Burgundy Wine Club 10th Anniversary Dinner

Wonderful night celebrating 10 years of our BWC. The Richebourgs were stunning, as was the 08 Leflaive Chavalier.

• 1998 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

  Lovely aromatics, great balance between mineral and fruit, complex and clean on the nose. Which is a relief because 50-50 this is pre-moxed. But it wasn't. We loved the nose, but the palate had a bitter edge, and showed hollow in the middle, and none of the poise and complexity, none of the material that the 08 showed. Lovely nose, not a great wine, but that's about 1998, not about pre-mox or anything like that.

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• 2008 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

  Whoa, this was really, really good. Super fresh and clean on the nose, with focused and vibrant notes of fruit and stone, lifted and deep, complex and articulate. This carried over entirely to the palate, which showed great balance and length. Hard to desribe actual flavors because the wine showed seamlessly. It's a great wine, a true grand cru experience.

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• 1991 Domaine Jean Gros Richebourg

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Amidst a quartet of Jean Gros Richebourg, most at the dinner felt that this was the finest of the four. I found the aromatics on the 82 to be more exciting, but I think that this wine is overall a grander wine, and that it could surpass the 82 aromatically when it is of equal age. On this night it was absolutely stunning, as enthralling of a Burgundy experience as I've had. Piercing, focused, gorgeous, indescribably complex aromatics that include red fruit, asian spice, rose petal, but this if anything detracts from the sense of the nose, it was better than these attempts to describe it. Just a gorgeous wine, the kind of wine that converts the Burgundy skeptic, the kind of wine that leaves you wanting to chase Burgundy in the hopes of reliving this kind of experience.

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• 1988 Domaine Jean Gros Richebourg

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Amidst a quartet of Jean Gros Richebourgs, some at the table felt that this wine was not as lovable as the 91 or the 82. It is a different kind of nose, a different kind of vintage. The nose here was reticent, the wine harder in structure. It needed more time to soften, and as it did, it definitely became more charming. There was clean and focused fruit, more musk and earth than in the others, and hints of Asian spices. Balanced, lively, and complex on the palate, a wonderful wine. And yet this wine suffered for its company. It helped us to understand how truly spectacular the 91 was, and so perhaps we undervalued this wine, which on any other evening, on it's own, would be incredibly rewarding and wonderful.

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• 1982 Domaine Jean Gros Richebourg

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Absolutely and completely gorgeous. Stunning, truly. Amidst a quartet of Jean Gros Richebourgs, the table was split on whether this or the 91 was the finest. I loved them equally, and for different reasons. The nose here is simply enthralling, it's what the the most frilly descriptions say when they describe of the nose of a great Richebourg. Incredible complexity of aroma, and great articulation too - spices, incense, musky animale notes, savory tertiary tones, all swirling around and interacting and changing. The wine is so alive and vibrant, it's just a gorgeous thing to experience, and it all carries onto the palate too, which is so impeccably balanced that it can seem to just fly by, and then you notice the pungency and complexity of the finish. A real wow wine, and it completely defies the common logic about the paucity of the 1982 vintage.

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• 1978 Domaine Jean Gros Richebourg

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Amidst a quartet of Jean Gros Richebourgs, this one was to me the most undervalued. It shows way older than the others, much older even thatn the 1982, which is still a wine of great fruit and textural plushness and power. This '78 is showing bones, it's the rocks and soil now, most everything else has melted away. But the wine is a Richebourg, made beautifully, and it is not gentle just because it's old. I loved how powerful it still is, how vibrant it smells and tastes, even though there is only the memory of fruit. It still fills the mouth and sinuses with perfume, and is very long and pungent. Some said that it is anonymous as a Richebourg, that it's just beautiful old Burgundy. But I do not agree with that, I felt it's Richebourg-ness evident via it's raw power and pungency, and the memory of spice and fruit on the finish. There's no upside to waiting, though, and if I had more I'd find appreciative friends and drink it.

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• 1998 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin Grand Cru

  Very strong showing, although suffered for being served after a quartet of stunning older Richebourgs. This showed lovely roundness of aroma and flavor, and was prettier than the other two Chambertins it was served alongside. It did not, to me, offer the kind of complexity on the palate that I want from this wine - I preferred the 1994 I had a few years ago. I served this blind with two other 1998 Chambertins and most preferred this one, although some found the Bruno Clair to be at least it's equal.

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• 1998 Domaine Trapet Chambertin

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin Grand Cru

  This wine was served alongside 98 Rousseau Chambertin and 98 Bruno Claire Beze, and everyone else at the table was single blind. This was unanimously rated as a very solid notch below either of those other wines, although it was not a bad wine. It showed muddy for a while, perhaps overly extracted? Lovely, but not inspiring, and not close to the level of the other two in this vintage.

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• 1998 Domaine Bruno Clair Chambertin-Clos de Bèze

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru

  Served single blind with 98 Rousseau Chambertin and 98 Trapet Chambertin. Beautiful wine, particularly on the nose, which showed lovely and complex fruit and also forest floor and savory notes. More about the fruit at this stage. A few at the table felt that this was the finest of the three (blind). Most preferred the Rousseau, tit was a more elegant and complete wine, in my opinion. This was wonderful, though, and far FAR closer to the Rousseau than the price difference would indicate.

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