Westchester Wine School Premium Burgundy Tasting

Ned set out 8 whites and 11 reds (including 1 red mystery wine).

• 2011 Gilbert Picq & ses Fils Chablis 1er Cru Vosgros 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

  Drank blind vs. La Chablisienne, Les Preuses at WWS tasting. Pale straw color, generous nose of citrus. Racy acidity that obscured/overshadowed the fruit. Attractive freshness. A bit bitter on the finish. This wine was more acidic than the grand cru against which it was matched and, I felt, not as well balanced. Still enjoyable but I preferred the Les Preuses.

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• 2009 La Chablisienne Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

  Drank at WWS tasting blind vs. Gilbert Picq 1er cur Vosgros. Pale straw color, very steely minerality, acidic with some bitterness on the back end. A big bigger, fuller and rounder than the 1er cry Vosgros, good fruit level and nice length. Two enjoyable chablis, both a bit on the young side and showing their very chablis-like tendencies. Nice way to begin a long nite of burg tasting.

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• 2009 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

  Drank at WWS blind tasting vs. Martenot Meursault Les Perrieres. The chablis was a pale straw color, not much gold in the glass. Nose reminded me of the sea shore & oysters. Nice minerality here, wet stones with a lot of (too much) wood. This wine was overoaked, which obscured the other elements of the wine. Decent acidity, & I liked the mineral quality that showed thru but I just couldn't get past the oaky style of this wine. I much preferred the Meursault. A nice somewhat golden color. Generous nose of pineapples and honey. Some vanilla from the wine having obviously been aged in oak, with a slight mineral quality, along with a good, ripe fruit level. This wine was rounder, more full bodied, with more richness & ripe fruit than the chablis. Very nice mouthfeel, good complexity and length. Still youthful too so I see this wine getting even better with some bottle age. Very enjoyable.

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• 2010 Yves Boyer-Martenot Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru

  Drank at WWS blind tasting vs. Fevre grand cru Les Clos. The chablis was a pale straw color, not much gold in the glass. Nose reminded me of the sea shore & oysters. Nice minerality here, wet stones with a lot of (too much) wood. This wine was overoaked, which obscured the other elements of the wine. Decent acidity, & I liked the mineral quality that showed thru but I just couldn't get past the oaky style of this wine.
  I much preferred the Meursault over the Chablis. A nice, somewhat golden color. Generous nose of pineapples, apples and honey. Some vanilla from the wine having obviously been aged in oak, with a slight mineral quality, along with a good, ripe fruit level. This wine was rounder, more full bodied, more well structured, with more richness & ripe fruit than the chablis. Very nice mouthfeel, good complexity and length. Still youthful too so I see this wine getting even better with some bottle age. Very enjoyable.

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• 2010 La Pousse d'Or Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Le Cailleret 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Drank blind at WWS tasting matched vs. a 2009 Corton Charlemagne from Jadot. I'll start by saying that I very much enjoyed both wines. The PM had a medium to light yellow straw coloring. Not much on the nose except for perhaps some faint vanilla and apple notes. Strong attack on the palate with an appropriate fruit level (apples and pears), though less obvious or apparent as with the CC. Nice balance here between the fruit, acidity level and complexity of the wine. Even though young, this wine is showing very well presently and will likely only improve over the next several years. The wine was medium bodied, leaner with less oak or vanilla than I detected with the CC. I enjoyed both wines very much, but favored the CC ever so slightly.
  The CC showed a pale to medium golden color. Wonderful, complex nose of tropical fruits, floral notes combined with a compelling freshness. Sweet, ripe pears on the palate, along with some vanilla notes & a very definite toasty quality which I found very appealing. Nice round mouthfeel, fuller bodied than the Cailleret, but still balanced with a solid acidity level. Overall, a delicious, powerful, yet well-balanced, complex wine, which also showed great length. It's only going to get better with bottle age. Wish I had some of each in my cellar.

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• 2009 Louis Jadot Corton-Charlemagne Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Drank at WWS tasting blind vs. Pousse d'Or 1er cru Cailleret 2010. The CC showed a pale to medium golden color. Wonderful, complex nose of tropical fruits, floral notes combined with a compelling freshness. Sweet, ripe pears on the palate, along with some vanilla notes & a very definite toasty quality which I found very appealing. Nice round mouthfeel, fuller bodied than the Cailleret, but still balanced with a solid acidity level. Overall, a delicious, well-balanced, complex wine, which also showed great length, with a bit of chalkiness at the back.

