Most Epic Burgundy Dinner

I have little to say other than these are wines we drank, and thank you to our kind and generous host.

• 1996 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières 94 Points

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

  Tasted double blind. Floral start with some dried apricot, Meyer lemon and plenty of spice. Powerful and rich, but with a racy texture that provides lift and balance. This was quite different than the two glasses of Ramonet Montrachet in the flight, but I think it held its own nicely.

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• 1996 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Tasted double blind. Started off most subdued in the flight with lemon peel, apple, pear and floral hints. Picked up weight with more time in glass, as more spice also emerged. Only faint mint coming through tonight. Very elegant.

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• 1992 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served double blind, this was my Wine of the Flight. Minty with lots of fruit, this is a long, explosive powerhouse. This had been open well over an hour before it was served, and kept getting better and better over the following 3+ hours in glass.

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• 1985 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served double blind alongside Ramonet Montrachet 1979, 1986. Great aromatic start with lots of fresh apple. Very precise, well textured and persistent. I preferred 1986 vs this '85, finding the balance and harmony to better.

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• 1979 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served double blind. Ripe and powerful, this was certainly age appropriate. I even correctly identified the vintage. Lots of stone fruit, modest acidity and length.

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• 1986 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet 98 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Served double blind alongside Ramonet Montrachet 1979, 1985. Floral, intense and powerful apple with some lemon custard. Faint hint of sweetness overall and sweet spice with telltale Ramonet mint. Incredibly long. Perfectly harmonious. Sensational when open a couple of hours and served at dinner, even better four hours later after dinner. This was my favorite of tonight's vertical (96, 92, 86, 85, 79) that were all served blind.

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• 1990 Henri Jayer Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cros Parantoux 98 Points

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

  Tasted double blind. Unmistakably ripe Vosne aromatics with red and black berries and baking spice. Long, powerful and incredibly elegant. Incredibly pure and clean. There is nothing flashy or flamboyant here. Once we were told the wines in the flight I was able to identify this wine based on vintage and the lack of whole cluster character. My favorite of the flight (even before I saw the label) and my Wine of the Night. Brought by an incredibly generous collector (and new friend) whose cellar gives me complete confidence in the authenticity of this bottle.

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• 2000 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru

  Served double blind. Started off muted and reserved, and while every other wine in the flight got more interesting with air, this went the wrong way. I think this was ever-so-slightly corked, even if none of the telltale signs were there (other than stripped fruit).

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• 1999 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche 97 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru

  Served double blind. While this had been open several hours before serving, I wasn't thrilled immediately, thinking it slightly too ripe and opulent, slightly lacking in balance. Within 15 minutes of being poured, however, the structural elements came into greater balance. Rich and ripe with lots of Chinese five spice, this probably had the greatest density and concentration in the flight. I was able to correctly identify this once we were told the 6 wines in the flight.

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• 2000 Emmanuel Rouget Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cros Parantoux 96 Points

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

  Tasted double blind. Aromatically stunning start with spice galore and intense black berries. Another wine that kept getting better with more air, with an broad array of black and red berry aromas and a huge spice box throughout.

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• 1990 Domaine Leroy Romanée St. Vivant 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru

  Tasted double blind. Flamboyant and extroverted, this is an incredibly fun wine showing red and black berries, lots of baking spice and some liqueur hints. Very fresh and youthful with great concentration. I'd like to see more nuance, but this just needs more time to evolve, much like I felt about another bottle last year.

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• 1999 Emmanuel Rouget Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cros Parantoux 93 Points

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

  Tasted double blind. Black and red cherry, this came across as very ripe and dense with modest spice vs some of the other great bottles of Vosne in the flight. Others liked this a little more than I did tonight, but I found the balance imperfect here and (picking nits) thought the fruit came across perhaps slightly roasted and the new oak spice still pronounced.

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• 1985 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche 95 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru

  Tasted double blind. The best I can ever recall from 1985 La Tâche. Great spicy and age appropriate maturity on the red cherry and berry aromas and flavors. Lush and ripe but good energy and structural support. Both fun and nuanced.

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• 1985 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin Grand Cru

  Tasted double blind. While not a powerhouse, this has lots of mature black cherry and berry, braised meat, woodsy spice, cooked mushroom and leather notes in very good balance.

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• 1989 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin Grand Cru

  Tasted double blind. Probably not a perfect bottle, lots of black fruit came across as somewhat tired. That might be consistent with many 1989s, but not other bottles of this wine I've had the good fortune to taste in the past few years. 90 points tonight.

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• 1978 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche 98 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru

  Tasted double blind. Bottle had 2 cm fill and a tattered label. But fortunately we didn't have to tasted the label, and the wine was amazing, in fact my best experience ever with 1978 La Tâche. Lots of mature red berry, dried rose petals, massive spice and smells of the forest after it has rained. Long and unfolding. In a flight with Henri Jayer 1978 Richebourg, these two wines brought tears to my eyes.

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• 1980 Domaine Dujac Clos Saint-Denis 89 Points

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

  Tasted double blind. Slightly tired aromatic start that made me think it a little stewy, but more interesting on palate with mature/lush red fruit and good spice.

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• 1978 Henri Jayer Richebourg 98 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Tasted double blind. In a flight with 1978 La Tâche, these wines brought tears to my eyes. Lots of red fruit with lots of spice and an incredibly purity. Long, long, long and persistent. Brought by an incredibly generous collector (and new friend) whose cellar gives me complete confidence in the authenticity of this bottle.

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• 1964 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Boudriotte Rouge

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

  Tasted double blind. The age came through. Fully evolved. The best 50 year old Chassagne Rouge I have ever had.

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