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Aligoté @ The Square
The Square
Tasted July 16, 2015 by SimonG with 459 views
Introduction
A fascinating and fun evening. Reading through the notes as I typed them I did wonder whether I'd been a bit generous, but these weren't rustic second cousins, but well made wines that transcended grape and presumably relatively humble terroir. Some serious winemaking on show here. The PYCM classic PYCM and fantastic vfm, the Coche showing its class after a near miss with TCA, both the Leroy and the d'Auvenay remarkable for different reasons, the latter being talked about in good Grand Cru terms, and after that impossibly hard act to follow, the two Entes breazed though effortlessly. An inspired choice of venue for this too.
Flight 1 (9 notes)
White
2013 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Bourgogne-Aligoté
91 points
Smoke, a touch of oak. Mineral. Clean and fresh on the attack. Nicely zingy. A bit wider and richer as it opens on the mid palate. Reasonably bracing finish. Stylish and lovely. ****
White
2012 Comte Armand Bourgogne-Aligoté
87 points
Riper on the nose. A touch of lime but opens up to a peach stone and roasted nectarine roundness. Quite fat in the glass and on the mid palate. Some grip through the middle but a touch flabbier. A little smoker too with air. ***
White
2013 Buisson-Charles Bourgogne-Aligoté
90 points
Very clean and slightly smoky on the nose. Mineral, linear and really quite taut. Lean and lithe. ***1/2
White
2009 A. et P. de Villaine Aligoté Bouzeron
88 points
Fatter and rounder. A touch of vanilla. Holds some line but it is fatter and richer and broader than previous wines. Finely chalky against that richer backdrop. ***
White
2009 Coche-Dury Bourgogne-Aligoté
91 points
Some discussion as to whether it's corked. Maybe just the occasional whiff but it feels more bottle stinky than corked. Opens to a rounded vanilla, quite rich, but cut with a touch of the vegetal. A touch of honey with air. Lots of interest here. ****
White
2008 Domaine Leroy Bourgogne-Aligoté
flawed
Horrendously reduced nose. Really horrible. Difficult to get past the nose. Lean and clean on the palate, but ponky. Really ponky.
White
2009 Domaine d'Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Bourgogne-Aligoté Sous Chatelet
94 points
Darker colour. Mid straw. Gorgeous nose, reminds me of mature Leflaive. Lots of toasty hazelnut and oatmeal biscuit. A whiff of oak too. Wonderfully rich and full and intense. A five star nose. The acidity and fresh line comes through on the back end. Long, but lacks a little weight and intensity through the back end. ****1/2
White
2011 Arnaud Ente Bourgogne-Aligoté
93 points
A little less harmonious than the 12. A little more edgy with a whiff of swimming pool initially. Opens up to a hazel nut richness though less intensely so than the d'Auvenay. Similar profile to the 12. A little cleaner and slightly more linear. ****
White
2012 Arnaud Ente Bourgogne-Aligoté
93 points
Fresh, clean, light on the nose with a touch of mint. Floral, light elegant, but a subtle intensity. Very rounded in a complete rather than blowsy manner. Long, elegant, silky. Very fine. More harmonious than the d'Auvenay if less exuberant and striking. ****
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