6/13/2018 - Dubie Likes this wine:

Drunk at Le Millesime in Chambolle, this bottle travelled about 80 yards directly from the domaine's cellar. A mesmerizing bottle, drunk alongside 1988 Amoureuses, 1983 Musigny and 2006 Musigny. All were in exceptional condition, but this was my favorite. I don't quite know how to say it, other than that it touched me and moved me. Only once before had I felt such an emotion - in 2010 drinking a 1989 Romanee-Conti in magnum, also straight from the cellar.

3/30/2017 - Dubie wrote:

Semi blind v 1969 LHBB and 1989 HBB... and other exceptional wines. This was WOTN for me. Disalarmingly light colour, like a young sauv. blanc. Complex nose of pink and citrus fruits, not cat pee. Tight and penetrating, linear in the front of the mouth with an unbelievably explosive, lateral back of the mouth. Never felt anything like this before. Frankly not sure why I'm not awarding this an even higher rating. My unanswered question is at what level of a Burgundy chardonnay would need to be paired to win against this bottle.

2/13/2017 - Dubie wrote:

Perfect age to open the bottle. I was nervous it would be too soon, but the wine is perfectly integrated between acidity, fruit and tannins. A classic CDG if opened now. I opened 90' before drinking.

2/13/2017 - Dubie Likes this wine:

Very impressive bottle. Opened 3h before consumption, and it was the right amount of time. Tannins at first quite harsh for a Cote d'Or wine, but expected for a Volnay; melted when drunk. Smoked bacon nose also dissipated with the airing time (note: no decanting). Upon tasting, the wine was big and balanced. Matched perfectly with a sweetbread dish, prepared with lentils and a red wine sauce.

2/5/2017 - Dubie Does not like this wine:

Tired. I was disappointed, I have to say, expecting more from a vintage that is drinking well now and from such a producer on well placed vines.

9/15/2016 - Dubie Likes this wine:

An exceptional bottle, drunk alongside an 1985 DP. A very nutty nose, Krug-like, to begin with which developed into a more complex, aromatic nose over time. Fresh and masculine in the mouth, with the DP sweetness coming out after 40 min or so. A long, spicy finish. Its slicing acidity made it difficult just to sip this wine, I wanted to gulp it down.

5/7/2016 - Dubie wrote:

Crisp, fresh, to the point... but not overwhelming, complex or expressive. I admit to have hoping for more, especially in magnum format.

5/7/2016 - Dubie wrote:

Nothing faulty with this bottle, but showed a little funky on the night. Others liked it a lot more than I did, apparently it showed better later during the evening, but I had moved on.

5/7/2016 - Dubie Likes this wine:

Two excellent bottles, I was pleased. Having tasted this wine a few times over the past 18m, I had felt it had not been showing well so hesitated to open a pair of these. Well the arrival of spring in 2016 seems to have rejuvenated them. Two classic 89 Beaucastel's.

5/7/2016 - Dubie wrote:

Reconditioned at the chateau in 2010. I served this by hiding the vintage, despite it being my birthyear... because it is from one of the worst vintages of the 20th century (in the Left Bank)! While a medium bodied wine, it was in absolute terms an excellent wine. One often hears experienced winemakers explaining how, in the long run, terroir prevails... Well this was a shining example. Well done Cheval Blanc!

5/7/2016 - Dubie Likes this wine:

116y old... no way... was fruity, the right level of sweetness, vibrant, complex. A wonderfully happy wine. An exceptional bottle.

4/23/2015 - Dubie Likes this wine:

An exceptional bottle or rather magnum. Opened at the age of 40 at a "la paulee" style event in Hong Kong. Etheral nose, combining classic rose petals but mixed in with some earthy aromas. Consistent in the mouth, with sweetness (expected from a hot summer) but unexpected acidity (terroir strength). One of the wines of the evening, and there were some exceptional bottles that were consumed on the evening!

3/25/2016 - Dubie Likes this wine:

Solid. Excellent price performance

4/27/2016 - Dubie Likes this wine:

A very open, perfumed nose and first mouth was all that could be hoped for. But for all the excellent 1997s of Dom Laurent I have tasted, this one was a little short lived. After 20 minutes, it flattened quite quickly. It may well have been the food, which was rather flavorful.

5/2/2016 - Dubie Likes this wine:

For a Burgundy chardonnay drinker, this was quite a change. Served it as part of Thanksgiving 2015 (this note is a little late...) where we served only American wines! Served crisp. A lovely mood setting bottle, rich, golden, full of flavours, yet balanced. Lovely!

5/1/2016 - Dubie Likes this wine:

Very light bodied now, but most pleasurable. The wine opened up after 10 minutes. Bottle was a touch cloudy but colour otherwise very good. Underwood nose. Concentrated sweetness. Looking forward to my next bottle.

