L. F1F2, 579 bottles total. Tirage 13/09/2016, disgorged 25/07/2018, 0 dosage. I liked this bottle a bit more than the 2014 I had a few years ago. the nose is quite pleasant with some pure fruit and a hint of mushroom as well. On the palate, this definitely has more weight than the "champagne-flavoured Lacroix" that I remembered from before, but overall the flavour profile still felt a little thin to me; that might be because of the lack of dosage, though. Interesting to try as always, but really not my cup of tea.

Served double blind. Extremely reduced on the nose, almost to a fault. With a relatively lighter palate that doesn't have any signs of oak use, I was thinking that this was one of those horribly reduced Labets. Not far off... If I didn't like this wine so much on the palate though, I'd be a lot more upset at the terrible reduction on the nose, which just never ever went away. The palate has lovely acidity and freshness, and the lack of oak seems to highlight some of the tart white fruit and salinity here. Very tasty stuff, but this would be so much more impressive absent the reduction.

I liked this a fair bit more than the 17 Tissot Bruyeres alongside, mostly because this wasn't completely overwhelmed by the reduction on the nose. Very typical Labet, bright, clean, high acid, and minerally. So delicious and easy to drink, this is to me a perennial winner.

We waffled back and forth on whether this was corked, but everyone concluded something was off. A shame, as the palate showed some good control in a very hot year.

No. 10121. Classic Lambrays style; bright red fruit and tons of spicy stem notes. Relatively lighter on the palate, this actually feels a little thin and acidic at times, though it seems to flesh out with air. Still, this feels a little thinner than I would expect for a grand cru Burgundy. Served next to Taupenot-Merme's version, the stylistic difference of the two houses becomes incredibly stark.

Served next to the Domaine des Lambrays version of this, it's so clear the stylistic differences between the two. Whereas the DdL takes on a very crunchy red-fruited profile, the TM shows more of an old-school earthier, slightly more rustic profile. There is more weight on the TM, and you actually feel a little more density in the wine. The absence of stems on the TM version also shows; the fruit doesn't feel as "fresh" (though we all know adding stems raises the pH and only provides a sensation of freshness). Overall despite preferring the nose and perfume of the DdL, I found the TM to show the requisite density and weight of a vineyard of this stature better.

Yikes. Weird and herbal, I think the best description of this might be a muscat, but red. Which is, really, something that no one needs to ask for. I'll admit, this wine isn't unpleasant if you can get through the honeyed, slightly foxy, herbal, and floral aromas, and the bitter, amaro-like palate. I don't hate this because it doesn't taste like the contents of a biodynamic cesspool, but this really doesn't taste particularly like wine either.

An absolutely gorgeous bottle of Burgundy, it's hard to imagine how this wine could show better. The nose is fruit-forward, with a mix of red and black fruit and a less prominent note of earthiness. There's a sweetness to the fruit that works incredibly well in this wine. The palate is firm but also generous, again thanks to all the fruit here. The structure is still quite apparent, but supple enough to provide some very enjoyable drinking. While there may yet be more peaks in the future, the bottle today was definitely at one of these highs.

This pirate's got booty for days. Probably the best 2018 N Rhone I've had so far (haven't had many, admittedly). But this is one seriously juicy and thicc wine. The wine pours inky black and you can smell and taste all this black fruit. It's impressive how dense and potent this is, but it will require a long period of aging to reach maturity and greater heights. I'll add, despite the ripeness this does have an impressive acid backbone, so I think the structure is indeed there for the long haul.

Clearly a nose of American oak, but without that polish that you get from La Rioja Alta. There's a little bit of sweat here as well, something that I sometimes confuse with TCA (lots of Rioja smells corked to me). The palate is quite compelling though; the fruit is silky and still young, with a slight vanilla sweetness that is counterbalanced by more of the earthy tones. Very good depth and complexity; I liked this very much.

"This is Burgundian" is obviously a completely meaningless statement, but I would readily confuse this with one if this were served to me blind. Tart red cherries on the and palate, as well as what I would guess is a relatively lower alcohol level and heightened acidity that provides freshness. The fruit is still relatively young and slightly juicy as a result.

Herbal and green, this pretty much reminds me of traditional Chinese medicine. Couple that with some bouillon and brothy notes on the palate and more of the bitter herbal qualities and some pretty rough tannins. Weird stuff -- definitely not for me.

This is some incredibly delicious and serious stuff. Somehow this still tastes incredibly precisely of apples, but with an added layer of rancio on top of that. Caramelly and silky in texture, you don't feel any of the alcohol here at all. The good stuff always goes down far too easily. I'm a convert.