Wines with Wayne

Earlier in 2019, Wayne took me for a quick tasting at Dhall and Nash, where I took some brief notes. The wines were served non-blind.

Afterwards we shared a couple of nice Burgs at his place with dinner.

• 2014 Domaine Henri Darnat Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Champs-Gain

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

  A small pour and brief note. A citric, mineral and fairly rich and mealy bouquet. On palate, quite fat and full for a 2014 Puligny-Montrachet. Still, not a bad wine.

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• 2010 Domaine Jean-Michel Gaunoux Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières 93 Points

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

  A small pour (and brief note) but a wine I know very well. A big upgrade on the Darnat. A very good 1er white Burg from an excellent site and year. Colour quite deep gold, compared with the Damat. Floral, lemon citrus and piercingly mineral on the nose. Clean, fresh and lemony to drink. Tensile, mineral spine yet not lacking in rich, ripe orchard fruit. Excellent.

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• 2016 Domaine Morey-Coffinet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru En Caillerets

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

  Small pour and brief note. An attractive bouquet of white flowers, spices, lemon zest and poached pears. On palate, relatively opulent and full Chassagne style. Citrus and stonefruit flavours with some minerality. Subtle acidity. Decent Chassagne. I doubt it'll make old bones.

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• 2014 Pascal Bouchard Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

  Small pour and brief note. Notes of lemon, apple, pear and Chablis-typical chalk and salinity, with a touch of vanillin oak on the bouquet. (Although Wayne noted that, rather than new oak barrels, just barrels of 1-5 years of age, were used in the élevage). On palate, a touch of spiciness, with lemons, oyster shell, a little green apple and white peach. A good Chablis but not of the quality that the top houses produced in this excellent year from this greatest of all Chablis climats.

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• 2015 Hyde De Villaine Chardonnay de la Guerra

  USA, California, Napa / Sonoma, Carneros

  Small pour and brief note. Golden colour. After a little reduction, a bouquet packed with rich, ripe orchard fruit. In the mouth, a fuller, more opulent Chardonnay than any of the Burgundies. Juicy and fat. Lower acid and seemingly more alcohol. Still, I quite liked this richer, sweeter styled Chardonnay.

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• 2016 Flowers Chardonnay Sonoma Coast

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast

  Small pour and brief note. A more lemon and lime citrus bouquet than the HDV, with peaches, pears, honeysuckle and apricots. Similar on palate. Less opulent than the HDV and therefore preferred.

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• 2011 Frédéric Magnien Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Les Ruchots

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Morey St. Denis 1er Cru

  Small pour and brief note. A funky, earthy, slightly vegetal, very Morey nose of dark fruit and damp black soil. Black fruited on palate. Earthy and a little feral. Touches of green herbs, but not overtly pyrazine affected, with some sous bois. A decent Morey St. Denis 1er.

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• 2015 Philippe Leclerc Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Cazetiers

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru

  Small pour and brief note. More red fruited than the Magnien - red currants, red cherries and raspberries - with earth and some barbequed game meats. Hints of wild berry and bramble on the nose. Vibrant, red berry fruit on the palate, including raspberries and cranberries, with mainly red cherry. Below mid weight. A good Gevrey 1er but not one to challenge those of the famous houses from this quality climat.

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• 2014 Rapet Père et Fils Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Aux Fournaux

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru

  Small pour and brief note. A clean, fresh nose of dark fruit, earth, wet vegetation and a little black spice. A mouth of wet earth, damp underbrush, mushrooms and black berries. A little rustic, but I still enjoyed it.

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• 2016 Schubert Pinot Noir Marion's Vineyard

  New Zealand, North Island, Wairarapa

  Small pour and brief note. I know this Martinborough house, cuvée and vintage well. Drinking absolutely as I would expect, very well. Savoury, earthy and brambly with black fruit, underbrush and dark spices. Fully ripe and quite powerful. A good vintage for Schubert.

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• 1964 Château Climens 95 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  Small pour and brief note. A treat from Wayne, him knowing that Climens is a favourite Sauternes/Barsac domaine for me. Really interesting. A complex bouquet of resin, dried apricot, button mushrooms, pears, preserved limes and lemons, dry tilled soil and dried mixed herbs with a touch of honey. On palate, a subtle, understated beauty. Only a little sweetness remains. Subtle and quite savoury. Herbal, mushroomy and earthy, showing a distinct white truffle character. Some lime juice and dried or preserved yellow fruits in the background. Lovely acidity. Great length. Still very much alive. Brilliant!

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• 2009 Domaine Bruno Clair Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru

  Served double blind to Wayne. The sort of bouquet you could swim around in for an hour or two without needing to drink the wine. Blackberry, dark cherry, dark soil, mineral, clove and dark floral perfumes. Wayne picked it as a serious Burgundy - describing it as "having a bit of age but being still very primary" - picking it as a 2001 Gevrey Grand Cru. As Wayne described it, the Bruno Clair was a "savoury number", being both "savoury and fruity at the same time, big structured and dry and tannic". To me, it showed real Clos St. Jacques typicity, reminding me of what a great - sympathetic and understated - winemaker Clair is. Here the sol vintage has not blotted out the terroir. This is a potentially great CSJ which - ideally - needs another 5-10 years. (94-95) potential.

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• 1999 Domaine Robert Arnoux / Arnoux-Lachaux Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Suchots 93 Points

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

  Served double blind to me, I picked this wine as first a Pommard then as a Corton from around 2010! On the bouquet, the structure and youth of this wine was obvious with scents of black and red cherries and plums, black currants and cassis, dark earth, wet iron and granite. Also some mahogany-like barrique yet to integrate. In the mouth very closed and youthful, drinking younger than the CSJ. Very dark fruited and earthy with an iron core. Still very tannic, but they seemed to be quality, spherical tannins. A tight fist of tannins on the long, dry finish. No rusticity. Very serious and structured. Rich, powerful and silky with good persistent acidity. It showed no Vosne-Romanée - letalone Les Suchots - typicity or terroir that I could see. Drinking it blind, it seemed a quality better 1er or even Grand Cru Burgundy. It was drinkable on the night - particularly matched with Wayne's excellent lamb shank - but optimally it very much needs 7-10 more years in the cellar.

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