Kheam Hock Road
Tasted Friday, April 17, 2015 by Paul S with 538 views
This was a repeat of a dinner that I had back in June 2008 with another group of friends. We had a wider representation of the 9 Grand Crus of Gevrey back then, but the quality of the line-up this time round was a few notches up.
What a night we had this time round though – Ming San cooked up a storm, with some Michelin-worthy dishes, and many of the wines were starting to sing. While my notes from 2008 consistently remark that the wines needed significant amount of time yet, the 2001s now seem to be just on the cusp of maturity, and already gave tons of pleasure on the night. The Armand Rousseau quartet, in particular, really shone. Although I should say that there were no slouches on the night.
On a more personal note, I have always had a soft spot for Gevrey-Chambertin. A bottle of 1997 Jadot Clos de Beze was actually my gateway drug into the world of Burgundy wines. A Gevrey may not have the vivacious floral charm of a Chambolle or the luxuriously spiced depths of a Vosne. Its Grand Crus are arguable less consistently good then those of its neighbour, Morey-St. Denis. Yet Gevrey is almost always the go-to for me when I am not sure what to pull out of the cellar – there is something very satisfyingly familiar with the mix of red fruit with nuances of earth and meat, maybe a bit of spice here and there, and the sense of a real structure and firmness behind the wines of the commune. And, of course, with Chambertin and its sister, Clos de Beze, Gevrey has two of the crown jewels of Burgundy. As tonight showed, when these are on song, they can be amongst the very best wines in the world.
2001 Domaine Ramonet Bâtard-Montrachet 95 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
Superb. I actually did not take to it when first poured – I thought the more ready 2001 Leflaive Batard we had alongside was far better. Over the night though, this just grew and grew as it sat in the decanter, and I found myself being bowled over each time I took a break from the reds to return to it. By the end of the evening, this was absolutely superb – one of my wines of the night in the midst of what was supposed to be a red wine dinner. Even from first pour, it had a big, gorgeous Batard bouquet, with rich, slightly honeyed tones of yellow fruit and cream alongside chalky mineral and a touch of talcum powder. An alluring nose. The palate suffused the mouth with a warm, rich glow of honey and butterscotch and yellow-fruited flavours, all wrapped in a creamily textured depth. I found it a bit too big and a little unwieldy for my taste at first, but it seemed to come together quite miraculously with time. By the end of the night, this was a display of effortless power and balance, with fresh acidity giving the wine an energy and buoyancy that belied its strength and depth. Notes of white chocolate and little sprinkles of cumin and ginger then emerged past the midpalate, adding nuance and complexity. Fantastic. There was a little heat right at the end at first, but this too faded with time to reveal a long, long finish full of mineral and little nutty notes. Brilliant stuff, starting to show well now. This has a long life ahead of it though – I would leave it aside for a few more years yet, but if serving now, do remember to give it some time in the decanter.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue
2001 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet 94 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
It has been some 5 years since I last had this. It is still a gorgeous wine, but does not seemed to have improved all that much from the last bottle in April 2010. It had a lovely nose, typical Leflavie, with whiffs of gunflint and chalk and earth swirling around a core of yellow-fruited aromas, and then a little sprinkle of herb alongside. Lovely, complex stuff. As with the last bottle, it was the marriage between the rich, creamy depth of a Batard with the lovely freshness of the wine that really made it stand out on the palate. Here, mouthfilling layers of apple and pear and sweeter stone-fruit were pierced by a lovely acid spine that lent the wine a sense of prickly freshness and energy, with fresh lemony flavours driving through the fleshier tones and into a long finish laden with chalky, stony, ever so slightly bittersweet mineral notes that trailed away into the distance with a tiny little kiss of spice right at the very end. This was very good indeed – I just loved the clarity and focus that it had. I think this is about at peak – while the initially grumpy 2001 Ramonet Batard that was served with it grew and grew in the decanter through the night until it quite overshadowed most of the other wines, this started out on a strong plateau and pretty much continued in same vein throughout the evening.
Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue