Ten great mature Burgundies, from a couple '96 Leroy GCs to a '61 Musigny

The last time my friend Karl (KKR75 on CT) was in the US I told him we'd do a kick ass Burgundy tasting the next time he came into town, so we attempted this evening. Karl imports the likes of DRC, Méo-Camuzet, Rousseau, and Henri Boillot to Lebanon. The guidelines were fairly open, simply stating 1996 and previous Grand Cru, and top producer/Premier Cru sites. Once Karl mentioned he'd provide the '96 Leroy Latricières-Chambertin, the bar was set pretty high but it allowed everyone to have a top baseline at least to guide what to bring. What showed up was very nice selection, all but one being fully intact and showing quite beautifully. We had 9 folks, tasting 11 wines, which was just about the perfect sized group for these wines as our pours remained of reasonable size.



The wines were all opened once everyone arrived, and we consumed them in order from youngest to oldest. I'd say that most of the corks showed some slight seepage at the top, though otherwise were fully intact. A couple corks were flawless, and two crumbled in a couple piece on extraction. Once everyone arrived, we started with a champagne, and I put out an assortment of treats: black truffle sausage, mild copa, smoked duck, smoked escolar, phesant and fig pate, Tom brought pork pate, and there were an assortment of cheeses and crackers.

• NV Vouette et Sorbée Champagne Fidèle 92 Points

  France, Champagne

  Enjoyed this better than the last time I had it. Aromas are elegant, flowery, with an odd yet very interesting eggy component.Very creamy and fresh on the palate, nice bright fruit, and quite high acidity. Very nice and fresh on the palate. Acid is lingering deep into finish, very bright. Very tart and grippy. Pretty intense acid that’s very nice. I've held this particular NV bottle for 2 years, and I could see holding these for up to 5 to ease some of that grip.

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• 1998 Faiveley Echezeaux 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru

  Chalky, chewy aromas. Chocolate, with some slight menthol. Very pretty and bright overall, if a bit immature. Quite grippy tannins are present even initially on the palate as it enters the mouth, though things are soft. As it’s splashed around, the tannins really take over the palate. Very grippy. Some slight briar. Small sips always do better, as things remain quite pretty and nearly delicious. Moderately soft, and light bodied. Acid hits the tongue hard, and carries into the finish. Very nice. Tannins are really tight on the finish as well, with very primary fruit. Very very grippy and dry on the end, with menthol spice.While this was definitely drinking like a baby, it was still revealing quite a bit of pleasing fruit flavors as well and could be enjoyed today even if it is some years off from peak.

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• 1996 Maison Leroy Charmes-Chambertin 95 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru

  The aromas were very tight at first, with some reductive notes, but this opened up and got quite fresh. Some asperagus stems and slightly herbal. After two hours I swear I briefly smelled hamburger. Overall though, the aromas were elegant and soft, with all I can describe as an impressive presence in the glass. Very exuberant fruit on the palate! Impressive, really amazing and lushously fresh. Grippy tannins begin after 10 seconds in the mouth and it couldn't be held on the tongue for much longer. This really does have a WOW palate that's very pretty and so herbal. Really impressive fruit on the finish as well, with incredible length. Even a minute later I’m getting more evolving red berry fruits that are different. So sexy on the finish. Acid, minerality, bright and very grippy and tart. I think this was drinking nearly as good, if quite a bit differently, from the Latricières. This is an overall prettier wine, if not quite as deep. After two hours this thing got so grippy and tight, losing the fruit and becoming all structure.

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• 1996 Domaine Leroy Latricières-Chambertin 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Latricières-Chambertin Grand Cru

  I think this was drinking slightly better than the other bottle we had two nights ago, despite what "looked" to be slightly worse bottle condition (this had some very slight seepage under the foil, even if the fill was nearly identical). But wow, incredible aromas again! This one is quite a bit larger than the Charmes, showing some interesting earthy, forest floor and a slight licorice note. I am again taken aback by the depth of the aromas here. It's so intense and pleasing that it's hard to wrap my mind around what I'm smelling. Very spicy, impressive and large palate with really great earth. Really amazing palate intensity, with fantastic acids. The earthiness enters very softly, very pretty. Acids build, and doesn't have the grippiness that the Charmes had. Really delicious chantrelle mushrooms and twigs on the palate that are delectable. I can hold this on the palate forever, whereas the charmes was tight. Quite a bit of earth, and really really spicy on the finish. Very impressive acids. When I held this on the palate for a long time the finish was even fruiter than previous swallows, and really impressive. I had totally forgotten that the bottle two nights ago had a strong metallic notion on the finish initially that this bottle didn't show at all. This bottle did seem a bit more advanced than the other, but in this case, for drinking today, that was a beautiful thing as it was even more approachable and delicious. Beautiful stuff, and what a pleasure to drink this side by side with the 1996 Leroy Charmes-Chambertin.

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• 1993 Comte Senard Corton-Clos du Roi 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  Certainly a tough act to follow two Leroys. This has a totally wild nose; like a candied furniture store. It was like eating some hardwood with brown sugar, cinnamon and butter on top. Pretty thick smelling, plus kind of meaty and pretty smokey. Very soft on palate entry, showing tartness and it's fairly grippy on the palate, with soft stewed fruits the dominant flavor. Still big tannins present on the finish, but the fruit flavors drop off quickly. Overall I really appreciated the interesting nose (though it does throw you off balance a bit), but the palate and finish don’t quite follow through with much interest.

