Long lunch at Sasi's

Made a trip across the border with J, C and W.

• 2015 Waris-Hubert Champagne Grand Cru "Sophos" Extra Brut 90 Points

  France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

  This was decent, but not giving much on the day. It was really tight on the nose, with quiet notes of white fruit and some flinty wet stone along with a little savoury aroma in the background. Same thing on the palate - it felt quite clenched shut, with neutral flavours of white fruit, more wet stone and something that reminded me of water chestnuts. I thought the mousse and acidity felt rather soft, but there was a little grip of something almost like tannins in the mouth that kept the wine structured. With time, some of that savoury, flinty, rather umami tone picked up on the nose came out on the midpalate and towards the finish. I found this decent and quite interesting, but it was way too tight to judge properly. One to set aside and try again in 2-3 years' time.

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• 2002 Jacquesson & Fils Champagne Brut Millésimé 92 Points

  France, Champagne

  This was very enjoyable. Probably time to start drinking these up though. It was quite advanced on the nose, with slightly savoury, oxidative tones of kumquats, browned apples and Chinese pears drifting out of the glass alongside notes of honey and some mineral tones. It was more understated on the palate, with a nice dry, minerally grip undergirding fresh flavours of lemons and kumquats, more of those browned apple tones. A sleek and polished wine, quite yummy, with a nice amount of power and silent strength to it. A lovely, if not very profound drop. I was quite surprised to find out this was a 2002 though - it certainly felt more advanced then that. Time to drink up!

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• 2009 Domaine Henri Boillot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère 93 Points

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

  A charming wine, but still quite tight and reductive, especially when first poured. Rather surprising for a 2009 white. This was very good though. The nose had a lot of character on it - flint, white fruit, citrus zest, mineral with a touch reductive matchstick aromas at the side. The palate was better. This was a marriage of power and grace. There was some typical 2009 ripeness that I did not pick up on the nose, with mango and pineapple tones at the fore. It was a lot sleeker than one would have expected with those tropical tones though, with lots of cut and definition lent to it by bright acidity and a spine of great minerality. PLenty of dry extract and tension on the wine, all the way into its long finish. Superb stuff, with lots going on in the mouth. This does need many, many years yet before it hits its peak though.

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• 2010 Domaine Amiot Guy et Fils Le Montrachet 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  This was very nice indeed. Rather old school, but a solid and very delicious Montrachet. The nose showed dollops of sweet cream and ripe white fruit - melon and Chinese pears I thought - and then drifts of white flowers and some honeyed tones. Very nice and inviting. The palate was really solid. Grand Cru girth and power wed to purity and elegance , with a whole lot of clarity showing in its generous flavours of white fruit - here I got apples and honeyed pears - all playing against a gentle mineral backdrop. Nice finish too, juicy and pure. This was a 2010 Grand Cru that was starting to integrate really well, with the bright acid and full fruit of the vintage coming together nicely. Yum. Good now, it will probably be even better with a couple more years under its belt.

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• 1981 Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Único 94 Points

  Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero

  A really nice wine, but it was evident from the moment it was poured that this was definitely not ready for primetime drinking. It had a subtly beautiful nose, somewhere perched between Ribera and Bordeaux in its character I thought, with gentle wafts of earth and spice, a drift of fragrant cigarette smoke, and then aromas of dark berries and black cherries. A lovely, masculine expression. The palate showed a lovely clarity and balance to it, with soft, velvety tannins draped across elegant notes of black cherries and dark berries, again gently swathed with drifts of Tempranillo's cigarette notes. An ageless wine, still really fresh and youthful. There was clearly a seam of muscle and power in the wine, but it always came across as seamlessly elegant and pure, almost a bit reserved in nature. This got better and better over the afternoon, but one always go the sense that this was still holding a lot back, and that it will need many years to unfold yet. This is one wine I would love to try again a decade or two down the road.

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• 1997 La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 904 94 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Superb on the day - this stood toe-to-toe with an arguably superior but much less ready bottle of 1981 Vega Sicilia Unico that was served alongside. There was a wonderfully perfumed nose on this, just bursting out of the glass with flowers - think roses and violets - sweet, coconutty American oak, and then lovely aromas of red cherries and berries. An amazingly expressive bouquet, full of beautiful smells. The palate shared some that that clear, pure character of the Vega, with deliciously fresh acidity and velvet tannins carrying the wine's limpid flavours of red cherries and berries into long finish of lovely depth, where more of that floral character and a just a whiff of cigarette came in. A feminine counterpoint to the distinctly masculine Unico. This was an absolutely delicious wine drinking quite at peak.

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