We drank the 2001 and 2002 side by side. Both were very enjoyable. And as is typical for me with these two vintages of red burgundy, I preferred the 2002.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
B’s official 50th (The Medlar, London): Far earthier than the other two. Older, or a stylistic difference? The latter as it turns out. Puts on weight with air, and the fruit does sweeten, but this is earthier and autumnal cf the other two’s redder fruit notes. Excellent, but for me a shade behind, though just about still at *****
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Even though the wine was open for a few hours, the nose was initially somewhat tainted by quite a strong barnyard smell. Aged Barolo type. But with time, that smell lost dominance. the wine, otherwise, is well structured and attractive. But never reached the levels of the 2003 next to it which was just more seductive and complete.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Rauno and Adithi's Valentine's Day Dinner (Wellington, NZ): My wine served double blind. Fully decanted and left open about five hours before serving, which was about perfect. Much more evolution on this bouquet than with the Dugat-Py, and what a bouquet! Just beautiful and multi-layered with tobacco, spices, fresh and dried red fruit, dried herbs, hay and rose petals. On palate, everything you look for in Grand Cru Burgundy. Excellent fruit depth and concentration but rounded and softened by time. Lovely à point, precise acidity. Detailed and very complex. Mellow and savoury but still with enough succulent primary fruit to keep it in balance. Tannins evolved and melded into the fruit. Seamless and complete. Very long, finishing dry and savoury. One of my wines of the year so far.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Grands-Echézeaux Dinner (Summer Pavilion, Ritz Carlton, Singapore): Good, but underwhelming. This was one of the wines I anticipated most on the night, but served blind in a pack of 5 other Grands-Echezeaux, it did not stand out at all. While the quality was there, it just felt a bit grumpy and sleepy. The nose was deep, but tight, with bass notes of earth and mineral, and savoury roast meat, along with subtler aromas of black cherries and plums and then a little dash of spice. The palate had very much the same feel to it. It was very 2002 in character - lots of clarity and transparency, with fine, firm tannins and good juicy acidity margin for a lovely structure. However, it felt a bit obtuse, stubborn almost - with fresh, pure notes of dark cherries and berries leading into a mineral and spice finish - all showing very clean, with plenty of definition, but also coming across very tight and rather unyielding. This was a very complete wine though - long, pure and very refined, with a quiet power and strength flowing through its veins. Very Engel I thought: an elegant charmer, but with a bit of an old school feel, built like a gentleman farmer. A solid Grands-Echezeaux then, but on this showing, really needing plenty of time yet - 6-8 years more at least.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Brooding nose that wafts dark black cherry and slightly tight blackberry fruit. Damp earth influence and not as immediately accessible as the bright and energetic regular Exhezeaux in the next glass. This is comparable to ‘99 GEs, which I think are excellent, in terms of purity and cleanliness, this is still youthful but very impressive. Probably the technically superior wine if less straightforwardly pleasurable just now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dinner at the Bannockburn Hotel, Cromwell: A paler, more mature-looking colour than the Gros. On decanting the Engel threw a lot of sediment. Gorgeous, lifted perfumes of brioche, herbs and meadow flowers. More red fruited than the Gros. Morollo cherries and a suggestion of brandied plums. In the mouth, pure and bright. Succulent and juicy. Generous but linear. Well balanced. However, some saw the wine as a little ‘caramalised’ or mentioned a ‘volatile, lifted, slightly oxidated’ character. I saw a fully ripe, but not overripe, rich Grand Cru with an attractive savoury, developed character. Satiny tannins. For me, in the pair, the Gros edged it due to its greater precision. A lovely wine though. Ready to go now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Bought at auction. 13.5% abv. Medium ruby color. Clear. Great nose of dark red fruits, some vanilla. Earthy, minerals. Very balanced. Long finish. This is drinking great and could still go for a while. Best Rene Engel I have had yet. YES! I would purchase this again.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Light garnet/ruby color. Nose offers up a melange of small ripe red fruits, spice, undergrowth, flowers. Absolutely superb palate, ripe fruit with silky tannins balanced by great mineral acidity. Persistent finish. A magic GC Burg.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drinking spectacular right now. Beuatiful nose with pure cherry fruit. The bouquet is great and the palate even better. Power with weightless lift. Wine doesn't have to be much betteer than this. Wine of the year so far.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
John's Birthday Degustation Dinner (Hippopotamus Restaurant, Museum Hotel, Wellington, New Zealand): Light ruby. Spectacular and etherial, lifted nose flys out of the glass, pushed by some VA. Glorious wild strawberry fruit. The palate is light on its feel and shows great vibrancy. Drinking beautifully today, this will continue to grow in stature and will always be a very light wine that convinces on its transparency. 95+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Some recent 2002 Burgs: Bright, vivid red colour. Decanted 3-4 hours earlier. An attractive, spicy red-fruited nose. On palate, very pure and fairly primary with flavours of bright red berries and some subdued forest floor. There's tons of drive and power here and Grand Cru fruit weight with sleek, fine-grained tannins. Intense, rich and ripe. Returning to the bottle more than 24 hours later, the bouquet was moving towards the secondary with savoury, autumnal and underbrush nuances. The palate had similarly moved more mellow, older red plums, rather than raspberries, drinking beautifully, giving a glimpse of where it will be in 5-10 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
The 2002 Engel Grands-Echezeaux is another bomb from the late, great Philippe Engel, bursting from the glass with lovely pure aromatics of wild berries, hedgerow fruit and subtle soil tones. The nose is not unlike Engel's 2002 Clos Vougeot, but on the palate the wine is even more intense, focused and firm at the core, with bright acids, crunchy fruit and beautifully ripe tannins, and it is here that the terroir differentiation is most apparent at this early stage. A terrific success. This is a long way from peak maturity, but the stunning quality is already apparent: what a legacy!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Medium red in color, nose of wood spice, licorice, red flowers, menthol. Medium plus palate with slight vanilla note, very well balanced, ripe, elegant, fine tannins but primary, will be great in 3-4 years...
