Mugnier Musigny and Amoureuses 1985-2001

Chicago-based Lieu-dit Cru (my Burg group) visited with the wines of Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier over a great seven course dinner at Boka. Most of our group had the unique opportunity to physically visit with M. Mugnier at the Domaine in the spring, so this dinner was particularly special for us.

Served as we arrived and with the Amuse Bouche.

• 1990 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon 95 Points

  France, Champagne

  Sensational rich aromatics with great intensity. Very sharp and precise with great citrus throughout. Lots of power and finesse at same time. Better than when I tried last, probably a year r ago.

  Read 1 Comment / Post a Comment / 2 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No

One person typically brings two bottles of white Burgundy with a close link between the two. They are served blind and we try to identify the wines, where they are from, the vintages, etc. In short, we embarrass ourselves.

• 2000 Domaine Jacques Prieur Montrachet 95 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Blind tasting. Floral nose with some great stone fruit, hints of tropical fruit, and spicy traces of oak.Fruit follows through seamlessly on the palate with incredible power and concentration. still a bit of oak to integrate. I thought it a top Grand Cru but also guessed it was younger. Lots of energy, lots of life ahead for this wine. Better than a bottle from a few years ago bodes well for the wine.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2000 Marc Colin et Fils Montrachet 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Blind tasting.Floral nose, not as fragrant as the Prieur 2000 Montrachet in the next glass. Subtle and elegant fruit that starts with fruit that's starting to evolve and ends with good energy. Really a Montrachet that emphasizes finesse and elegance over power at this point in time. Probably better a couple of years ago. I guessed this was 2001 and from the same Grand Cru vineyard as the Prieur in the next glass (both served blind). But I didn't think they were Montrachet. Oops. I was close.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

We were told the three wines in front of us but not which was which. I think everybody got this flight 100% right! This was served with my favorite course - Seared Japanese Hamachi with a sweet corn puree, braised kohlrabi, wild mushroom, popcorn reduction.

• 1985 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  Single blind flight of Mugnier Fuees. OK, this isn't exactly Fuees, but it is darn close. 1985 was Freddy's first "official" vintage releasing Domaine wine and instead of bottling a standalone Fuees, he blended his Fuees with his wine produced from holdings in "les Plantes," which is just northeast of "les Charmes." Hence this is Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru. I believe this is the only vintage he made this wine, subsequently blending the small production from Plantes into his Villages level Chambolle-Musigny, which partly explains why Mugnier produces the best Villages Chambolle. Oh yes...this wine showed a good combination of sous bois and strawberry aromatics and flavors. Really delicate and elegant, this is classic and signature Chambolle-Musigny. Very pretty wine.

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No

• 1999 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Fuées 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  Single blind Mugnier Fuees flight. Good spice on the nose with lean red fruit. I think this is at an awkward point and i hoped a few hours in the decanter would coax it open but that didn't seem to work tonight. Lean fruit from start to finish. Bit angular in the middle with lots of prominent acid and tannin. Good spice reemerged on the finish. Give this another 5+ years.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2005 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Fuées 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  Single blind Mugnier Fuees flight. Decanted for a couple of hours. Great spice and power on the nose. Red and black fruit on the palate, starting slowly and building to great density and concentration. Really impressive wine, even if not necessarily showing as classic Chambolle today, but that's mostly that this wine needs another decade to really show its greatness.

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No

Again, we were told the four wines in front of us but not which was which. This was more challenging especially since the 1999 and 2002 were shut down to different degrees. All were decanted between 1 and 2.5 hours.