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• 2011 J.M. Boillot Montagny 1er Cru Blanc 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte Chalonnaise, Montagny 1er Cru

  Drank blind at WWS tasting vs., of all things, a 2005 Batard Bienvenues from Remoissent. Each bottle was easy to identify, needless to say.
  The Montagny showed a pale straw color. Shy nose not revealing much. Sweet fruit, good acidity level, some oakiness detected on the fairly short finish. A pleasant, if somewhat simple wine which was matched against the best white of our tasting. Still, on its own, this was a very enjoyable bottle with a nice balance of ripe fruit, good acidity and fair amount of complexity for what it was.

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• 2005 Remoissenet Père et Fils Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru

  Drank blind at WWS burg tasting. The white WOTN in my opinion, and that of many others. Golden color. Intense nose of pear, marzipan, honey & some vanilla. Potent attack on the palate. Very sweet fruit--apples, pears, apricots. Great richness and power here, but in no way over the top. A nice creamy mouthfeel too. This wine remains young, with vibrant acidity to offset the copious amounts of sweet fruit. A bit high on the alcohol level perhaps, and highly extracted fruit, but still a well balanced, very complex wine that is just now touching its potential. A very enjoyable wine.

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• 2009 Camille Giroud Latricières-Chambertin 93 Points

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

  Drank at WWS tasting blind vs. Jadot Charmes Chambertin 02. Pale red color, showing far more age at edges than expected. Lovely nose of dark fruit & spice. Very potent up front: blackberries, spice with wonderful mouthfeel. Nicely balanced with appropriate acidity level, ripe fruit and good length. A classically styled burg, if a bit young. Many good times ahead for this wine which, though still an infant, showed exceedingly well.
  The Jadot Charmes had a deep ruby color, a musty nose that smelled of dirty socks--though its funkiness faded over time in the glass. (On color and nose alone, I mistook this wine for the 2009). Rich and powerful, with loads of ripe fruit, but by no means over the top. More tannic than the Giroud, and a bit more funky, and great length. This wine too I felt still needs a bit more time to develop. I also enjoyed this wine, though perhaps not quite to the same level as the Giroud. Still both were impressive wines and my #2 & #3 red WOTN

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• 2002 Louis Jadot Charmes-Chambertin 92 Points

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

  Drank at WWS tasting blind vs. Giroud Latricieres 2009.
  The Jadot Charmes had a deep ruby color, a musty nose that smelled of dirty socks--though its funkiness faded over time in the glass. (On color and nose alone, I mistook this wine for the 2009). Rich and powerful, with loads of ripe fruit, but by no means over the top. More tannic than the Giroud, and a bit more funky, and great length. Both wines I felt still need a bit more time to develop, though the Giroud more so. I enjoyed this wine, though perhaps not quite to the same level as the Giroud.
  The Giroud had a pale garnet color, showing far more age at edges than expected. Lovely nose of dark fruit & spice. Very potent up front: blackberries, spice with wonderful mouthfeel. Nicely balanced with appropriate acidity level, ripe fruit and good length. A classically styled burg, if a bit young. Many good times ahead for this wine which, though as yet an infant, showed exceedingly well. Still both were impressive wines and, respectively, were my #3 & #2 red WOTN

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• 2006 Pascal Lachaux Clos Saint-Denis 87 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Saint-Denis Grand Cru

  Drank blind at WWS tasting vs. 2009 Gros Chambolle 1er cru. The St. Denis had a sweet floral nose. Some fruit, mostly red cherries here, a bit thin and a bit too tannic, no doubt due to the wine's youth. Not much here on the mid palate, and a bit astringent on the finish. Rather disappointing.
  The Anne Gros 1er cru was a pale crimson color, and showed some age despite its youth. Very generous nose of spice and earthiness that, in my opinion, was the wine's best characteristic. Red cherries on the palate, mixed with spice and musty earthiness. A pretty, elegant wine but, similar to the St. Denis, a bit thin in the middle. Nice length though. Not a great wine, but certainly superior to the St. Denis.

