1/11/2018 - nskelsey wrote:

I’ve been buying Clos des Epeneaux every year since 2001 and I have to say this is the weirdest one to date and don’t quite know where to begin (it was a barrel sample so it is possible the finished article may be slightly different). Throughout the tasting I kept going back to it and, to be frank, got more baffled with every glug. 2016 was the vintage from hell for many throughout the Cote d’Or (frost, hail, mildew, frogs and locusts - not the last two!) and anyone farming biodynamically was really up against it and for the fourth year running Clos des Epeneaux lost around 80% of its crop, although to be honest its testament to Paul Zinetti’s skills they actually made anything at all. On the nose it’s wonderfully fragrant and then onto the palate where the dark red fruits are oh so smooth and supple and it all slips down so easily. But wait; where is the crunch? Where are the minerally, earthy layers? Where the hell is the tannin! You could be fooled into thinking Comte Armand had developed a new line of Pommard Nouveau. 75% of what should be there is there, but the other 25% has gone missing; it’s like your car has just lost a cylinder and you haven’t really noticed until you try and accelerate and not a lot happens. It’s one thing to say that complexity will come with bottle age, but you need the underlying raw material for that to happen and I simply don’t think this wine has got that. There is a standing joke in our family when it comes around to en primeur time that questions whether I will actually still be around to drink what I’m buying (it’s a serious point), but my son’s immediate comment on first tasting this was, “Well, you won’t be dead by the time this is ready”! Clos des Epeneaux traditionally needs a good 10-15 years before it hits it’s drinking window (the 2002 still isn’t ready), but the 2016 I could literally have taken home, drunk it and enjoyed it. Dare I say it, but I reckon this will be ready within 6 years, maybe even earlier. As always I’ve bought a case, but if I’m honest I feel it’s the most insubstantial Clos since the 2003, which also was rather one-dimensional; by no means bad wines, just not hitting the heights they usually do. The various importers of this wine certainly sing it’s praises so maybe I’m wrong (mind you they want to sell it); the good thing is I’m not going to have to wait too long before I see whether I’m right or not! Estimated maturity: 2022+

4/2/2022 - Rote Kappelle Likes this wine:

I opened this bottle to celebrate it being one month before the 156th anniversary of the first trout arriving in Australia (possibly on a bridging visa). Or, perhaps I was really searching for a justification?

The wine was opened at the dinner table with no decant, based on its age and other reviews on CT and elsewhere. I have scored it on the CT scale as 'Outstanding'. Personally, I thought it was also damned near better than buggery but you can choose.

The cork provided the usual excitement and tension. Would the wine be affected by TCA? Ullage was to just above the shoulder, so the seal had held but soaked up some wine.

I stood a while in uffish thought before attacking the cork with my vorpal Ah So. The Ah So duly extracted about 1/3 of the spongy cork, which then seemed to catch and break. Undaunted and channeling the spirit of an orthopaedic surgeon crossed with an engineer I applied corkscrew to fix in place and the Ah So to continue the extraction. Calloo, callay, oh frabjous day, I chortled in my joy, as I perceived the last of the demonic cork was vanquished. Wrong! About 2mm of the swinish thing had again broken off and this time there was no extracting it. 'Plop' it went as it fell happily back into the bottle. Cork is so romantic and one loves the tradition.

The pleasing thing through this wryly amusing excursion was that the most amazing scents of concentrated, pure fruit came wafting up. This promised much.

As poured, the wine showed the most extraordinary cherry colour. Once in the glass and tilted the wine showed more brick hues, but for a 40 year old wine it was ridiculously youthful looking.

The relatively light colour belied the power of the nose. Almost pristine cherry fruit showed with some mushroom and earth and a hint of cedar.

In the mouth, the wine had great intensity and an incredibly long finish. There was a fig element to go with the other characters on the nose. The wine has been described as voluptuous and I can see that, but it moved so lightly on its feet that the word may detract from the splendid architecture of this wine. More and more, I feel it is structure more than the flavours, or even length and intensity that separate truly great wines from the rest that are 'merely' wonderful. This wine has the structure that elevates it to being a master piece.

Unsurprisingly, I will nominate this as one of the great wines I have been lucky enough to drink. It drew an emotional as well as intellectual response and that is what it is all about.

1/16/2019 - nskelsey wrote:

Oh dear, what has gone wrong here. The great Thierry Brouin retired last year after almost 40 years at the helm to be replaced by Boris Champy of Louis Latour and if this particular bottle sample is typical then a serious inquest needs to take place. In colour it's medium light in colour, we're talking strawberry juice tones here (not a bad thing) and on the nose there are pleasant spicy red fruit notes, but then it all goes seriously downhill. On the palate it's medium-light and dilute while the finish is, well, there isn't one! Not sure if it was me I handed a sample blind to a respected vigneron who confirmed my impressions, stating he thought is was "feeble" and was shocked to learn the origin. We're talking £250 a bottle here and it was the worst wine out of 72 red Burgs on offer. The doubt that is in my mind is that the cask sample notes from some top professional tasters view this wine completely differently, but I can only state it as I see it. If you're thinking of buying this I would urge you to taste first because on this showing there were basic Bourgogne Rouge wines at 1/10th the price that were more satisfying. Estimated maturity: Irrelevant on this showing and I gave it 89 because I lost my nerve looking at the name on the label

7/4/2018 - Burgundy Al wrote:

Comte Armand Cellar Visit and Tasting (Day 11, Visit 2) (Pommard): Barrel tasting at the domaine. We tasted each of the four blocks separately, then an assemblage of the four together.

Assemblage: Black cherry with faint red cherry hints. Complete and already well composed. Long finish in on the firm for now, to be expected of course from Clos des Epeneaux, but I expect this will drink well on the young side for this wine, probably as early as 2025. 92-93 point potential.

Block 2 (~35 yo vines with little topsoil, lots of limestone): Big, rich and lots of black berries and some boysenberry jam. Very tannic, medium weight, slightly awkward on its own.

Block 1 (55-60 yo vines, more soil, more clay): So much depth and weight with layers and layers, but a bit of a tannic beast. This texturally coats the whole mouth and demands your attention.

Block 3 (85 yo vines, varied soil depths): Easily the most complete of the four blacks and the most interesting. Dense and powerful with roasted meat. Good array of dark fruits on finish, almost good already. Still a very firm finish.

Block 4 (88-98 yo vines, varied soil depths): Lighter and more minerally than any of the others with a sneaky density I like a lot. Incredibly elegant with an enticing floral/ spice charm.

4/8/2011 - cooberp wrote:

Light ruby. Quite ripe, indicative of the vintage. Great, perfumed nose of rich, sweet strawberry and raspberry and a lot of cinnamon. Sweet, warm. Not particularly long, with most of the flavor coming on the attack. Another taster said marzipan which I picked up. Could use some more acidity. No heat, not much tannin. Savory/creamy texture comes out with air.

5/5/2012 - nskelsey wrote:

This is a beauty. Utterly gorgeous nose with notes of peach, passion fruit and a hint of lime. The palate is honeyed, but in no way cloying or heavy. The flavours are vibrant and juicy with a delicate spiciness at its core. This is Gewurztraminer at its elegant best. Despite its youth this is drinking really well now and should age beautifully. Sheer class. Estimated maturity: 2012-2020+