My 40th birthday

Blairgowrie
Tasted Sunday, July 22, 2012 by AJ72 with 861 views

Introduction

An amazing celebration with friends and some truly exceptional wines.

Flight 1 - Germanic starter (3 Notes)

One absolute standout here with a couple of good ones

Flight 2 - Stunning chablis (2 Notes)

An absolute ripper from raveneau here and a baby from moreau. Doesn't get any better than the rav in this bracket and a bottle it must be said which was in perfect condition.

  • 2002 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur 98 Points

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

    Gave nothing to indicate how mind blowing this wine was to be after the first taste. Very backward but with 5 or so minutes of air time.....bingo! This was I think the most complete Chablis I have ever tasted and at $100 the bargain of the century it is that good. Reticent at first, then it unwinds, is still tight as a drum but packed full of mineral peachy flavoring as long and as detailed as I've ever seen in a Chablis. Like skiing through waist deep powdered snow such is the gushing effect this has on the palate. I would say that it will keep for ages but is so good now why bother hanging onto it. If you love pure racy tight minerally Chablis it doesn't get any better than this. Suave and elegant with so much class this has got to be one of the all time great vintages for Chablis.

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  • 2007 Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils Chablis Grand Cru Valmur 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

    I almost didn't score this as it would score a bit higher if it had a few more years to tone down the acidity and wasn't sitting next to the best Chablis I've ever had. This wines core of flavor is there but at the moment it's buried underneath bracing acidity which makes it inaccessible at this stage. It's so full on that I wonder whether it will actually remain this way. History suggests austerity will bear rewards with time and if that's the case then there's plenty of upside to this wine but a waste to open now.

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Flight 3 - A lone Burg (1 Note)

Interesting but ultimately tough and unrewarding, especially with what was eagerly anticipated to follow.

  • 1972 Marcel Amance Charmes-Chambertin 79 Points

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

    Still pretty fresh and shows some nice characters on the nose but the palate is as tough as nails. Searing acidity even at this age makes you wonder how much more difficult it would have been as a young wine to drink.

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Flight 4 - Ripping Rousseau (3 Notes)

Solid bracket of one of my favorite producers. Close de Beze not the WOW wine tonight though.

  • 2006 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Ruchottes-Chambertin Clos des Ruchottes 93 Points

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

    This was a high quality wine but in a modern way. Less Typical in it's expression but very classy all the same. Showed lovely red fruits and perhaps a bit of a chaptilised character lending a rounded sweet impression. Most enjoyable if not classic like the 96 in this bracket was.

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  • 2001 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin-Clos de Bèze

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru

    Probably the biggest disappointment of the night and I would think that it was not a great bottle of this wine. Very showy and sweet fruited with not a lot of the tell tale Clos de Beze power or minerality. If I didn't have experience with this producer and vineyard it would probably rate as a nice wine but it was not a typical Rousseau Clos de Beze on this showing for me. I guess the normal question had to be asked. Was it too young? Sure it looked a bit primary still but the 96 Ruchottes looked younger and had much more going on. This was not overly complex, had a slightly cloying aspect to it which I've never seen in a Rousseau Beze before and lacked that trademark length which marks this wine head and shoulders above the rest (with the exception of his Chambertin of course). This didn't glide across the palate but more clunked it's way conveying none of that familiar synergy of power and ethereal weightlessness. I wanted to come back to this and see it progress as it aerated but sadly it never did and I'm convinced it was not a great bottle so no score given.

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  • 1996 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Ruchottes-Chambertin Clos des Ruchottes 96 Points

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

    This one really hit the heights. Sauvage, wild like character is backed up by that familiar Gevrey perfume which Rousseau seems to nail with regular occurrence. Has a lovely balance between all these elements and is absolutely silky and effortless to drink with grand cru pedigree all the way. The best 96 wines are really all they promised to be, classic still retaining an austerity even at this age but fleshing out beautifully. Some of the purest terroir driven wines I've seen.

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Flight 5 - Cote Rotie magic (3 Notes)

Interesting comparison but I hope the more recent vintage of Jamets Cote Rotie isn't an indication of style change for them. A more modern less terroir driven wine which I hope is just a vintage thing. Outstanding 98 though. An old favourite "Clos Des Papes" to round out the bracket.