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• 2009 Domaine Anne Gros Chambolle-Musigny La Combe d'Orveau 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny

  Drank blind at WWS tasting vs. 2006 Lachaux Clos St. Denis. The St. Denis had a sweet floral nose. Some fruit, mostly red cherries here, a bit thin and a bit too tannic, no doubt due to the wine's youth. Not much here on the mid palate, and a bit astringent on the finish. A rather disappointing showing as I had great expectations.
  The Anne Gros 1er cru was a pale crimson color, and showed some age despite its youth. Very generous nose of spice and earthiness that, in my opinion, was the wine's best characteristic. Not-so-ripe red cherries on the palate, mixed with some spice and musty earth. A pretty, elegant wine but, similar to the St. Denis, a bit thin & missing a mid palate. Nice length though. Not a great wine, but certainly superior to the St. Denis.

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• 2008 Domaine Jean Grivot Clos Vougeot 90 Points

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

  Drank blind at WWS tasting vs. Frantin Vosne Romanee Malconsorts 2010 (which I much preferred. The Grivot had a pleasant nose of spice & flowers. On the palate, lots of semi-ripe red fruit, spice, & some animal stuff going on which I couldn't quite place. Fairly austere tannins give this young wine some bite; hopefully it will soften with some bottle age as I found it a bit too astringent, the fruit not sufficiently ripe, and a bit short on the back end. I think this wine has a better future than present. I wouldn't touch it again for at least 3-4 years.

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• 2010 Maison Albert Bichot Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Malconsorts Domaine du Clos Frantin 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru

  Drank blind vs. 2008 Grivot Clos de Vougeot. The Malconsorts was a pale crimson color in the glass, and had a slightly reticent floral & spicy nose. Lots of sweet dark fruit--blackberries and black cherries, and perhaps some plum. This is a big, concentrated, extracted wine that's still a baby. Lots of good stuff going on here, if still a bit obscured by the very evident tannins. A well structured, meaty, complex concoction that I would love to taste again in a few year's time...and then again and again.

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• 1999 Domaine Robert Arnoux / Arnoux-Lachaux Echezeaux 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru

  Drank blind at WWS tasting vs. Jadot Beaune 1er cru 150th anniversary bottle. I have to disagree with the notes on CT. This wine made a fabulous showing. Nose was somewhat backward, with some dust & earth. Also a pale red color in the glass showing some age. Very plentiful red fruit/cherries on the palate, along with some spice, floral notes and a savory element that was quite attractive. Round, soft somewhat resolved tannins, good mouthfeel and great complexity. Nice length, with some cinnamon at the back end. This wine showed great on this nite, and still has a lot of life left in the bottle. Voted the #2 WOTN. (my favorite)

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• 2009 Louis Jadot Beaune 1er Cru Celebration 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru

  Drank at WWS tasting blind vs. Arnoux Echezeaux. This wine was a medium ruby color, showing no signs of age. A spicy, fruity nose. Medium to full-bodied, with lots of red ripe fruit. A pronounced spicy edge to this wine. Overall, this wine came across as a bit over extracted and oaky, somewhat ordinary wine. Not much length either. Perhaps some bottle age will improve its qualities.

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• 2000 Bonneau du Martray Corton 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  Drank blind at WWS tasting vs Drouhin Clos de Mouches 2006.
  The Corton definitely showed its age in the glass. Nose also was very musty, almost thought the wine was maderized. It wasn't, and the nose faded over time. Fruit has faded somewhat, leaving behind lots of mushrooms, dust & bark. Tertiary notes dominate here, tannins fully resolved. I liked this wine, though I thought it had seen better days. I enjoyed its complexity and depth. Many tasters loved this wine, however, voting it the #3 WOTN.

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• 2009 Joseph Drouhin Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Mouches Rouge 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru

  Drank blind at WWS tasting vs. Bonneau du Martray 2000 Corton. The Drouhin was a medium ruby color, floral scents and some earthiness on the nose. Sweet ripe cherries, perhaps strawberries too, tannins much less apparent than expected. Nice earthiness, and some chalkiness on the long back end. A very pleasant, well balanced wine, and drinking very well for such a youngster.

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An excellent, it a bit lengthy tasting of burgs. The grand crus more than distinguished themselves tonite.