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• 1990 Faiveley Mazis-Chambertin 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru

  This had a fully saturated cork upon extraction, but it tasted perfectly intact. And wow, I initially couldn't quite tell what that was on the nose, but then after I pulled it away I have a strong hint of menthol. Very very earthy and soil driven aromas, with a slight floral notion. Overall things are quite expressive and very pretty. The palate though... it showed intense spice. Tons of earth on entry. Very soft and pleasing, and what I could simply say as very burgundyian flavors (I like it when Burgundy tastes like Burgundy). Delicious earthiness. Tannins are soft and sweet and very mellow; their presence is holding it together, but not at all getting in the way. Gorgeous. Truly perfect balance on the palate. Impressive structure and evolves amazingly. Very nice pace on the finish. I'd say this wine is drinking near peak, but will likely hold here for a while. I always love 1990s.

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• 1990 Mommessin Clos de Tart 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de Tart Grand Cru

  Fun story here, as Dan picked this up at an old wine shop where he used to work. The owner had held it back because it was a short fill, so he sold it to Dan for $20! What a steal that wound up being... the fill was barely short, and this showed some signs of past seepage under the foil, but it was completely beautiful. Initially the aromas were closed and funky, but after only a few swirls it opens up beautifully and begins showing some more brighter candy fruit; like grape fun dip and bright berries. Not too much depth here, but rapturous on the palate… amazingly delicious, and so elegant and classy. Delicious, soft, pretty berries, elegant fruit, grippy tannins, but it balances softly. So beautiful and classy on the palate. Probably the softest, prettiest palate of the wines thus far. It was a fantastic textural experience. Quite a bit tighter and closed on the finish, but still pretty delicious. Perhaps this one needs a few more years to pull it all together on the finish, but it's still a beauty today. Drinking 92-93, but I'd love to revisit in 5 years.

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• 1983 Faiveley Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Cazetiers 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru

  A last minute pull from the cellar when I realized that there was a 14 year gap between the 1990 Clos de Tart and the '76 Vougeot. Unfortunate, because as with most of the '83's I've opened, this really needed some slow-oxygenation for some hours in the cellar before pouring. The aromas started out quite musty, dusty, and soily. Soy sauce and herbs. Some dirty cherries. After more time, some nutty aromas, developed. The palate was soft and creamy, with vanilla flavors… pretty delicious, like butter and brown sugar. Actually after more time this gets quite delicious. Like stewed apples. Very tart and grippy on the finish, with more stewed apple. I put some in a glass and let it rest for a few hours and it had resolved some of the mustiness, but still... the slow oxygenation method always works better in these scenarios. Still enjoyable to me and a few others, though Tom hated it.

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• 1976 Alexis Lichine Clos Vougeot 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru

  This one started out tight and musty, but then it began opening up after some time, including some spicy aromas eventually entering the picture. Not much depth of aromas. The palate is fairly boring, and a little funky and strangely sweet.. something odd. It tastes like that thing at the end at an Indian restaurant, with the fennel and sweetness. So strange. My wife (who's Indian) got all kinds of Indian spice flavors on this one in fact, and joked, "No really, I think this wine is made by Indians to go with curry." The finish is tart, with some nice acid. Pleasing and fresh. Didn't have the depth of the other wines.

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• 1972 Domaine Louis Remy Clos de la Roche Flawed

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

  After the beautiful bottle I opened of this two years ago, this was sadly a great disappointment. Some thought this was corked, but it didn't come across as that for me... but referencing my long note from January 2010 of this wine (identical bottle source), this was definitely DOA compared to that beauty. I found the palate actually mildly pleasing and freshly acidic, but there was a metallic notion and harshness on the finish, coupled with a nose that didn't show ANY of the beautiful fruit and soft earthiness the previous bottle had. In fact the nose was pretty non-descript. Dumped it.

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• 1961 Maison Jules Régnier Musigny 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  What a killer wine, and quite a surprise. The color/intensity was no deeper than anything else here, but it probably had more red in it than most of the older wines. The aromas are pretty intense and luscious. Very pleasing and soft. Very light and dusty, candied fruit as well. On the palate, this is quite soft and luscious, with very beautiful flavors. Very mild acidity, but its presence is felt and it's nicely balanced with the other elements. Very plush and soft… like velvet. Still plenty of fruit and that delicious acid on the palate. Really, I’m quite taken back by the beauty, fruitiness and softness here. I wouldn't suggest it tasted non Pinot Noir like, it just tasted way younger than you'd think. You’d never guess the age of this wine. Lots of acid on the finish, which express pretty thick flavors. It’s quite amazing on the finish, perhaps its best element. Delicious fruit, luscious, soft. I figured I should have bought the whole offering when I saw these for sale instead of the one I wound up with... such a fun experience.

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This really was a fantastic showing, and as usual, the company and conversation was the equal to the wines, and what makes these things so fun. I'll have to think about what's next up, but Karl mentioned for the next time he's in town, perhaps we can do the same, but with white Burgundy. Should be fun!