3rd Tasting for Firm's 10th Anniversary wines

Le Benaton, Bukit Timah
Tasted Thursday, February 4, 2010 by Paul S with 500 views

Flight 1 - Whites (2 Notes)

  • 2004 Guillemard-Pothier Meursault Les Narvaux 90 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

    I was pleasantly surprised by this wine. Served a bit warmer than I would have liked it, but it showed nice Meursault characteristics, with a touch of cream and butter on the nose, white fruit, a hint of mineral, honey and a nice earthiness. The palate followed on where the nose left off, with a little addition of roasted almonds and shading of yellow fruit to go along with the little creamy inflection. Lots of freshness, but the acidity was perfectly integrated, so that the wine came across as really nicely balanced. Finish was very decent too, with a nice, fresh feel, notes pf spice, orange peel and a flowery touch at the end. A pretty nice wine indeed.

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

  • 2005 Domaine Deméocq Puligny-Montrachet La Velle 88 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet

    Pleasant enough nose - mineral, gunflint, flowers and roasted almond skins mingled with rather shallow white fruit notes. Palate was a bit of a let-down though, Sweet yellow fruit showed plenty of ripness, but there was little complexity. Instead, I got a bit of heat, along with some rather sharp tartness. Strange, for a wine that actually seemed to need a bit more freshness. Finish was a bit better, with the wine coming together with lingers of yellow fruit. All in all, a somewhat decent village, but not one I would rebuy. It certainly paled in comparison with the cheaper Meursault served side-by-side.

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

Flight 2 - Reds (2 Notes)

  • 2005 Charles Costier Châteauneuf-du-Pape 88 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    Was not as impressed by this 2005 bottling as I was by the 2004 tried the last time around. Nose was super-expressive, sweet nose, with Roundtree Blackcurrant Fruit Pastilles, crushed raspberries and little notes of lavender, all swirling around in a sweet, candied mix. Palate was simple, but pleasant, with decent acidity holding up rich, thick flavours of blackcurrant, sweet berries and spice. Flavours were clean and well defined, moving into a lingering finish with fine, mouthcoating tannins and plenty of spicy notes. A decent wine, simple, but certainly capable of giving much pleasure. Perhaps just a little too sweet for my tastes.

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

  • 2005 Charles Costier Côte-Rôtie Grande Réserve 89 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

    A pleasant wine. Reminded me a lot of an Aussie Shiraz though. Nose had plenty of sweetness, with sticky plum and blueberry scents at the fore, along with some spice, soil and meaty notes. Palate was big, with a dense, viscous richness to it, with thick plum and blackberry notes along with some meatiness on the edges. There was certainly some depth here, along with a little layering of tannins and decent balance in spite of its size. Finish was long and spicy, opening up to notes of prunes and violets. Should get better with time, but far from undrinkable at the moment.

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

×
×