France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru
Alcohol :: 13.5% Dark brick red. Green herbs, chalk, dried tea leaves, mineral and touch of spiciness that sum up the kinda matured but perfume and focus bouquet along with the sweet dark cherry note. Fresh entry with mid palate that come a bit dusky and also with muskiness along with ripe black cherry that kick in here that underpinned by the firm structured that formed by the slightly rough tannin and high acid (this led me to 1996). This is a bit lean but the focus is there with that's lingered with sweet and sour aftertaste. This is better than the 1st bottle but I also detected a little bit of TCA in it.
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Alcohol :: 13.5% Quite expressive on the nose, Stalky, tobacco, creme de cassis and touch if wood spice and savory. This has really good level of ripe dark fruits as well as concentration of a 2004, a little bit modern and none of us get the vintage correctly. Savory, plum, chalky, mineral, wood, quite ripe with lots of dark fruits. The acid is there for the freshness, though this is a bit simple but quite delicious. With dark chocolate at the finish.
Alcohol :: 12.5% Stalk, tobacco, black cherry, earthy and a bit of leathery. This has very good concentration of sweet dark fruits on the palate with dark chocolate, bitter sweet cocoa kick in after the intense mid palate that turn to slightly dry tannin which leads to the grippy long finish with leather aftertaste. Not bad but this has started to dry out, drink sooner than later.
Alcohol :: 12.4% This is really aged and the bouquet is fully matured with almost Sauternes like sweetness in the core. This is something really unique that is really difficult to pin point the region. Autumn leaves, dried fig, sweet cherry, preserved plum, honey and earth that sum up to the very perfume as well as sweet aromas. Still very alive on the palate with lots of sweet fruits: orange, lemon, dark cherry and a little bit musky and dusty. A little bit of tannin left for better grip but also form the slightly rustic mouth feel and leads to the long, grippy finish with earth, mineral and autumn leaves that linger.
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
Alcohol :: 13.5% Quite muted on the nose when popped and poured. This juice is getting better and better over 2hrs decanting. Sweet and sour cherry, fresh mineral, mild smokiness with spices and meatiness. Vibrant and fresh, in the beginning the acid is on the high side but it find the right balance after sometime in the glass. When it does, the palate is very rich with good lushness, harmony as well as sense of finesse and lingering finish. While this is not as structured as the Combe Aux Moines, this is drinking better and will benefit for the mid term. 87-89
Alcohol :: 15% Very powerful aromas boosted from this almost dark in color juice that display strong note of butterscotch, vanilla, milk chocolate, blueberry, coconut candy and little touch of wood spice, very pungent but not OTT. There is very good lushness and concentration on the palate, but to me this is slightly on the sweet side and also a bit heavy. Structured, firm tannin with very ripe acid that seems a little bit low and flow on to the very powerful, almost explosive like finish. Good thing is the 15% alcohol is barely noticeable.
Alcohol :: 13.5% Very fresh and attractive sweetness on the nose with dried apricot, peaches, honey, almond, and little touch of botrytis spice. At such young age, this wonderful juice already show wonderful balance despite of such concentration, depth and sweetness. The acid is slightly on the low side but sufficient to support the flesh. Very friendly on the palate with with apricot, and little touch of spiciness that move on to the medium length, juicy sweet finish. This is indeed very good Sauternes but not as good as the previous bottle. 87-88+
Alcohol :: 14% Much darker in color with more secondary nuances on both nose and palate. Matured bouquet of preserved plum, honey apricot, mushroom, floral and some bortrytis note. Still very lively with sweet entry. The mid palate is a little bit green in flavor with additional layer of stalk. Everything is in good place: sugar, acid, mineral, this is a bit simple but delicious to drink now. We were all surprised that this is actually from one of the weakest vintage in Bordeaux: 1984!
1996 Sylvain Cathiard Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Aux Murgers Flawed
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru
Alcohol :: 13.5%
Dark brick red. Green herbs, chalk, dried tea leaves, mineral and touch of spiciness that sum up the kinda matured but perfume and focus bouquet along with the sweet dark cherry note. Fresh entry with mid palate that come a bit dusky and also with muskiness along with ripe black cherry that kick in here that underpinned by the firm structured that formed by the slightly rough tannin and high acid (this led me to 1996). This is a bit lean but the focus is there with that's lingered with sweet and sour aftertaste. This is better than the 1st bottle but I also detected a little bit of TCA in it.
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2004 Château Fleur Cardinale 84 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Alcohol :: 13.5%
Quite expressive on the nose, Stalky, tobacco, creme de cassis and touch if wood spice and savory. This has really good level of ripe dark fruits as well as concentration of a 2004, a little bit modern and none of us get the vintage correctly. Savory, plum, chalky, mineral, wood, quite ripe with lots of dark fruits. The acid is there for the freshness, though this is a bit simple but quite delicious. With dark chocolate at the finish.
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1995 Château Smith Haut Lafitte 85 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Alcohol :: 12.5%
Stalk, tobacco, black cherry, earthy and a bit of leathery. This has very good concentration of sweet dark fruits on the palate with dark chocolate, bitter sweet cocoa kick in after the intense mid palate that turn to slightly dry tannin which leads to the grippy long finish with leather aftertaste. Not bad but this has started to dry out, drink sooner than later.
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1985 Domaine Pierre-Yves Masson Le Chateau XV Siècle Pommard 1er Cru Clos de la Chanière 86 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pommard 1er Cru
Alcohol :: 12.4%
This is really aged and the bouquet is fully matured with almost Sauternes like sweetness in the core. This is something really unique that is really difficult to pin point the region. Autumn leaves, dried fig, sweet cherry, preserved plum, honey and earth that sum up to the very perfume as well as sweet aromas. Still very alive on the palate with lots of sweet fruits: orange, lemon, dark cherry and a little bit musky and dusty. A little bit of tannin left for better grip but also form the slightly rustic mouth feel and leads to the long, grippy finish with earth, mineral and autumn leaves that linger.
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2008 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Champeaux Vieille Vigne 87 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
Alcohol :: 13.5%
Quite muted on the nose when popped and poured. This juice is getting better and better over 2hrs decanting. Sweet and sour cherry, fresh mineral, mild smokiness with spices and meatiness. Vibrant and fresh, in the beginning the acid is on the high side but it find the right balance after sometime in the glass. When it does, the palate is very rich with good lushness, harmony as well as sense of finesse and lingering finish. While this is not as structured as the Combe Aux Moines, this is drinking better and will benefit for the mid term. 87-89
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2007 Montes Purple Angel 85 Points
Chile, Rapel Valley, Colchagua Valley
Alcohol :: 15%
Very powerful aromas boosted from this almost dark in color juice that display strong note of butterscotch, vanilla, milk chocolate, blueberry, coconut candy and little touch of wood spice, very pungent but not OTT. There is very good lushness and concentration on the palate, but to me this is slightly on the sweet side and also a bit heavy. Structured, firm tannin with very ripe acid that seems a little bit low and flow on to the very powerful, almost explosive like finish. Good thing is the 15% alcohol is barely noticeable.
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