Acker Merrall BYO
Sepia - Chicago IL
Tasted Thursday, June 7, 2012 by Burgundy Al with 982 views
Introduction
Another exceptional pre-auction dinner courtesy of John Kapon and the great Acker Merrall team. As usual, my friends stepped up with some great wine. My notes were less complete and less legible as the night got late. And I'm sure I forgot to write anything for several more great wines.
1989 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Ruchottes 94 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru
From magnum, good condition, ullage <1cm. Stone fruit aromas with wintergreen hints. Very fresh, I would have thought much younger if served blind. Intense, ripe and powerful on palate.
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1999 Louis Jadot Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot 90 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru
From magnum. Ripe fruit aromas to start with modest spice. Tighter, lean and linear on the palate, not very forthcoming. A slight bitter hint on finish, giving an overall odd finish. Good, but not as great as previous bottles, so perhaps an imperfect bottle?
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2006 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières 93 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru
Aromas of ripe apple and roasted hazelnut, classically Meursault. Same rich, ripe yellow apple flavors on palate with great concentration and density. Slightly fat in the middle and finish, I think this has upside potential from here as that fat fades away.
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2009 Dönnhoff Hermannshöhle Riesling Großes Gewächs 91 Points
Germany, Nahe
First time trying this wine. Fruit seemed somewhere between ripe stone and tropical fruit. Oily and unctuous on palate. Surprising slight sweetness on finish, I probably would have thought this Kabinett if served blind.
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1990 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Rosé 94 Points
France, Champagne
From magnum. Rose petal aromas with ripe strawberry and a very positive Pinot Noir character. Rich and opulent, but enough acidity, energy and minerality that it also comes across as weightless. Very clean, long, precise finish. Thanks, Rob!
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1964 Domaine Château De La Tour Clos Vougeot 95 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru
Popped, decanted and poured. Excellent color, ullage approx 2 cm. Perfumed and spicy start with sensational braised meat and earthy aromas. Hints of lingering fruit provided really good nuance on palate. Very impressive length. Kept getting better for at least 30 minutes, was wonderful for at least an hour. Everybody loved this wine. I brought it because of John Kapon's recent tasting notes on some other older vintages of Château de La Tour Clos Vougeot, and I think this 1964 more than held its own.
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1964 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino Speciale Flawed
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
Rose petals to start with lean fruit, lots of earth. Rugged, not elegant to start. Really fell off a cliff after 30 minutes.
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1990 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes 91 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru
Small tasting. Ripe, fresh blackberry and plum flavors with dense, meaty spice. Much like it has always shown before, this does not show much Musigny character to me, even hardly showing as great Grand Cru Burgundy.
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2005 Domaine Ponsot Chapelle-Chambertin 93 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chapelle-Chambertin Grand Cru
From magnum. Ripe black cherry aromas with tarragon and espresso and a liqueur element in background. Intense, powerful, ripe black fruit flavors with some clove and licorice spice. Super firm tannins front-and-center today, this is a wine to stash away for at least another decade.
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1993 Louis Jadot Musigny 94 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru
Much like I remember from when last tried two years ago. This had been open about an hour, not decanted. Black cherry and big savory spice aromas with a slightly exotic nutmeg, allspice character. Great minerality, textures and power through to long finish.
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1993 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos du Château des Ducs 92 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
From magnum. Perfumed start with great red cherry aromas, good spice and emerging forest floor elements. Same balance of fruit, spice and earthy flavors. Still showing upside potential from here.
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2000 Gaja Langhe Nebbiolo Sorì San Lorenzo 91 Points
Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Langhe DOC
From 3L. Lush, ripe, powerful and very concentrated. Big black fruit, big spice. Fairly rugged on palate today. Not even close to its full potential yet.
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1969 Faiveley Chambertin-Clos de Bèze 94 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru
Popped and poured. Great color, ullage under 2 cm. I heard the sound of a vacuum breaking when I removed the cork, which gave me confidence the wine would be vibrant and fresh. Indeed it was. Black fruit throughout, meaty with great spice. Exciting and powerful with lots of black fruit that was as forward as the wine's elegant earthiness. Very masculine and Gevrey-Chambertin on its long finish.
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2002 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Charmes-Chambertin 90 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru
Red cherry and sweet spice aromas. Similar flavors on palate with modest length, already showing very well at this young age.
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2009 Domaine Dujac Clos de la Roche
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru
Impossible to fairly assess such a young wine at this point in the evening given the older, mature wines being poured. Great potential with a floral start, then lots of ripe red and black cherry and baking spice. Give to 2020 or later...much later.
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1998 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Amoureuses 94 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru
Slightly perfumed start with fresh red fruit aromas and great spice. Medium weight red cherry flavors also show great spice and impressive elegance, balance and weightlessness. This was a fantastic opportunity to taste Roumier's Amoureuses and Bonnes Mares from the same vintage side-by-side, and I agree with most at my table that the Bonnes Mares was ever-so-slightly better tonight. Thanks for both, Jeff!
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1998 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Bonnes Mares 95 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru
Open several hours before poured. Sensational black cherry, black berry aromas with alluring spicebox. Same black fruit on palate, again with huge spice. Big and powerful with elegant tannins and great acidity, all perfectly integrated. This wine is always great, but this bottle was particularly impressive tonight. It was great to be able to taste this alongside the Roumier 1998 Amoureuses, and I agree with most at my table that this Bonnes Mares was one tiny notch more exciting than the Amoureuses tonight. Thanks for both, Jeff!
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1985 Château Margaux Flawed
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Very muted, seemingly stripped of fruit. I thought this slightly corked, others didn't.
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1986 Château Margaux 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Black cherry and plum with good background spice. Tannins are still firm but don't overwhelm the high quality fruit flavors on the palate. Moderate length. I was told another table at the dinner had a corked 86 Margaux.
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1983 Château Palmer 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
A wine I've always liked, and I was excited to taste this alongside Margaux 1983. However this bottle seemed more tired than any I've had before. Person who brought the bottle had just purchased it last year, so provenance is unknown.
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1983 Château Margaux 95 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
I was looking forward to tasting this wine alongside the Palmer 1983, and this wine certainly didn't disappoint. Red and black cherry aromas with hint of cassis. Lush, elegant and incredibly charming. Long sweet finish with great spice.
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2000 Château Mouton Rothschild 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Small taste. Big black fruit with liqueur aromas, dark chocolate, dark roasted coffee. Same big fruit on palate with very firm structure. Huge wine on finish.
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2001 Château Mouton Rothschild 90 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Small taste. Black fruit with moderate density and power. Good structure, good acidity. Leaner styled than the 2000 vintage just tasted.
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2002 Château Mouton Rothschild 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Small taste. Modest fruit, lots of acidity that stood out a bit tonight. Didn't quite stand up to its 2000 and 2001 counterparts also just tasted.
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1990 Château Margaux 96 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Sweet and lush start, also floral with hints of cassis. Great black fruit, great spice all the way through, start-to-finish, with everything in great balance.
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1990 Château Montrose 95 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Saint-Estèphe
Open several hours before poured. Black cherry and plum aromas, with tobacco, meaty spice. Lots of power, length and density. Still a baby with huge long-term potential.
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2001 Château Rieussec 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Floral, great spice, character of tropical fruit and grilled, caramelized peach.
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1988 Hubert Lignier Clos de la Roche Flawed
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru
stripped of fruit, became less and less interesting very quickly. Very sad, this is a wine I've wanted to try for quite a while.
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