Lunch with Neal Martin

Neal was in town for the Heart's Delight Wine Tasting & Auction. He and his lovely wife, Tomoko, were joined by seven DCWinos. Kendrick L. provided perfect wine service. We ordered a bunchy of dishes from the menu, and all were solid. The order of the flights was very casual.

We drank the Salon as we greeted one another, then moved on to the Vietti and the Krug with pizzas.

• 1996 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut 98 Points

  France, Champagne

  A really elegant and fresh example, showing exceptional balance and precision. Very fine, medium, generous mousse, succulent yellow fruit, brioche, and honey. bright acidity, very fine limestone minerality, and a long generous yellow fruit driven finish. Remarkable balance and precision, exceptional! Further aging will not improve it.

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• 2012 Vietti Barolo Riserva Villero 97 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Classic, rich Barolo nose with concentrated, slightly dry red fruit, cherry compote, dried cherry, leather, tar, a hint of black truffle, licorice, dark spices, and earth. Exceptional concentration, rich, warm, and round, with the perfect amount of acidity and mineral. Strong tannins, firm but not coarse. The finish is remarkably long. I happen to love the 2012 vintage in Piedmont for its ample, generous fruit and balance, and this is a great example.

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• 2008 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 97 Points

  France, Champagne

  Really complex and elegant, generous succulent yellow fruit, all kinds of apple notes , a hint of red currant, strong brioche, sweet spices and fine limestone mineral. Beautiful balance and detail, very fine medium generous mousse, perfect amount of acidity and very fine mineral, and a seamless long generous yellow fruit driven finish. For my palate, this is completely ready to go. I find the expression similar to the 96 at a similar stage.

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The Vetan was super interesting and unique. Bernard Burtschy, a French wine critic and friend, recommended trying mature Rhône whites with an earthy dis, e.g. sauteed ceps (porcini) or morels with cream. The L'Ermite would benefit from such a pairing. It is very ripe with very low acidity.

• 2012 Edmond Vatan Sancerre Clos la Néore 95 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Upper Loire, Sancerre

  Super interesting and unique expression of Sancerre, very neutral yet concentrated ripe fruit, a hint of petrol, jalapeño, spicy spices, and limestone. Call me crazy, but I find strong high-end sake characteristics, both on the nose and the palate. Rich, ripe, and concentrated, yet also exceptionally focused and precise. Medium acidity, strong but fine mineral, and a long ripe white fruit-driven sake like finish. The Sauvignon Blanc character isn't prominent, only begins to show closer to the finish, where there's a hint of Sancerre like fruit. It constantly evolves with air, a true chameleon of a wine. I’d love to try it again over a few hours. Super fascinating and truly unique.

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• 2003 M. Chapoutier Ermitage Blanc l'Ermite 91 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

  My recollection is that Bob always pointed out how Chapoutier Hermitage Blancs tend to go through an awkward phase before eventually coming around, becoming fresher and better balanced. I'm not so certain. Rich golden color that’s clearly translated on the nose, super ripe, sweet yellow fruit with strong apricot, also, honey, marzipan, and sweet spices. There's also a hint of oxidation a la Vin Jaune. Super rich and concentrated. I find almost no acidity. I personally found it interesting, but a few others felt it was nearly DOA. There’s just no getting around the cloying nature. This feels like the French equivalent of an SQN white.

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The Lafon was to die for, like an understated Burgundy version of Aubert: superbly made, ripe, and concentrated.

• 2014 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières 98 Points

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

  Absolutely stunning nose displaying succulent perfectly ripe yellow fruit with a hint of white, lemon curd, apple candy, white peach, a hint of pineapple, cool mountain stream, beeswax, sweet spices and limestone. The oak/vanilla note is strong but not offensive. Unbelievably concentrated, perfectly ripe concentrated yellow and white fruit, rich, oily and full, but also laser like focus and exceptional balance, bright acidity, strong mineral, and an unbelievably long rich yellow fruit driven finish with a hint of vanilla and oak at the end. This is close to perfect for my palate. While it is perfectly hedonistic, I can't quite give it a three-digit score—I'm still dreaming of the 2014 Lafon Montrachet, the greatest white wine of my life. Lafon produces very modern, concentrated white Burgundies that make judicious use of oak, in the best way possible. I find the style similar to Coche-Dury’s in terms of oak usage. One can argue that it lacks the purity of Arnaud Ente or Lamy-Caillat.

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• 2016 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

  Very ripe fruit expression, orchard fruit, lemonc curd, beeswax, honey, sweet spices and limestone. Rich, ripe and full, opulent ripe fruit, medium acidity and mineral, and a medium to long ripe yellow fruit driven finish. Although showing a telltale sign Raveneau richness and generosity, it is a bit “heavy”.

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• 2022 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon 94 Points

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

  Very pure and energetic nose displaying slightly coiled white fruit, apple and pear, also a hints of lemon curd, starfruit, cool mountain stream, light honey, luxurious yet discrete oak, flint, and limestone. Very good concentration, generous slightly coiled white fruit, cool and pure, bright acidity and strong limestone mineral, and a long cool white fruit driven finish with a hint of flint at the end. I’ve always found Clavoillon to be a step below the other three Puligny premier crus in terms of complexity and finesse. However, the 22 stands out for its purity and energy.

