Clearly a very ripe and fleshy wine, this probably was quite fruit forward at some point in its life. To be honest, it still is. There are some earth elements on the nose as well. The palate shows the most fruit, but there's a bit of a thinness and emptiness on the midpalate. Good acidity, but the rest of the structure appears to be crumbling. Even though I'd say that this should be drank sooner than later, I still found lots to like here.

Realistically, this is a little long in the tooth. The nose is very clearly syrah, with elements of spice, saline, and olive. The smoke is more on the palate. Initially, this was a bit tinny and had some metallic notes on the back end. Interestingly, air helped dissipate those flavours. There's mostly acidity left but there are wisps of fruit and brine still. Seems a bit thin, but there's still some body here. Drink up.

Stunning cabernet -- as good as it comes really. The nose is strongly inflected with American oak, as well as intense green herbal characteristics that add so much character. Very deep fruit flavours here as well, running the spectrum from red to black (but mostly black). There is so much potency and youthfulness on the palate here; the secondary characteristics are but starting to emerge.

#08-02, 9% abv. The nose is very nice, with elements of fresh white fruit, some herbs, and a little bit of minerality. The palate is soft, but there's a really nice amount of minerality here. There's almost a tannic quality from the sheer amount of slate. Great acidity and freshness, and only moderately sweet. No Prädikat creep here.

#13-02, 8% abv. From half bottle. This is a very good Eiswein, made in a fairly rustic style and tinged with a gentle amount of botrytis. Despite the sweetness that the botrytis gives, this is still very much an acid-driven wine, with concentration that feels like a distilled auslese. There are also definitely JJC hallmarks here, despite the Prädikat difference.

Done in by a loose cork.

#42-07, 13% abv. This was initially too warm, which resulted in the wine showing a little bit fat and ripe. Once properly cooled down though, this was a wine with good cut and raciness. This is a very broad and expansive wine, but to my palate, the relatively heavy botrytis on this doesn't work well with the GG character.

I've grown less and less enamoured with the 2012 white Burgundies of late, finding them too ripe for my palate. This one was no exception. To be fair, I think that this was served a little too warm as well, and I didn't get a chance to revisit it later in the afternoon. Still, this is a well-made wine with good fruit and mineral characteristics, and certainly no obscene oak influence. I just wish it had a little more acid to cut it.

The nose on this shows a little high-toned, with some very clear cough syrup notes. The oak seems to have retreated from both the nose and palate though. The palate is silken but not particularly glossy. This shows much more towards the red fruit end of the spectrum as well, which is something I absolutely appreciate. The tannins are mostly resolved at this point -- to me, this has reached its maturity plateau.

Past its prime. Stewy and dungy, as most 1990 red Burgundies are. Not dead, but certainly not enjoyable. Drink up.

A brilliant Cheval Blanc with its intense cabernet franc aromatics. Slightly herbaceous, but with silky black fruit on the nose as well. It's definitely not the most generous and giving bottle of Cheval Blanc; this is a fairly aristocratic bottle with dark fruit and a really big structural component. Truth be told, this seems a little young and not yet fully resolved. But it's incredibly delicious nonetheless.

This is an incredibly stern and dense wine, showing all structure. Leather, wood, and just a hint of sweetness on the nose. The palate is very similar: very powerful and dark but no generosity in terms of fruit. All leather and earth, this is one of those wines that I find more impressive than outright enjoyable. It's certainly consistent with my perception of left bank 1986 being structure-driven and extremely tannic.

I thought this was far better than the Gruaud Larose that I had alongside. Whereas the Gruaud was ornery and stern, and mostly devoid of flesh, this was a wine that had both the tannic structure and the fruit to round it out. It's a more voluptuous wine, so the fruit here is extremely necessary, especially in the mediocre 1986 vintage. This is the more accessible wine of the two and shows a pleasant red-fruited character, with a tinge of sweetness. The tannins, while still quite chewy, are at least tractable.

#16-00, 8.5% abv. From half-bottle. To be sure, this isn't a strong vintage, and I think it shows on the midpalate when this hollows out a bit. But at the same time, the light, ethereal quality of Dönnhoff is on full display here. The attack here is ripe and powerful, and the finish is lifted and light (the weak midpalate notwithstanding).

#08-93, 7.5% abv. Very mildly corked. I didn't pick up wet cardboard, but the palate is stripped.

#26-94, 7.5% abv. Passable for its age, but mostly thin and lean now. Not much sweetness here, but also not much else.

There's a fetish with this wine that it ought to be hoarded and squirrelled away. I admit I'm guilty of this as well. But wine is an ephemeral thing and is meant to be enjoyed. And this wine is just in such a perfect place right now. The nose shows crunchy black fruit, as well as a mild olive/saline note which carries through to the palate. A silky, juicy, and purple syrah that's obviously young but absolutely ready to go already.