2006 Burgundy Test Drive

Tasted Friday, January 30, 2009 by Keith Levenberg with 766 views

Flight 1 (1 Note)

  • 2006 Bouchard Père et Fils Beaune 1er Cru Grèves Vigne de L'Enfant Jesus 80 Points

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

    Candied licorice nose reminds me of California pinot. Doesn't have the sweetness and fat you'd expect from the scent on the palate, but it's weird in other ways. There's a certain roughness, which combined with the sheer brightness of the fruit, makes this taste almost more like Beaujolais than Burgundy, except with more oak.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Flight 2 (3 Notes)

  • 2006 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Champans 92 Points

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

    Surprise, surprise -- who'd have figured little Champans would upstage its brethren from Taillepieds and Clos des Ducs in a side-by-side lineup? But this is showing just gorgeously now. After the Bouchard, the sophistication and tenderness of the mouthfeel here makes an immediate impact, followed by perhaps the best sense of dimension of any of the wines today. It's three-dimensional on the palate, the space filled in by mild blue fruits interspersed with finely crushed stone. Leftovers the next day sweeten up the fruit and reveal some wood shavings on the back.

    Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No

  • 2006 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds 89 Points

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

    Sandwiched between the Champans and the Clos des Ducs, the difference in ripeness here is dramatic. This is by an obvious margin the sweetest, glossiest, and most fruit-forward of the three. At the moment the fruit is bold enough to overwhelm whatever else might be going on, but it manages to show its breed through its supple texture and lean body in spite of the ripeness.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

  • 2006 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 88 Points

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

    Showing neither the rich fruit of the Taillepieds nor the dimension and complexity of the Champans, the '06 Clos des Ducs is very hard to get a read on today. It doesn't feel tightly coiled, just shy. A stony scent hints at what might be to come, but hints are all you get. Leftovers the next day have a more saturating presence despite the more obvious tannin, still soft in its touch.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Flight 3 (2 Notes)

  • 2006 Nicolas Potel Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Petits Monts 92 Points

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

    This is so silky and finely knit that it seems practically to instill a sense of peace and calm as you take a sip. Such a classic example of Petits Monts in its laciness but what really completes the package is the fullness of the flesh underneath; it almost seems to billow with material without coloring at all outside the lines. This easily upstaged the Gaudichots today.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

  • 2006 Nicolas Potel Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Gaudichots 90 Points

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

    The expected spice scents that emerge immediately on opening eventually segue to a green melange of stalkiness and herbs. This has a powerful bite to it that overwhelms the fruit element, which at the moment doesn't feel quite rich enough to balance out the structural beams here. There's nice layering and complexity but right now it feels like someone took out a big chunk of what this needed to be a wholly complete wine. Fortunately, the spice is back in the leftovers the next day, which are much more complete and harmonious, though still fiercely structured -- and it's not until the day after that that it really rounds into form and leaves you with that characteristic mouthful of five-spice on the back.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Flight 4 (1 Note)

  • 2006 Louis Jadot Pommard 1er Cru Les Rugiens 89 Points

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

    Maybe the most richly fruited of any of the reds today, deep in complexion and gummy in mouthfeel. Somewhat stony on the finish but otherwise primary. Very nice.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

Flight 5 (2 Notes)

  • 2006 Louis Jadot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières 87 Points

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

    Pale and pure. I actually liked this better than the Leflaive Pucelles.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

  • 2006 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles

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

    Nice depth on the entry -- no question this is larger in scale than the Jadot -- but lacking the crystallized angularity I usually love about Leflaive. Not so pretty on the back end, either, which is heavily stamped by raw wood. Same story in the leftovers the next day, but two days later it's much purer and mineral, a sea change in the wine.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No

×
×