Courcel/ Chanson Tasting with Gilles de Courcel

Chevalier Fine Wines - Chicago IL
Tasted Saturday, April 18, 2015 by Burgundy Al with 895 views

Introduction

Gilles de Courcel was in Chicago and we had the opportunity to taste the wines from his family domaine as well as Bollinger's Chanson property that he also manages. Younger wines are from the distributor, while Kevin provided some of the mid-aged bottles and I brought a few older bottles from my cellar to help provide some better long-term context.

Flight 1 - Guided Tasting of White Burgundy (2 Notes)

  • 2012 Domaine Chanson Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Mouches Blanc

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

    Tasting, brief note. Floral start with great orchard fruit purity. Vintage lushness with very good concentration. All apple, coming through ripe to start, nicely structured middle to end. Very good 90-91 point potential.

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  • 2012 Domaine Chanson Corton-Vergennes Blanc 90 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

    Tasting, brief note. I don't recall ever previoulsy trying wine from Corton-Vergennes before, an east facing vineyard in Ladoix. Slightly less alluring or complex nose vs Clos des Mouches, but perhaps more/ better ripe, lush apple on palate. Big fruit flavors with good purity, supplemented with lots of intriguing textural elements providing a chewy mouth feel.

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Flight 2 - Guided Tasted of Red Burgundy (8 Notes)

  • 2012 Domaine Chanson Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Mouches

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

    Tasting, brief note. Wild strawberry on nose and palate. Slightly sweet start is nicely accessible today, firms up with increased weight towards finish. Good density. Good medium-term wine.

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  • 2012 Domaine Chanson Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Fèves

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

    Tasting, brief note. Tart cherry with good pepper and licorice. Today clearly dominated by sturdy structure. Requires lots of patience.

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  • 2012 Domaine de Courcel Pommard 1er Cru Les Croix Noires

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

    Tasting, brief note. Dark berries on nose and palate with a meaty character, fresh herb and ripe finish that works well with some rustic, ferrous hints and the firm, mouthcoating textures I most often associate with Pommard.

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  • 2012 Domaine de Courcel Pommard 1er Cru Grand Clos des Épenots

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

    Tasting, brief note. Massive black berries with some liqueur hints and big spice. There is a lot of flavor here, but today well behind the wine's firm, muscular structure that dominates. This will need at least another decade in the cellar.

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  • 2009 Domaine de Courcel Pommard 1er Cru Les Rugiens 94 Points

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

    Tasting, brief note. Red and black cherry, very lush and ripe with great spice throughout. Very fun and accessible, but with serious structure just slightly in the background. Great now, better in 10 years, probably even better in 20. I brought a bottle of the 1990 to this tasting, and think this 2009 will end up as a similar wine.

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  • 2007 Domaine de Courcel Pommard 1er Cru Les Rugiens 89 Points

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

    Tasting, brief note. Mature red fruit, leather, end-of-summer flowers. Forward fruit, subtle spice, not much nuance. I like this, but others liked it more today.

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  • 1996 Domaine de Courcel Pommard 1er Cru Les Rugiens

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

    Tasting, brief note. Tart red and black fruit aromas and flavors with ever-so-subtle spice. Moderately mature, mostly on the leaner side, with lots of structure that is fairly pronounced from the middle to end. Give this more time?

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  • 1993 Domaine de Courcel Pommard 1er Cru Grand Clos des Épenots 86 Points

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

    Tasting, brief note. Mature red fruit with subtle spice. Lighter styled for the vintage, everything is in balance, but without the power or nuance I'd expect.

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Flight 3 - Some Older Bottles from my Cellar (3 Notes)

  • 1988 Domaine de Courcel Pommard 1er Cru Grand Clos des Épenots 90 Points

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

    Popped and poured mid-afternoon, served to the tasting group. Slightly musty to start, but that quickly dissipated. Mostly black fruit with subtle spice and a dense, weighty mouth feel I like in well made Pommard. Well structured, but in balance with fruit that is fresh enough I'd have thought it younger than an '88. Final glass poured 8 hours later, at which point there was more earth and mushroom, but still good flavor and balance. This was my final bottle, but well stored bottles will easily drink well another decade+.

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  • 1990 Domaine de Courcel Pommard 1er Cru Les Rugiens 94 Points

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

    Open an hour before serving. Lush and powerful red and black cherry from start-to-finish with great density. Mouth coating textures complement the powerful and fresh fruit, all balanced by moderate structure. Very good now, but this will easily last another decade. I have one more bottle and plan to set it aside for at least 5 more years. General consensus this was the best wine of the day. i really enjoyed tasting this alongside the 2009 vintage, which I think might evolve in the direction of this great 1990.

    Final glass was poured 12 hours after opening, and might have been the best taste from this bottle.

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  • 2005 Domaine Chanson Clos Vougeot 92 Points

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

    Open and double decanted at 10 AM, then served around 2 PM. Spice-driven start with lots of dense black fruit aromas. Same fruit flavors came across as really backward. This would be benefited from hours in a decanter. The last glass was poured 12 hours after the bottle was opened and was by far the most accessible on the palate without any deterioration of overall freshness.

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Flight 4 - Walk Around Tasting of Red Burgundy (5 Notes)

Flight 5 - Walk Around Tasting of White Burgundy (4 Notes)

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