Brian's Birthday Surprise

Jane sweetly messaged the gang to surprise Brian, and we duly gathered surreptitiously at ES for a late night cellar raid to mark his birthday.

• NV Penet-Chardonnet Champagne Grand Cru Grande Reserve Brut Nature 89 Points

  France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

  This was a big bruiser of a Champagne - not for the fainthearted. The nose had a savoury, oxidative twang to it, with rancio notes of preserved fruit peel and brown pears drizzled with a little honeyed accent. Quite nice if you like the style. In spite of having no dosage, the palate gave an appearance of sweetness on the attack, with a fleshy, fruity, almost caramelised apple tone on the attack, and a little sherry vinegar moreishness on the midpalate. Past that though, and the acid spine of the wine really comes out, pummelling its way into a super-dry finish. A quirky Champagne for sure. Not quite my thing, and tt probably needs a lot more time in the bottle too, but I must say that it was quite decent overall. It might have been better with some oily seafood as well - maybe a cod or salmon dish.

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• 1976 Dominique Laurent Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Amoureuses 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  Old and slightly over the hill. There was still enough thereabouts to give some drinking pleasure, but this bore little resemblance to a good Les Amoureuses. It started out quite smelly actually, with lots of leathery, earthy funk showing against a backdrop of dark fruit and dried leaves, with a light spice and something vaguely floral rising out with some time in the glass. The palate still had a bit of sweetness on the attack, with a little show of maraschino cherries and sweetm, slightly candied strawberries, at the for - almost like Woods cough syrup, with a twist of minty herb at the edges. The fruit lingered on midpalate for awhile, before leaning out into woody, brambly notes at the finish. It was a nicely proportioned wine. Any remnants of hard 1976 structure had softened and mellowed until the tannins were barely there, but there was still a good sense of balance to it. It was just a bit too old though, and clearly slipping into dotage.

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• 1985 Castello di San Polo in Rosso Chianti Classico Cetinaia 93 Points

  Italy, Tuscany, Chianti, Chianti Classico DOCG

  Wow. This was a great Chianti - it went toe-to-toe with a good bottle of 1996 Jadot Clos St-Denis and did not nat an eyelid. It had a lovely sweet nose of dried cherries and wild berries underpinned by savoury meaty notes and rounded with a halo of fragrant wood spice, dried herbs and a touch of dusty earth. A lovely aromatic profile that brought me right back to Tuscany. The palate was fresh and lively, with lots of beautiful juicy acidity running through gently sweet flavour of cherries and wild berries with that earthy meatiness deep in the background. There was just such a lovely shape and poise the wine, with a light chew of tannins and the superb balance from its fresh acidity - I could drink bottles of this all night long. Great finish too, with warm shades of spice and herb tailing away in a long, full, gentle tail. A great wine, quite at peak now, yet still so youthful as it approaches its 30th year that it will easily go on for another decade. A real surprise from a producer we have never heard of before.

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• 1996 Louis Jadot Clos Saint-Denis 93 Points

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

  A lot better than the last bottle we had. This had a beautiful nose, with floral hints and sweet blueberry and black cherry notes, and then earth and meat and metallic mineral, with just that hint of toasty spice alongside earth, metallic mineral, earth, meat, awesome nose, blueberries, black cherries, toasty spice - a complex mix of sweet and savoury aromas, great stuff. The palate seemed a lot more developed and giving than the last bottle. While there was a touch of austere meanness that somewhat curtailed the pleasure that the last bottle had, this was rather rounder and somewhat fleshier, showing a pleasing softness to its lovely depth and breadth as it unfolded in gentle layers of cherries and berry flavours and an infusion of fragrant spice, all glowing with a sweet purity. Very elegantly balanced and poised I thought, complex yet subtle. Nice long finish too, with a juicy length full of gummy blueberries, dashes of warm spice and some flower stalks. It was just at the very end that a hint of brambly hardness set in. Otherwise, this was very good indeed, and just starting to drink well. It may lack some of the depth and power of a great Clos St Denis, but I enjoyed it.

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• 2007 Château Rieussec 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  I really should stop killing off these bottles in their infancy, but they are so easy to yummy and easy to drink, especially in the 375ml format. It was still a bright golden yellow in colour, and the nose was still clearly that of a very young Sauternes, with rich honeyed tones and sweet aromas of lemon tart and more exotic tropical notes of lychees and pine apples, then some treacle and butterscotch and a touch of coconut - more of the roasted variety than the desiccated coconut notes of a young d'Yquem - I have always found the nose on this to be a more exotic, expressive Rieussec, and this bottle was no different. The palate had the lovely balance of the 2007 vintage that I like very much, with sweet lemony acidity lending the wine's rich flavours of lychees and longans, and sweet treacle and honey well delineated and focused, all the way into a long finish infused with warm Rieussec spice. This was very good indeed, with a really solid sense of depth and texture, yet the lovely balance and poise meant that it was drinking very nicely in its youth. This will no doubt be a lovely wine in say 20-25 years' time and will age effortlessly for decades. I hope I have the patience to hold on to at least a few bottles until then though! 93+

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