  • 2006 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie 84 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

    A very powerful garrigue meaty aroma with a twist of spice and pepper. The palate is a bit of a blockbuster I must say for what I'm used to in the Jamet style. I found this overripe character and it tended to look quite alcoholic and showy. There was not a lot of the wild sauvage character which I love about this producer and appellation. Next to the 98 it looked pretty over the top and I hope its just the vintage and not a change in direction for Jamet.

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  • 1998 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie 96 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

    An absolutely brilliant wine. Very expressive showing all the classic character of the appellation in spades. Wild sauvage element with a beautiful red fruit and spice background along with a meatiness which seems to carry an earthy mineral thread. Very lovely. Extremely well balanced and one of the best Cote Roties I've ever had.

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  • 2001 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape 84 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    Quite rustic and gave the impression that it needed drinking up. That being said there was a nice earthy tone to this but I felt the fruit was fading and secondary characters were starting to take over. I must confess this bottle did come out quite late.......

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Flight 6 - Little Italy (3 Notes)

A very good Langhe and some over the top tannin in one and too much of everything in the other.

  • 2009 Renato Ratti Nebbiolo d'Alba Ochetti 79 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Alba, Nebbiolo d'Alba

    I am yet to be impressed by anything from this producer. Previous experiences have been with very bretty bottles. This seemed to be clean enough but the tannin was so drying even food couldn't soften it out. If you like tannin which needs to be removed with a paint scraper you'll love this. Wouldn't buy even at the price.

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  • 2009 G.D. Vajra Langhe Nebbiolo 88 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Langhe DOC

    Lovely bottle of Nebbiolo. Shows a few whisps of tar and savoury red fruits. A bit of tannin and good for what it is.

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  • 2004 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo 80 Points

    Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

    Too oaky and I've probably marked a bit harder here because it is Barolo but I can't stand these modern, oaky wines from this region. I'm not sure why but there could be a hell of a lot more top end wine from this region if they took a leaf out of some other producers books (Giacomo Conterno, both Mascarello's, Vajra) and just backed off the oak. I will confess to be a lover of the more traditional style Barolo but for me this is just another producer with great vineyards who doesn't get it right.

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Flight 7 - Bordeaux surprise packet (2 Notes)

A magnum of Ferriere which charmed the pants off everybody and a Chasse which was a bit bland in comparison

  • 1979 Château Ferrière 93 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    This wasn't the most complex wine but it had bucket loads of character. If you can imagine old school Bordeaux, the kind of wine that existed before all the Parker hype changed the course and style of the region to more extracted riper versions then this would be it. A time capsule that perfectly articulates why nothing should have changed at all given this wines absolute appeal. To me anyway. Served out of magnum and gone faster than any other wine on the day. Not a wine to get wrapped up in like a few others before it but a certain seductive charm that just makes you marvel at how enjoyable it is to drink. A classic claret that appeals to the heart rather than the mind and makes me wonder why I don't give Bordeaux more of a chance.

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  • 1989 Château Chasse-Spleen 82 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Moulis en Médoc

    This wine was good but not in the same drinkable category as the Ferriere. Where the Ferriere had a massive character I found this wine a bit soulless. Tannins were a bit drying and although not a bad wine just didn't hold much interest.

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Flight 8 - Electrifying Auslese (1 Note)

Simply awesome Muller

  • 2005 Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Riesling Auslese 97 Points

    Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

    It's true that this guys sweets are seriously good. This had the edgy tense type acid profile, a pure craggy slate mineral theme and a really nice sumptuous sweet spot giving texture and richness. I think with more time as amazing as this is I can't help but think it would be legendary as all the components come together a bit more harmoniously than they are now. Its not a criticism as this wine is remarkable there's just so much material competing for your attention its hard to know where to look. In fact I'm finding it hard to describe the contrasts of this wine, austere but powerful, delicate yet savage, challenging yet rewarding. Like a great movie that makes you think about the ending and what transpired in it long after it's finished. This wine made me think longer and harder than any other wine has for a while. Thats got to be a good thing.

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Closing

I guess many highlights and good friends were priviledged to enjoy these wines with many generous selections being brought along for the evening. Surprise of the night the Magnum of Ferriere, potential of the night Egon Muller (if not already there) and my favourite.... the Raveneau Valmur Chablis at its absolute best.

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