La Paulée de Los Angeles Gala Dinner

Below are the tasting notes I had time to write, and then subsequently decipher.

• 2016 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
  Small glass. A great 2016, certainly rich, yet easily well balanced. Very Chablis-styled with great power and density. (93 pts.)
• 2019 Domaine Génot-Boulanger Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
  Small glass. Very rich and precocious, this has so much substance but needs more cellar time to shed some more baby fat and reach greater harmony. Very good potential.
• 2019 Domaine Francois et Antoine Jobard Meursault 1er Cru Blagny - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru
  Small glass. Mouth-coating textures are fun, this is big and nearly fat, but certainly fun. (90 pts.)
• 2008 Domaine Roulot Meursault Les Tessons Clos de Mon Plaisir - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault
  Small glass. Magnum. Rich and unctuous textures with equally rich and ripe aromas and flavors. Still nicely fresh, this is the best I can ever recall for this wine. (92 pts.)
• 2021 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
  Small glass. Orchard and citrus fruit with very good weight, better in another few years. Identical to bottle tasted earlier today. (91 pts.)
• 2021 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
  Small glass. Also identical to the bottle tasted earlier today, this is rich and already very engaging with lots of density and weight. (93 pts.)
• 2014 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault Clos de la Barre - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault
  Small glass. Magnum from the domaine. Charming now with wonderful balance, good enough weight and density. Drinking so well right now. (91 pts.)
• 2008 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru
  Small glass. Great place now with mostly mature orchard and stone fruit, lots of wintergreen, autumn flowers, and earth in great combination. No further upside. (92 pts.)
• 2018 Domaine Clos de la Chapelle Corton-Charlemagne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
  Small glass. Magnum from the domaine. Rich and powerful, this goes on and on into a glorious, while firm, finish. (93 pts.)
• 1994 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault
  Small glass. Fully+ mature but still tasty enough with very good weight.
• 1999 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Charmes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru
  Small glass. No surprise, past its peak. Knowing Roulot wines, I wouldn't even consider this flawed, but rather I'd consider that expected.
• 1996 Marquis de Laguiche (Joseph Drouhin) Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru
  Small glass. I have tasting bottles of this wine ranging from DOA to great, and tonight's might have been the best ever. Powerful and pristine, this had a wonderfully admirable lingering finish. (95 pts.)
• 2002 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru
  Small glass. I haven't tasted this wine in a decade, so was pleasantly surprised by its rich and powerful freshness. So well balanced with an expanding finish. So good now. (93 pts.)
• 2018 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet La Cabotte - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru
  Small glass. Powerhouse that it tasty now, but will reward more cellar time. (94 pts.)
• 2007 Domaine Ramonet Bâtard-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
  Small glass. Wonderfully rich with lots of structure just off-center in the very near background. A rockstar wine tonight. (95 pts.)
• 1990 Louis Jadot Corton-Charlemagne Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
  Small glass. Magnum from the domaine. Rich and fat but with so much energy and freshness. Very good length. Wonderful. (93 pts.)
• 1991 Domaine René Engel Grands-Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
  Small glass. Layered and complex with plenty of tasty red berries still front-and-center even while fully mature. Near brilliant. A rare treat. (95 pts.)
• 1990 Domaine Ponsot Clos St. Denis Vieilles Vignes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos St. Denis Grand Cru
  Small glass. Ultra ripe with so much concentration with wonderful balance. Great start, this seemed to get more and more dense through the glass. (95 pts.)
• 1966 Domaine Jaboulet-Vercherre Bonnes Mares - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru
  Small glass. Stunning nose of fully mature red and black cherry. Some decay adds enticing further complexity. Great wine, certainly mostly Pinot Noir. (95 pts.)
• 2017 Domaine Fourrier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Sentiers Vieille Vigne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru
  Small glass. From the domaine. Charming fruit, slightly candied, great textures. (90 pts.)
• 2021 Domaine Y. Clerget Volnay 1er Cru Clos du Verseuil - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
  Small glass. Lighter style, this is tasty but seemingly too young.
• 1999 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru
  Small glass. Rich and subtle at the same time, with so many layers coming through over the several sips I was able to enjoy from my healthy pour. Still wonderfully young and robust. As good as I can ever recall for this wine. (95 pts.)
