Great Burgundy Dinner

Burgundy can be such a tease. White Burgundy...a Succubus. Montrachet! Leroy! Ok, 1 of 2 didn't disappoint. Three of five bottles of 2005 Montrachet were prematurely advanced with 1 basically undrinkable, 2 others disappointing. Thankfully the highlights were true highlights (thank you, Ramonet). Leroy was simply Leroy. Nothing else need be said. But that won't stop me from writing more.

• 2005 Henri Boillot Montrachet Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Oxidized to the extent of being undrinkable.

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• 2005 Bouchard Père et Fils Montrachet 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served single blind in the flight. Lots of orchard fruit with subtle baking spice and mint hints, very nuanced and slightly delicate, this is a Montrachet about nuance vs power. Moderate length, great balance throughout.

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• 2005 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served single blind in flight. This was everybody's favorite 2005 Montrachet tonight. i didn't really find the telltale Ramonet "minty" notes but did see the intense, honeyed character that comes across from their wine in the best vintages. Powerful and classically Montrachet in its length, density and understated elegance. Very fresh. My WOTN. Got better and better 3+ hours in glass, I think this isn't even in its peak drinking window yet.

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• 2005 Lucien Le Moine Montrachet

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served blind in Montrachet 2005 flight, this was another frustratingly mature bottle. Intense and ripe with lots of power. Too mature for a 2005 but still nicely balanced. If served blind and told this were Montrachet, I'd have thought this is a good 1989 or 1985 to start. This stayed interesting for about an hour, then shortened and lost intensity. Perhaps 91 points to start, but borderline flawed in my opinion. Damn you, white Burgundy!

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• 2005 Etienne Sauzet Montrachet Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served single blind in flight this was also mature from the start, but ripe, intense and drinkable for the first 15 minutes. This deteriorated quickly and was completely oxidized and uninteresting after 30 minutes in glass.

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• 1998 Domaine Leroy Clos de la Roche 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru

  Served single blind in flight, this was fairly easy to identify as the 1998. Perfumed and intense aromas, this was most interesting aromatically. Palate was also intense with lots of black fruit and sweet spice, but slightly one-dimensional with modest nuance and an ever-so-slightly jammy finish. Similar to other times I've had this wine.

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• 1992 Domaine Leroy Clos de la Roche 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru

  Served single blind in Leroy CdlR flight, we weren't certain after unveiling which was the 1991 and which the 1992. But past experience and comparing wine in glass vs remaining wine in the 1992 bottle made me 95% confident this was the 1992. Very alluring aromas, classically Leroy with perfume and black fruit. Elegant flavors, very good balance, modest spice, slightly lean, moderate length and intensity. Didn't evolve much in glass. Very impressive for the vintage.

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• 1991 Domaine Leroy Clos de la Roche 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru

  Served single blind in Leroy CdlR flight, we weren't certain after unveiling which was the 1991 and which the 1992. But past experience and comparing wine in glass vs remaining wine in the 1992 bottle made me 95% confident this was the 1991. Very large scaled wine with somewhat flamboyant red and black fruit on nose and palate. Great aromas, incredibly enticing, followed by good flavors. Lots of pleasure throughout, but not the most complex Domaine Leroy wine.

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• 2000 Domaine Leroy Corton-Renardes 95 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  While I truly enjoyed the Leroy CdlR flight, this wine stood out as my favorite Leroy tonight. Perhaps not when first poured and it came across as ripe and "fun," but more more time in glass it lengthened and spice came front and center. It was nicely balanced to start, but that balance remained impressive as this wine picked up weight and density with more air. Good now, better in the future.

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