12/10/2015 - Dubie wrote:

Served from magnum. An exceptional bottle of wine. No point writing about it, it scored on every measure, and then some. Only regret: not to have opened it the morning or even the night before dinner. What a treat.

12/10/2015 - Dubie wrote:

Served from magnum. Drank with Garang. Tasted a little old tonight, lacking some energy. I will wait to open my magnum and my jeroboam...

12/10/2015 - Dubie wrote:

Served from a magnum. Old rose champagnes are an acquired taste, but once acquired, it can become a drug. I loved this bottle. To sum it up, it smelt and tasted like a bubbly Gevrey pinot. It also had some munchiness / chunkiness to it which I enjoyed. A rare experience!

12/10/2015 - Dubie wrote:

Served in magnum. The nose reminded of Chablis at first, of Corton-Charlemagne a few minutes later. A very enjoyable bottle, but in many ways un-CDG like.

12/10/2015 - Dubie wrote:

Served in magnum. An EXCEPTIONAL bottle of wine. "A meal by itself" was one comment from the table, which I could not agree more with. A palate stainer. Large, long, wide, high, deep... Fabulous.

12/26/2015 - Dubie Likes this wine:

Had no expectations of this bottle to be honest. So opened the first of 12 purchased somewhat hesitantly. What a delicious surprise! Fine bubbles, good acidity, length. Was with us for a couple of hours, without flinching. If you can get your hands on some, please get some. Am looking forward to each and everyone of my remaining 11! To boot, 1972 was my wife's and my birth year!

12/24/2015 - Dubie Likes this wine:

One of the best NV Champagnes I have had in a long time, let alone at this price. Go UPR!

12/24/2015 - Dubie wrote:

Am not a fan of half bottles generally speaking. Krug's are lovely, and this is the first time I have found another half bottle enjoyable. Price performance of this Champagne generally excellent.

12/24/2015 - Dubie Likes this wine:

Opened on Xmas Eve 2015. A touch closed compared to the NV but a very well made, fruity wine. Quite impressive for this very well priced bottle!

12/8/2015 - Dubie wrote:

First bottle of 2015 Thanksgiving dinner. I wanted to start the evening by allowing everyone to "reset" from the day's work (Thanksgiving is not a bank holiday in Hong Kong!). This bottle did just that. A served it cold to start with to startle / jolt our guests, and it did just that. A friendly wine as I expected it, it put everyone at ease, and the conversation started to flow immediately. Soon its fattiness allowed us to shift into our second gears too. The wine had accomplished what I had hoped it would! A lovely wine... I ordered more of it!

11/26/2015 - Dubie wrote:

Served it with a pecan pie... what a great match! 22 karat tarnished gold color, very fine bubbles, let the wine come across well. Precise, crisp. Decanted in a narrow carafe before serving the wine straightaway, allowed the wine to open. Served in chardonnay glasses. That was the right serving approach in my view. Not a big wine by any means, Baby Krug vintage.

11/26/2015 - Dubie wrote:

A very well made wine, classical Moueix style. Baby Petrus came to mind!

8/11/2014 - Dubie wrote:

Drank from a 5-litre bottle. Opened 4h before serving. Was very nervous when I opened it, as it was to be served to 30 guests for my father's 70th birthday party... I had had a few old Vignelaure's before, and this did not disappoint! I simply love Provence's expression of old Cabernet, and the blend with Syrah is a great combination. Expressive and concentrated fruit, great acidic length, fully melted tannins providing a great anchor and backbone to the tasting. Was truly enjoyable.

9/26/2015 - Dubie Likes this wine:

Opened in celebration of my guests' birth year. Had acquired the bottle some years back. Not an easy vintage obviously but testament to Roumier that the bottle was in fine form. Did not last long however. Delicate light bodied Pinot noir from Chambolle. Drink up!

9/26/2015 - Dubie Likes this wine:

At first felt a little cooked. To the point where I asked my guests to ignore it. (Had decided to open it for the first year of one of them.) Having forgotten it during the dinner, returned to ththe bottle at the end, some two hours later. Then, oddly, any 'defect' had dissipated and the bottle was showing perfectly well. Perhaps it was the natural sweetness of the terroir that combined with the characteristics of the vintage to make this a slow wine, but our perseverance prevailed! Concentrated like a Clos, sweet and intense like the appellation, and delicate and complex like all wines from this producer. Did not disappoint!

2/26/2015 - Dubie wrote:

One of these wines were you don't know what to expect. And we were happily surprised. A light yellow colour and a slightly fatty nose consistent with Chassagnewere both as expected and reassuringly welcome! No particular complexity, just a solid wine, well made and from a great vintage.