• 2002 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Amoureuses

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  Single blind Mugnier Amoureuses flight. Somewhat shut down and inaccessible tonight. Delicate spice on the nose with lean red fruit. Same pale strawberry and red cherry on the palate, a bit lost behind tannins and acidity right now. I hoped a few hours in the decanater would help, and it brought out more aromatics than when first opened, but not what I hoped. Really clean and elegant finish. I'm quite confident this wine will be a 92-94 point wine, but I could never prove that based on where it showed tonight. Not nearly as exciting as a bottle two years ago at the World of Pinot Noir that came directly from the Domaine.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2006 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Amoureuses 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  Single blind Mugnier Amoureuses flight. Very charming nose of red fruit and spice. Palate continues with red fruit but picks up density through the finish, showing some riper black cherry as well. Very elegant and seamless wine, quite impressive so young. The spice and charm are prototypical Amoureuses.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 1999 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Amoureuses 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  Single blind Mugnier Amoureuses flight. Decanting helped but still a larger styled Mugnier Amoureuses. Ripe fruit with great spice, the fruit was a bit subdued on the palate, but was able to be coaxed out with vigorous swirling and time. Great acidity and minerality, this really started to show well as the evening wore on, with great balance and texture. Hold to probably 2020, this has real upside potential to be much better than my "92" assessment tonight.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2001 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Amoureuses 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  Single blind Mugnier Amoureuses flight. This wine was easy to identify in the flight because it shows the vintage perfectly. Nose is more floral and spice driven than fruit. Palate is also very spicy with delicate, classically "lacy" Chambolle fruit - red cherry, black cherry - from start to finish. Very fine and charming. Wonderful today with some air, this too will keep improving for years to come.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Again, we were told the four wines in front of us but not which was which. An amazing treat. We really couldn't go much older since 1985 was the first vintage. I tried to find an old Faiveley Musigny to include since that would have been all/mostly what is now Mugnier(1978 or earlier I believe) but couldn't find a good vintage, good price, good condition bottle on short notice. And unfortunately nobody in our group had a Mugnier 1993 in our respective cellars.

• 1990 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Single blind flight of Mugnier Musigny 1985-1997. Dense fruit on the nose without a whole lot more. Fairly ripe but still quite in balance. Some spice, but I would have liked to see more. Fruit is very concentrated but when I think "Musigny" I expect more elegance accompanying that power. I don't get the chance to try many bottles of top producers' 1990 Musigny, but to me the shortcoming for Mugnier in this vintage is somewhat similar to that seen in Vogue's 1990 Musigny, only not as extreme.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 1985 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Single blind flight of Mugnier Musigny 1985-1997. Easy to identify the 1985, but that's a good thing because it is at a great place and simply charming and wonderful. Granted the aromas and flavors are mostly secondary and tertiary. but there is plenty of spice in the middle and finish. Interestingly, the finish best demonstrates its Musigny character in that it suddenly shows power at the very end. Freddy's first vintage...he chose a good vintage! For me this was the 2nd best wine tonight after the 1998 Musigny, but it was the group's #1 WOTN.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 1989 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Single blind flight of Mugnier Musigny 1985-1997. Good nose shows mature ripe fruit and spice with a good amount of sous bois. Same elements on the palate. Moderate length and finish seems to pick up concentration but also shows traces of heat. I'd suggest drinking these in the next few years.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 1997 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Single blind flight of Mugnier Musigny 1985-1997. Also very easy to identify in this flight given it is the youngest by 7 years...and it is 1997. Big black fruit dominates the nose along with some spice with real black pepper notes. Same spice mix on the palate with red and black cherry flavors. Comes across as a little flabby for a Mugnier, but isn't that so 1997? Good finish with fruit, that same surprising pepper-led spice mix and a few hints of sous bois.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Again, we were told the four wines in front of us but not which was which. Another amazing treat.

• 1999 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Single blind flight of Mugnier Musigny 1998-2001. Easy to identify the vintage for this wine simply by its massive structure. Black fruit aromatics with good spice and great energy. However, fairly obtrusive tannins slightly threw off the wine's balance for me. I have no question this will be a wonderful wine, but it will require lots of time.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2001 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Single blind tasting of Mugnier Musigny 1998-2001. Really sensational wine that exudes charm and class. It has lovely red fruit, silky texture, incredibly integrated structure. Fruit came across somewhat more powerful than when I last tasted. I think this wine will keep improving for a decade+. I wish I had some in my cellar.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 1998 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Single blind flight of Mugnier Musigny 1998-2001. Sensational wine, drinking amazingly well after a couple of hours in a decanter. Dark color. Nose of wild strawberry, red roses and lots of spice. Fruit carried over to the palate then starting picking up density in the middle and finish. Really elegant and finesseful, this finishes with great power and concentration. For me, this was tonight's "wow" wine. Long life ahead of it.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

• 2000 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Single blind flight of Mugnier Musigny 1998-2001. Very charming and accessible fruit, showing raspberry and strawberry on nose and palate. Sleek, moderate spices, tannins and acidity. Everything about this wine is balanced and charming, but nothing really stands out as exceptional. This wine is at an excellent place today like many 2000s and I think it will stay at this level for years to come, but don't see it getting better.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Another great night. Where do we go from here?