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Maison Ilan @ Medlar
Tasted July 5, 2018 by SimonG with 273 views
Flight 1 (1 note)
White - Sparkling
2010 David Leclapart Champagne Premier Cru l'Amateur Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut
88 points
Curious nose of salt and vinegar crisps. Slightly balsamic vinegar. Quite rich on the palate. A little bruised apple. With a bit of air, and cooler, this has tightened up nicely. Still characterful in a slightly unruly way, but fresh and very drinkable. ***
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Flight 2 (4 notes)
Red
2010 Maison Ilan Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Corbeaux
flawed
Reasonably dense mid ruby. Quite rich and bacon fat savoury on the nose. Tighter and slightly denser, less generous palate. A little pinched. And then the corkiness comes through.
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Red
2010 Maison Ilan Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Corbeaux
92 points
Vibrant. Kirschy fruit. Densely silky. Plenty of life and interest. All the positive points of the corked bottle but with extra dimension, focus and vibrancy. Very good. ****
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Red
2011 Maison Ilan Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Monts-Luisants
85 points
Paper. A touch of garnet. Lighter, quite lifted nose. A touch vegetal. Relatively light on the palate and again, a touch vegetal. Good acidity. Perfectly pleasant(ish) but not in the same class as the 10. **1/2
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Red
2010 Maison Ilan Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Monts-Luisants
91 points
Similar colour to the 11. Quite mellow, maturing. Fragrant. Light and quite floaty. Lots of interest here if one looks for it. Deceptively light. I like this far more than do my fellow diners. ****
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Flight 3 (3 notes)
Red
2009 Maison Ilan Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Les Chaffots
90 points
Dense ruby. Lovely nose. Good fruit, quite meaty with a touch of caramel. Darker, slightly 11 savoury on the palate. **(*1/2) Turns out to score the same as when first tasted in 2011.
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Red
2010 Maison Ilan Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Les Chaffots
90 points
A little lighter. Mid ruby to a touch of garnet. Floral but relatively subdued nose. Elegant. Moderately rich palate. A slightly lighter version of the 2011. ***1/2
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Red
2011 Maison Ilan Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Les Chaffots
91 points
A little darker a little darker but still mid ruby with a hint of garnet. More savoury on the nose. Quite sweet-fruited. Plenty of interest. I like this. ****
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Flight 4 (3 notes)
Red
2010 Maison Ilan Charmes-Chambertin Aux Charmes Hautes
90 points
Dense ruby with a touch of garnet. Quite ponky reductive initially. Rich, sweet-fruited, a touch of caramel. Relatively light and dare I say it, charming in the general context. Attractive. ***1/2
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Red
2011 Maison Ilan Charmes-Chambertin Aux Charmes Hautes
91 points
Dense. Slightly dense ruby. Very fragrant. Rose petals. Fuller and denser on the palate. Darker and denser. A little less persistent than the Mazoyeres. ****
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Red
2011 Maison Ilan Mazoyères-Chambertin
92 points
Slightly dense, dark ruby. Nose a little flat initially, then slightly reductive. Again quite rich on the palate but less rounded than the Charmes. A slight bite. A fine velvety density. Lots here. ****
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Flight 5 (3 notes)
Red
2012 Maison Ilan Mazoyères-Chambertin
90 points
Slightly dull, finely cloudy. A little
Muddy on the nose. A touch of beetroot. A touch natural. Somewhat fuzzy. Wow, very rounded and sweet-fruited and open on the palate. ***1/2
Muddy on the nose. A touch of beetroot. A touch natural. Somewhat fuzzy. Wow, very rounded and sweet-fruited and open on the palate. ***1/2
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Red
2011 Maison Ilan Chambertin
91 points
Dark, dense ruby. A touch of lift. Very harmonious, densely silky. Attractive. A touch savoury on the nose. ****
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Red
2010 Maison Ilan Chambertin
90 points
Bright ruby, a little lighter. Some evolution. Harmonious. Not much more substance here than the Chaffots. Nice, but that’s slightly faint praise in the context. A bit more stuffing cf the Chaffots 11 but I prefer the latter’s delicacy. ***1/2
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Flight 6 (1 note)
White - Sparkling
2005 Paul Bara Champagne Grand Cru Special Club
91 points
Bright, sweet-fruited. Attractive. A sucrosity here that disguises the structure. Very attractive. ****
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Closing
Very revealing. Wines show a clear signature, and an equally clear transparency from vintage to vintage and between appellations. Far more transparent at this age than, for instance, Fourrier. 09 showed quite richly, the 10s a little under-powered, the 11s a strong showing for the vintage. The grand crus showed better and more densely than the premiers. The wines have turned out pretty much as described — a very creditable achievement. In general one could argue that each appellation isn’t as strong as it could/should be, but there are significantly worse efforts in appellation and vintage elsewhere. Wines above expectation, and with a clear, transparent and authentic signature. I might not dash out to buy more at market rates, but happy to own the wines I have, and I look forward to trying them over the next decade or so. A good result.
Votes on the night:
2011 Chambertin the run away winner
2011 Charmes Chambertin in second
and very closely behind, the 2011 Mazoyeres.
2010 Corbeaux a way behind again and the 12 Mazoyeres a shade behind that.