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The bottle was very heavy, really deep and serious Champagne.

• 2014 Pierre Péters Champagne Grand Cru L'Etonnant Monsieur Victor 96 Points

  France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

  The bottle feels super heavy, maybe that’s a clue to what’s inside. Expressive complex nose displaying rich concentrated yellow fruit, apple, baked apple, brioche, marzipan, sweet spices and limestone. Exceptional concentration, deeply toned rich yellow fruit, rich and full, very fine generous mousse, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, and a long deeply toned rich yellow fruit driven finish. This is a very serious, rich, intense and concentrated style of Champagne.

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I really loved it. It could be easy dismissed based on the producer.
Really Musigny palate.

• 2014 Louis Jadot Musigny 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  Expressive nose displaying perfectly ripe, pure black fruit, blackberry, blackberry candy, mocha, dark caramel, sautéed cep, a hint of rose, and crushed rocks. Beautifully integrated palate, finely layered pure black fruit, exquisite detail, and finesse, perfect amount of acidity, strong mineral, noticeable yet fine tannins, and a seamless long, black-fruit-driven finish. Pure fruit on the nose and seamless elegance on the palate clearly expresses the Musigny terroir, at least when tasted none blind.

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All clearly reflected their origins

• 1961 Château Ausone 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

  My last bottle from a well-stored cellar. Completely tertiary nose displaying sweet black fruit, blackberry, plum, pronounced sous bois, cedar, leather, and earth. A strong ash note dominates in the beginning. Fully integrated palate, still showing slightly dry, rich black fruit, soft and warm, a hint of fine tannins, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, and a medium long, generous black fruit driven finish with ash at the end. Although there is no sign of oxidation, this bottle is a bit more advanced than the previous ones.

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• 2000 Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Único 95 Points

  Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero

  Complex nose displaying extremely ripe fruit, dry blueberry, blackberry jam, a hint of cherry compote, plum, fruitcake, licorice, leather, dark caramel, lacquer, sweet spices and earth. The American oak is very prominent. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of concentrated very ripe black and red fruit, rich and deeply toned, strong acidity, earthy mineral, and a long ripe black and red fruit driven finish with a hint of oak at the end. Perhaps due to the American oak, it reminds me of a mature Grange Hermitage.

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• 2016 Clos Rougeard (Foucault) Saumur-Champigny Le Bourg 95 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur-Champigny

  Beautiful Cab Franc nose displaying perfectly ripe pure red fruit, red cherry, strawberry, thyme and rosemary, white pepper, very floral, sap, spicy spices and crushed rocks. Very good concentration, finely layered pure red fruit, beautiful balance and harmony, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, and a long pure red fruit driven finish with a hint of rose and herb at the end. It constantly evolved with air. Very fund wine to follow for a few hours. This is a classic Clos Rougeard.

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Both '59s were live and kicking.

• 1959 Coron Père et Fils Corton 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  Medium expressive nose displaying generous sweet red fruit, tomato compote, cherry, leather, sauteed cep, caramel, black truffle, sweet spices and iron. There is a hint of musty note. Still showing very good concentration, finely layered sweet slightly dry red fruit, warm and round, perfect amount of acidity, iron mineral, and a medium long sweet red fruit driven finish. For some, WOTN, but I couldn’t get past the musty note and prefer the Chambertin.

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• 2000 Château Margaux 99 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

  Expressive nose displaying perfectly ripe, super-= concentrated black and blue fruit, blackberry, crème de cassis, licorice, perfume, liquid smoke, cedar, and crushed rocks. Incredibly concentrated, layers upon layers of intense black fruit, rich and unctuous, perfect amount of acidity and strong mineral and a long perfectly ripe black fruit driven finish with a touch of liquid smoke at the end. This might have been the perfect wine, but it was a bit too young and served alongside a number of older wines. My highest rated wine, but not my WOTN.

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• 1959 Coron Père et Fils Chambertin 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin Grand Cru

  A really fascinating wine, subtle sweet red fruit, raspberry preserve, all tertiary notes, sautéed mushroom, light caramel, cedar, sweet spices, and earth. The palate is fully mature, offering generous yet understated red fruit, warm, rich, and round, perfect amount of acidity and earthy mineral, and a seamless long sweet red fruit driven finish with a hint of ceder and caramel at the end. The nose is subtle, but the palate is unbelievably sweet and savory. I truly love the kind of sweetness that only comes from very old Burgundies. Both the Corton and the Chambertin are pure pinots and not doctored. A couple extra points for the incredible sweetness..

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• 1957 Blandy's Madeira Bual 95 Points

  Portugal, Madeira

  Really delicious with dry yellow fruits, roasted nuts, toffee and mineral. Bright acidity and generous sweet fruit. Rich and full, delicious.

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A great time was had by all!