• 2020 Domaine Génot-Boulanger Corton-Charlemagne - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
  Small glass. Ripe stone fruit with some baked apple, but also coiled energy that needs time to really rev its engines. very good, 92-93 point potential.
• 1973 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon - France, Champagne
  Small glass. And now for something completely different. Still fresh enough, amazingly big and complex combination of fruit, spice, toasted brioche, and so much more. (93 pts.)
• 2012 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru
  Small glass. From the domaine, Still good+ weight and density, just losing steam, and not nearly as interesting as previous bottles I have tasted. Still good, 90 points tonight.
• 1986 Pol Roger Champagne Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill - France, Champagne
  Small glass. Magnum. Lots of power, aging gracefully with some near-Madeira notes that add another note of intrigue. (93 pts.)
• 2003 Nicolas Rossignol Volnay 1er Cru Les Fremiets - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
  Small glass. From domaine. Wonderfully fresh for the age and vintage, showing exactly what you want from mid-aged Volnay.
• 2007 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon - USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville
  Small glass. Yes, somebody poured this at La Paulée, and yes, it was very, very tasty. (94 pts.)
• 2000 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin Grand Cru
  Small glass. Amazing degree of balance and substantial weight, there is so much here, with no rush to drink this up soon. (95 pts.)
• 2014 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru
  Small glass. Equal black and red fruits, drinking well now, showcasing engaging baking spice. (93 pts.)
• 2015 Jean-Claude Ramonet Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru
  Small glass. Brilliant in every respect, with so much here to enjoy. A head turner. (97 pts.)
• 2017 Jean-Claude Ramonet Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru
  Small glass. So tired, so disappointing. Shocking. (FLAWED)
• 2009 Domaine d'Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Meursault Les Narvaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault
  Small glass. Charming mature fruit with very good weight for Village wine, but perhaps not for the wine's market price. (91 pts.)
• 1983 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
  Small glass, tasted blind. Ripe, dense, and powerful, I thought 1989 that has aged into great elegance, but 1983 makes this even more impressive. (95 pts.)
• 2015 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Richebourg - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru
  Small glass. I am not surprised this is backward, but what comes through is gorgeous and glorious, even if it just seemed to be teasing us with that beauty. (96 pts.)
• 2014 Joseph Drouhin Musigny - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru
  Small glass. Sensational already today, this is another special vintage for this great wine. (96 pts.)
• 1999 Bouchard Père et Fils Beaune 1er Cru Grèves Vigne de L'Enfant Jesus - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru
  Small glass. Nicely mature, very charming. Drink up. (90 pts.)
• 2019 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Saint Georges - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru
  Small glass. From domaine. Huge, also gorgeous, this is an absolute powerhouse, just at least a decade away from showing its real potential, 93-94 points.
• 1996 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Bonnes Mares - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru
  Small glass. So much here, but barely accessible and so backward. Not the right time/place?
• 1990 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru
  Small glass. It is always a good time in the late evening when this (once again brilliant) wine makes it way towards you.
• 1988 Louis Jadot Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Domaine Louis Jadot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru
  Served at La Paulée alongside the 1985 Bonnes Mares. Both brilliant, this Beze was more powerful and meaty and nicely fresh. Kept going on and on. (94 pts.)
• 1985 Louis Jadot Bonnes Mares - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru
  Rich served this at La Paulée alongside my bottle of 1988 Beze, both beautiful. Red and black fruits here with engaging textures, this is a charming old Burgundy at its absolute zenith. (94 pts.)
• 1998 Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Romanée St. Vivant - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru
  Corked (FLAWED)
• 2010 Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Romanée St. Vivant - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru
  Served in 10/11/12 vertical. This was the star, at its peak today with so much fresh and mature red fruits, complex and layered with savory spice. More mature than I'd consider ideal for wine so young, but so harmonious and balanced. (95 pts.)
• 2011 Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Romanée St. Vivant - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru
  In 10/11/12 vertical, this was from a magnum that Charles brought directly from the domaine. The brightest of the trio, this is drinking well now but also the lightest in weight and volume, while very nicely balanced. (92 pts.)
• 2012 Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Romanée St. Vivant - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru
  In 10/11/12 vertical, this is the one that has the most upside. Big, dense, and chewy, this has lots of red and black cherry with savory spice. Very long finish. very good now, with upside from here. (94 pts.)