2009 Morgon Dinner

This was an interesting look at a range of Morgons from the heralded 2009 vintage. I was familiar with many but not all of the wines. They were all tasted in semi-blinded fashion, although a few of the true Beaujolais geeks in the group were advantaged by being able to see a few wax capsules peeking out of the brown bags.

• NV J. Lassalle Champagne Premier Cru Préférence Brut

  France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru

  Magnum. Light, fresh, lemony. Very nice.

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• 2009 Guy Breton Morgon Vieilles Vignes

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  Lighter than any of the other wines. Light herbal, floral nose. Faded red fruit, light, supple, elegant and full of herbs. Soil filled, reasonable length. Very different from everything else. The only wine that I was able to identify due to its faded color and distinctively different aromatic profile.

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• 2009 Daniel Bouland Morgon Corcelette

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  Very deep color. Blueberry/blackberry fruit and creosote-this really smells like Gamay in a superconcentrated state. Lush entry, some green notes, grippy end. Excellent richness, length, and acidity.

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• 2009 Daniel Bouland Morgon Les Délys

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  Moderately dark. Lots of licorice on the nose. Darker, briary fruit. Another big boy but retains some elegance. Like its stablemate, fair amount of tannic grip more than acidity to close.

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• 2009 Georges Descombes Morgon Vieilles Vignes

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  Medium ruby. Tart cherry scents that are very forward. Rich, mouth filling black cherry, fabulous length, ripe, smooth tannins. My favorite wine of this flight and astoundingly good for Gamay.

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• 2009 Jean Foillard Morgon Côte du Py

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  Medium ruby. Acetic and floral tones. Rich entry immediately cut off by tart acidity and some herbaceousness. Saline, mineral finish. Very good but lacking texture and depth-something off about this bottle compared to my experience with this wine in the past.
  
  Overnight, this gained texture and length, and the fruit gained significant richness.

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• 2009 Marcel Lapierre Morgon

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  On the lighter side in terms of color. Brambly nose. Supple, open, sweet with lower acidity (very 2009 in this respect) and nice herbal complexity at the back end. Good but certainly not great today.

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• 2009 Marcel Lapierre Morgon Cuvée Marcel Lapierre

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  Medium ruby. Fragrant, penetrating aromatics dominated by anise. Lush blueberry fruit. Big and round but not overripe or blockish. Perfectly ripe tannins. This gained a chocolatey richness and more soil over time as it aerated. Pretty amazing stuff, either the essence of Beaujolais or an outsized freak depending upon your perspective.

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• 2009 Domaine des Terres Dorées (Jean-Paul Brun) Morgon

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  Medium saturation. Ripe berry nose. Not that rich in the mouth, though-supple, medium weight. Well structured with tart acidity. Good feel and sense of complexity. One that will benefit from more time.
  
  After a night in the fridge, this displayed even finer structure, more earth and salinity. Out of the mainstream of the vintage style, definitely requiring patience.

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• 2009 Jean-Paul Thevenet Morgon Vieilles Vignes

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Morgon

  Ruby. Cranberry and flowers. Lighter than most of these wines, typical Gamay weight. Lively, high acidity with nice, sweet fruit and a tarry core. Good length, slightly austere finish. Not one that screams 2009. Very interesting but where will it go from here?
  
  This blossomed on the second night with richer blueberry scented fruit emerging and a much longer finish.

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• 1998 Zind-Humbrecht Riesling Clos Windsbuhl Vendange Tardive

  France, Alsace

  Amber. Rich, honeyed nose. Sweet, exotic fruit. Unctuous with adequate acidity. Fully mature.

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Yes, there was the expected similarity given the wines' origins, but goodness, when you go from the ethereal Guy Breton wine to the freakishly rich Cuvee Marcel, you are talking about very different wines. Descombes and the special Lapierre cuvee impressed, the Boulands were somewhat of a revelation since I had never run across them before, and sadly, the Foillard did not show well at all. In terms of maturity, nothing was too old, and I did not find the wines to be sullen or closed, either. Most of them had enough fruit and structure to carry them forward for a good number of years, and wines like the Lapierre Cuvee Marcel and the Boulands will surely continue to improve.