieilles Vignes
95 points
A gorgeous wine – along with the 2001 Claude Dugat in the next flight, this could well have been one of the two best bottles of Charmes-Chambertin I have ever had. It had such an intense nose, with a deep beam of dark cherries infused with subtle shades of earth and meat, the herb and wood spice - sandalwood and boiled angelica root I thought – all very rich, complex and masculine. It did need a bit of time to get going on the palate though, only starting to fire on all cylinders after some 30 minutes in the glass. When it did, it came across strong and sinewy, but very fine indeed, with rich, deep, juicy flavours of berries and strawberries wed to a lovely clarity. The vines for the Charmes chez Roty are original post-phylloxera grafts, now over 100 years old, hence the moniker “Tres Vielles Vignes”, and this really showed in the intense, slightly perfumed character of the fruit. This was a wonderfully complete wine. It had all your typical Roty extract, strength and power, quite unlike your run-of-the-mill Charmes-Chambertin actually, but this was so nicely wed to the transparency and focus of the vintage. Lovely backpalate too, with a lift of sweet cherries and little bit of spice carrying the wine into a long finish. This showed nicely with some time and air, but it certainly has the stuffing to continue improving over the next decade or so. Great, great stuff.
Red
2001 Domaine Joseph Roty Mazy-Chambertin
93 points
A very good wine in its own right, even if this was rather overshadowed by the superb bottle of Roty Charmes-Chambertin that preceded it. The nose here, while not exactly subtle, did not quite have the in-your-face intensity of the Charmes. It was quite lovely though, with deep wafts of red fruit and dried flowers wed to shades of meat, spice and boiled Chinese herbs. The palate seemed rather more forward than that on the Charmes, almost reaching peak I thought, with fulsome flavours of red cherries and darker berries along with a little bite of orange peel, all showing a nice clarity and poise. The finish was long, full and lovely, with more of those red cherry notes alongside fine tannins and well-integrated acidity that lent the wine a nice sense of structure. Still lacking a touch of complexity perhaps, but I found this quite compelling – a very nice wine.
Flight 5 - FLIGHT 4 - CLAUDE DUGAT (2 notes)
Red
2001 Claude Dugat Charmes-Chambertin
94 points
Lovely stuff. I was bowled over by the 2001 Roty Charmes-Chambertin Tres Vielles Vignes on the previous flight, but this was not too far behind in quality. There was a rich, powerful nose here, with dark cherries shading into almost blue-fruited territory, a bit of orange peel and a dash of five spice. Like the Roty, it was stronger on the palate than one would expect from a regular Charmes-Chambertin. There were gobs of gummy fruit - dark cherries and blueberries – gently suffused with a whole lot of spice. There was a nice sense of depth to the wine, yet it was also very fine indeed, with lovely fine-boned tannins and superbly integrated acidity giving a little grip on the midpalate and beyond. The finish was full and fine, and very good indeed, gently filling the back palate with a long spicy tail. This was very classy juice, generous yet with no lack of finesse and giving a lot of pleasure on the night. No harm at all drinking now, but it should round up even more given a couple more years in the bottle.
Red
2001 Claude Dugat Griotte-Chambertin
93 points
Very good, but this lagged a little behind the Dugat Charmes-Chambertin on the same flight. There was a lovely nose here though, more floral than the Charmes, with violets and sweet spice along with blueberries and a little undercurrent of dried earth. Beautiful stuff. The palate was clean, clear and juicy, with more blue fruits and some orange peel notes lightly gripped by fine tannins. I thought this lacked some of the complete depth that the Charmes had, coming across slightly leaner. There was much to like here though, not least the clear, open forwardness and nicely integrated feel that carried the wine all the way into a neat finish. All in all, a very good wine without quite being as impressive as some of the giants on the night.
Flight 6 - FLIGHT 5 - ROUSSEAU PART 2 (2 notes)
Red
2001 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin
95 points
Wow. As good as the wines in the previous flights were, there was an immediate step-up in class once we reached the Rousseau Chambertin and Beze pair. What a wonderful nose this had, with dried earth and spice, deep draws of red cherries and flowers, and then a hint of fresh herb and a bit of menthol. An entrancing bouquet, but it was really on the palate where the wine took-off. This was just wonderful, sinewy and graceful at the same time as a great Chambertin should be, it married juicy acidity and a strong structure of fine tannins strong to beautifully pure flavours of red cherries and berries, orange peel and a little bit of earth, all perfectly packed into a beautifully integrated whole. The finish was long and graceful, filling the mouth in a seemingly neverending flow of Gevrey goodness. This was a tremendous wine – deep and powerful, yet effortlessly elegant, showing a wonderful clarity throughout. It is almost there I think, just needing that little bit of time to gain some complexity and to push it into greatness. I would love to drink this again in say 3-4 years. 95+
Red
2001 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin-Clos de Bèze
96 points
We were transported to Burg heaven with this last bottle. We had already gone through a fantastic line-up by this point int the evening, so it is really saying something that this was unanimously voted the wine of the night. The Rousseau Chambertin that came may have been amazing, but there was just something a little extra about the Clos de Beze. It had a prettier nose than Chambertin, more feminine, with pure aromas of red cherries and dried flowers and a gentle flush of spice, all traced with a little whiff of toasty oak. Absolutely gorgeous stuff. In the mouth, it was soft and seductive, with velvety tannins and absolutely melting acidity draped over a delicious core of sweet cherries and berries. Perfectly integrated and complete and impeccably balanced, I could have sipped this all night. However, it was the ethereal clarity of the wine that really got to me – this was purity personified, almost crystalline in its clarity and breathaking transparency. Great finish too – long and absolutely effortless, full of seductive feminine wiles, with perfumed notes of flowers and spice and a tiny little touch of earthiness pulling away with just a little grip right at the end. Wow, wow and wow! This was everything you would want a Clos Beze to be. A lithe beauty, lighter than the Chambertin, but clearer, cleaner and purer; a wonderful, wonderful wine. Great now, it may be even better in a couple of years time.
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