NYE 2022/23

A wonderful evening with some fascinating wines from three cellars and great food. My WOTN: Climens 2003, and Pontet-Canet 2003 a close second. Others loved the Blanck 2010 Riesling Schlossberg more than anything. The two grandest wines, Margaux 1997 and Yquem 1982, both came with vintage warnings, and indeed turned out to be (relatively) low-key compared to the in-your-face 2003 Pauillacs/Barsac.

• 2003 Dom Pérignon Champagne 90 Points

  France, Champagne

  From 75cl, hard, compacted cork slipped out easily, P+P. The best part is the texture: quite weighty on the entry, with very tiny, non-aggressive bubbles. There was also an attractive smoky edge to the nose, which persisted on to the mid-palate, and made a fine match for smoked trout and caviar nibbles. That said, both scent and taste were very muted, no false notes but nothing distinctive, and the fizz went flat far too quickly (20 minutes). I wonder whether this bottle, although properly stored, might have received rough treatment prior to sale. And whether the cork was really up to the job. 90–91P(?)

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• 2018 La Chablisienne Chablis Grand Cru Grenouilles Château Grenouilles 88 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

  From 75cl, DIAM closure, P+P. Blind, I would have guessed a cleanly-made, rather neutral Chardonnay with just a little hint of oak, perhaps some very soft pear fruit... possibly a Bourgogne Blanc ordinaire from somewhere south of Beaune. Inexpressive scent, short finish, not much in between. For such a young Chablis GC this seems not only remarkably tame, but devoid of most characteristics recorded in recent CT TNs. The bright or even "screeching" acidity others have described didn't show at all; indeed we felt it lacked Chablis typicity (choose between oyster shell, salinity, "minerality"/structured complexity, lemon juice... nope, not here). Not convinced there's a lot more substance in there, but if there is, I can't see it poking through for several years to come. 88P(?)

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• 2020 Château Simone Palette Blanc 92 Points

  France, Provence, Palette

  From 75cl, closure not seen, P+P. After two disappointingly flaccid wines (Dom Perignon 2003, Chablisienne Ch. Grenouilles 2018), this beauty got the party going. Gorgeous lemon confit from nose to tail; weighty entry leads onto a rather lighter, nuanced, layered mid-palate, which would surely have revealed more aromatic complexity given a couple more years in the cellar or an hour's decant. Long finish. Great wine. 92P

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• 2010 Paul Blanck Riesling Schlossberg 91 Points

  France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

  From 75cl, good cork, P+P. Last of 12 bottles, finally paired with exactly the right, rich food (sweet chestnut and porcini soup) to bring out its many positive qualities and cover for (or even profit from) the grape sweetness. Clear petrol signal on the nose; upfront sweetness on the entry, but at this stage of maturity and with the rich soup, the mid-palate is a marvel of sparky acidity, unctuous textural elements balancing undeniable mineral depth. Unmistakeably Alsace GC, and a strong reminder of what Alsace winemakers mean when they describe a wine as "gastronomic." 91P (some people at the table went as far as to say this was their personal WOTN).

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• 2003 Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  From 75cl, perfect cork, double decanted 3 hours, which it needed badly. On opening, this was as rough and unappealing as described in my TN of 30.10.2020. At the table it had morphed into something not exactly graceful, but a lot more palatable. Blackcurrant leaf aromas poke through barnyard on the nose; not much cassis fruit on the chunky entry; burly tannins leaven the otherwise roasted, monolithic dark red/black berry fruit compote of the mid-palate. It benefitted from being served with deliciously fatty duck confit and gratin, which helped smooth off the rough edges. 89–90P

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• 2003 Château Pontet-Canet 92 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  From 75cl, perfect cork, double decanted 5 hours, which it definitely needed. Although it never really opened up fully this evening, it was a joy to drink: packed with strikingly pure cassis fruit, a silken texture, hints of complex spice flashing through every now and then before it closed up again. The trademark Pauillac pencil-lead is present, but in an unobtrusive way. The closed-ness reminds me of other 2003 GCC Médoc wines which I found roasted and disappointingly mute, but I think this vintage of Pontet-Canet still has great potential. 3-5 years before the next bottle, and/or an even longer decant next time? 92P(+)

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• 1997 Château Margaux 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

  From 75cl, perfect cork, decanted 1 hour. Pleasantly expressive, open Médoc scent with all the expected descriptors, but without any of the hoped-for seductive Margaux perfume. Light-bodied entry, with attenuated dark red mid-palate fruit balanced with dark, earthy, elements (very old, but not-yet-stale black truffles?) and well-managed but not particularly expressive, chewy, tannins. Short finish. Served blind, I might have guessed an excellently made 4th or 5th growth from a really difficult year, somewhere between St. Julien and Margaux. A delicious drink, but ridiculously overpriced, unless you absolutely need a 1997 Bordeaux for sentimental reasons. 90P

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• 1982 Château d'Yquem 89 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  From 37,5cl, shrunken cork fell into bottle on first approach with my ah-so. Hasty but successful decant. Dark golden, recognisably noble, botyitis, some saffron, ground almonds, fairly rich. 88-89P(?) in this condition, well preserved bottles with better closures, and especially larger formats will surely show much better than this.

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• 2003 Château Climens 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  From 37,5cl, perfect cork, P+P. Glorious mint and verbena scent, so fresh and so unexpected each time after sipping this superconcentrated, high-octane (14,50% alc.) bomb. As recorded in my previous TN 14.11.2020, it doesn't feel nearly as sweet as it probably is, and I can only repeat: heady, weighty Barsac, just delicious, and good for further maturation. 93P

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• NV Champagne Louis Armand Champagne Premier Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut 86 Points

  France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru

  From 75cl. Dilute, attenuated, straightforward BdB. Short finish, slightly vegetal aftertaste. Fine for what it is. 86-87P

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In retrospect, it might have been interesting to have offered a more direct comparison to the Margaux 1997, either a more sucessful vintage of the same wine, another 1st growth from 1997, or even a comparably fine wine from another "challenging" vintage (Palmer 2002, perhaps, which would have been available).