The Brothers Hersh tempt me with Burgundy...

Mitch Hersh was in town to spend Thanksgiving with his brother Roy. Since Mitch is passionate about Burgundy, Roy decided to put together a tasting of special wines for the day after Thanksgiving.

Now, those who know me well understand that my vinous preferences flow toward Bordeaux and the Rhone, so I wasn't offended when a number of people expressed shock and surprise. First, my favorite retailer had a double-take when he saw me clutching my bottle for the tasting and uttered "what are you doing holding a Burgundy bottle???" When I arrived at the tasting, Rick Gregory expressed similar shock as his jaw dropped and he said "What are YOUUU doing at a BURGUNDY tasting?!?" Well, all I can say is that tastings like this are dangerous, as frankly anyone who loves wine would be lured by most of these beauties!

Roy, thanks for putting it together, and Mitch, it was great meeting you and talking your ear off about CellarTracker. :)

We started out with an assortment of whites as people played pool and we waited for everyone to arrive. The Jobard and Ramonet appeared to be the most popular wines. Then, as a palate cleanser, we enjoyed a wonderfully lacey and precise bottle of Cristal.

• 1988 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Champ-Canet

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

  Mushroomy and tired, a bit over the hill. Still a nice vein of acidity to this. At the time I remarked that it might be OK to drink alongside pasta in brown butter and sage sauce. Not sure why, but that's what came to me as I sipped this. Not rated.

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• 2000 Domaine Rémi Jobard Meursault Sous La Velle 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

  Zing, this was a winner! Butter brickle notes pop from the glass of the vibrant young wine. Salty minerality interplayed beautifully with ripe notes, verging on tropical as this warmed in the glass. This was a bottle I purchased a few years ago on a recommendation, and I probably hadn't touched it since until I decided to bring to this tasting. Too bad, this would be a good one to have 6 of. Really nice!

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• 2002 Domaine Robert-Denogent Pouilly-Fuissé Vieilles Vignes 86 Points

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Pouilly-Fuissé

  This had a big, lemony attack, but with more time in the glass it gave off faintly sickly scents of Lemon Pledge, just too strong. The palate was lush, spicy and penetrating, but I found this to be a bit too ornery and a little bit clumsy.

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• 1996 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot 91 Points

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

  Nothing wrong with this 1996. A hint of varnish on the nose. The palate is a laser of mouthwatering acidity, almost painfully young at first, just dancing on the palate, precise and laser like, more about minerals and acid right now. This seems to need some time.

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• 1986 Louis Roederer Champagne Cristal Brut 91 Points

  France, Champagne

  This was crazily fresh for a 1986. The nose wasn't terribly special, just some light yeastiness. The palate was lovely though with very fine mousse, ethereally light, dancing on the tongue, fresh and very delicate. Clean, citrusy flavors. The finish tailed off with an intriguing note of bitterness, like a hint of lemon pith.

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Now we moved onto the big boys. These were served blind, in pairs, and we enjoyed them slowly as they unfolded. There were several standout wines, although I think the 1964 Leroy was the clear wine of the tasting. I will be curious to see what others think.

• 1971 Domaine Jacques Prieur Clos Vougeot 95 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru

  Wow, what a nose! Resinous, piercing, high-pitched, and smoky with mint and pine needle. This was literally a wine you could sniff all day! The palate was mature, a touch on the sweet side, yet fully resolved and beautifully silky. Even a Pinot dumbass like me could find a ton to appreciate in this beautiful wine!

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• 1971 Remoissenet Père et Fils Latricières-Chambertin Flawed

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Latricières-Chambertin Grand Cru

  Vanilla smells, moving to soy, a little bit of char and some mushroom. Very muddy in comparison to the Jacques Prieur and clearly seems to be a bit oxidized. The palate was an improvement, thich, chunky and a bit muscular, still tannic and somewhat extracted. There was still some merit here, although I won't rate this clearly off example.

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• 1991 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru

  This smells like young Burgundy with piercing cherry notes, perfumed and slightly flowery, very fresh smelling. With time in the glass some char and meatiness sneaks out. The palate reminds me of tea, very powerful yet largely monolithic and still undeveloped, very grippy.

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• 1991 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Echezeaux 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru

  Nice notes of mint permeate this initially dusky and somewhat unrevealing nose. This takes some time and swirling, but with air it starts to pop getting more high-pitched and showing cola, root-beer and some minerally notes of charcoal. Mmm, this is a Pinot for Cabernet lovers, a huge, grippy, tannic beast, very tightly wound and with fantastic yet nearly searing acidity. This is a real hammer of a wine which I very much enjoyed.

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• 1993 Domaine Robert Arnoux / Arnoux-Lachaux Echezeaux 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru

  Menthol on the nose. Wow, this is tightly wound but with a beautiful core to this wine, raspberry interplays with lots of other complexity, although this is ultimately very tight.

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• 1996 Domaine Anne Gros Richebourg 88 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Dill pickle, stalky, green aromas dominate this wine right now, and I really struggled with it as a result. The palate is very extracted, almost candied, loaded with fruit and nice verve. Several folks thought that time would do the trick here, but for me this was definitely a bit imbalanced.

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• 2002 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant 96 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru

  Wow, this has a piercing nose with pine needle and nearly indescribable spice. Frankly, it's hard to put words to something so complex. The palate elicited a "Holy S**t!" in my notes. This is remarkably vibrant, so open and exotic. When it was unveiled, several folks were amazed how open for business this was!

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• 1964 Maison Leroy Grands-Echezeaux 98 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru

  Unreal. I had this wine once before and flipped for it, but this was even better. The nose is smoky and exotic, soaring from the glass with mint and roasted meat, screaming as time goes on, some band-aid, Hermitage like but with more finesse and precision, maybe a hint of barnyard sneaking out towards the end. In the mouth this has huge presence and is remarkably vibrant showing sour cherry, some smoky notes, nice sweetness and poise and gorgeous texture. The finish is long and poignant, begging for another sip. If ever there was a wine to lure one to the 'dark side' (collecting Burgundy which for this Cab and Rhone lover is near heresy), well this is it...

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At this point more bottles started to appear, but I had to run home and missed out on the rest. I almost don't want to know what else was poured...