2/26/2015 - Dubie wrote:

So many rave about 1982 and 1985 Krug, and they are right, but I must admit being very partial to 1988. I love its acidity, its length, and how it progressively coats the entire palate. Its rich yellow gold colour is also always very inviting. This was a great bottle once again.

2/10/2015 - Dubie wrote:

An extraordinary wine! There is simply no other word. Fans of old Clos des Mouches Blanc will know exactly what I mean, but to others take note: this is a glorious wine. Two hours after opening, it continued to evolve: fresh, rich, complex, long. Had it been served blind, we would have all bet it was a great Montrachet or perhaps a Batard.

2/10/2015 - Dubie wrote:

A very impressive wine. Opened 1hr30min before drinking, but not enough, would recommend 3hr. A very slight oxydation taste, characteristic of the winemaking, cleared within 45min, but the wine itself needs time to open. I am not one for decanting red Burgundies, but this wine could have benefited from double decanting. The adjective that keeps coming back is 'intense": intense color (looked 10 years younger), intense fruit, intensely complex. This wine will be at its best in another 10 to 20 years. I will need to wait a lot longer for my other bottles! This bottle was opened as part of a Richebourg theme: 1st 1991 A-F Gros (by far), 2nd 1995 Hudelot-Noellat, close 3rd this Meo, 4th 1995 Jean Grivot, 5th 1985 Gros F&S, last 1997 DRC

1/19/2015 - Dubie wrote:

Brioche, almond oil, purity and salinity, all in these two bottles, sourced from a Japanese restaurateur. Marvellous!

1/14/2015 - Dubie wrote:

I am shocked by how much I liked this wine (two bottles in two months). First gifted to me by one of Burgundy's top ten winemakers, I hesitated to open it, thinking (naturally) that I would let it age. Why drink an Hermitage at such a young age, unless you wanted to commit a crime, I wondered! The producer insisted that I should open it soon... and I duly followed his instruction. While the colour was the dark purple I expected of a young Hermitage, I was very surprised by the balanced palate, with no marked taste of oak and surprisingly melted tannins. OK, this bottle will improve with age, no question, but it is already enjoyable. I never expected to think that, especially as I like my wines to be at least 20-30 years in age, if not a lot more! Bravo, Yann Chave!

10/11/2014 - Dubie wrote:

A fine bottle of this wine. Old label, so early disgorgement. Precise, mineral, serious... yet approachable and thirst quenching. A great wine.

10/11/2014 - Dubie wrote:

A very solid expression of Batard. Not as ample and velvety as some more established producers of that period, but a very clean and soft wine, with high purity. Bottle condition was "good" (it had been sourced at a US auction). I will gladly open my other bottles of this wine.

10/11/2014 - Dubie wrote:

One of those bottles where I did not know what to expect. Was served semi-blind agains a 1975 Ch. Palmer. Well, not only did the Stag's Leap hold its own, its fruit made it a lot more fun and jovial to drink and lacked none of the complexity of its Left Bank partner. Both bottles were in excellent condition, with the SL still a deep ruby at its core.

7/8/2014 - Dubie wrote:

No interest. A rip-off.

7/8/2014 - Dubie wrote:

No interest. A rip off.

7/8/2014 - Dubie wrote:

Great wine. Well done. Beats a Bordeaux hands down.

7/8/2014 - Dubie wrote:

Pure pleasure. Well made, well balanced, unpretentious. Shows how and why California makes better Bordeaux blends with cab sauv than Bordeaux itself. A classic. From a Frenchman!

6/12/2014 - Dubie wrote:

Fantastic bottles. From the BA Concorde sale. Was side by side with a 1989 Krug Collection. Both showed very well.

6/19/2014 - Dubie wrote:

This bottle was a little more chemically intense than I remembered the last one. Butterscotch coated the palate, but it lacked a bit of acidity. Perhaps I have been conditioned by Mosel Rieslings a bit too much lately. Anyway, this has another 20 years to reach its peak. Be patient!

6/19/2014 - Dubie wrote:

Our guests loved it, but to me this was a little passed its peak.

6/19/2014 - Dubie wrote:

Amazing straight out of the bottle, superb and distinctive nose. However, without my instruction, the sommelier decanted the bottle, which made the wine evolve a little faster than I would have liked. No rush to drink up, this is on a plateau.

5/3/2014 - Dubie wrote:

Following the 2008 Domaine des Lambrays Morey-St-Denis was a perfect position for this wine. Another great expression of terroir and grape varietal. Did not carry any of the sometimes sourness of the grape. At 10 years old, this is a very enjoyable drink. Best to be paired with food, and a braised steak was the right combination!

5/3/2014 - Dubie wrote:

Not complex, not powerful, but what a lovely expression of Burgundian pinot noir! I enjoy this wine very much.