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
No detailed note, but this was drinking fantastically well. Crisp and light with terrific cranberry and red fruits and a hint of beef blood on the nose. Really awesome pinot noir.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Medium light color, less dark fruit than expected. Light in the mouth, sour cherries, lots of forest floor, still high-toned acid. Still young and will improve, bringing out secondary complexities. Solid, but not outstanding (yet).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
3/9/2024 - BradE wrote:
We drank the 2001 and 2002 side by side. Both were very enjoyable. And as is typical for me with these two vintages of red burgundy, I preferred the 2002.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/8/2024 - shifter wrote:
DRC Montrachet Vertical: Lighter framed than the 01. Fun side by side.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/5/2022 - jamesabdavis wrote:
Great, tight and complex nose with mint and liquorice.
Tight on the palate, still a touch of oak.
Beautiful wine but still young.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/4/2021 - SimonG wrote: 95 Points
B’s official 50th (The Medlar, London): Far earthier than the other two. Older, or a stylistic difference? The latter as it turns out. Puts on weight with air, and the fruit does sweeten, but this is earthier and autumnal cf the other two’s redder fruit notes. Excellent, but for me a shade behind, though just about still at *****
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/14/2021 - fcxj wrote: 94 Points
Clean, balanced and flirty.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/17/2021 - steinersing wrote: 94 Points
Even though the wine was open for a few hours, the nose was initially somewhat tainted by quite a strong barnyard smell. Aged Barolo type. But with time, that smell lost dominance. the wine, otherwise, is well structured and attractive. But never reached the levels of the 2003 next to it which was just more seductive and complete.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/7/2020 - HowardNZ Likes this wine: 97 Points
Rauno and Adithi's Valentine's Day Dinner (Wellington, NZ): My wine served double blind. Fully decanted and left open about five hours before serving, which was about perfect. Much more evolution on this bouquet than with the Dugat-Py, and what a bouquet! Just beautiful and multi-layered with tobacco, spices, fresh and dried red fruit, dried herbs, hay and rose petals. On palate, everything you look for in Grand Cru Burgundy. Excellent fruit depth and concentration but rounded and softened by time. Lovely à point, precise acidity. Detailed and very complex. Mellow and savoury but still with enough succulent primary fruit to keep it in balance. Tannins evolved and melded into the fruit. Seamless and complete. Very long, finishing dry and savoury. One of my wines of the year so far.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/12/2020 - Paul S wrote: 93 Points
Grands-Echézeaux Dinner (Summer Pavilion, Ritz Carlton, Singapore): Good, but underwhelming. This was one of the wines I anticipated most on the night, but served blind in a pack of 5 other Grands-Echezeaux, it did not stand out at all. While the quality was there, it just felt a bit grumpy and sleepy. The nose was deep, but tight, with bass notes of earth and mineral, and savoury roast meat, along with subtler aromas of black cherries and plums and then a little dash of spice. The palate had very much the same feel to it. It was very 2002 in character - lots of clarity and transparency, with fine, firm tannins and good juicy acidity margin for a lovely structure. However, it felt a bit obtuse, stubborn almost - with fresh, pure notes of dark cherries and berries leading into a mineral and spice finish - all showing very clean, with plenty of definition, but also coming across very tight and rather unyielding. This was a very complete wine though - long, pure and very refined, with a quiet power and strength flowing through its veins. Very Engel I thought: an elegant charmer, but with a bit of an old school feel, built like a gentleman farmer. A solid Grands-Echezeaux then, but on this showing, really needing plenty of time yet - 6-8 years more at least.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/12/2019 - fcxj wrote: 96 Points
RE dinner. Elegant, clean aromatics. Has intensity and precision on the palate. Really quite stellar.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/6/2018 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 94 Points
Brooding nose that wafts dark black cherry and slightly tight blackberry fruit. Damp earth influence and not as immediately accessible as the bright and energetic regular Exhezeaux in the next glass. This is comparable to ‘99 GEs, which I think are excellent, in terms of purity and cleanliness, this is still youthful but very impressive. Probably the technically superior wine if less straightforwardly pleasurable just now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/28/2018 - HowardNZ Likes this wine:
Dinner at the Bannockburn Hotel, Cromwell: A paler, more mature-looking colour than the Gros. On decanting the Engel threw a lot of sediment. Gorgeous, lifted perfumes of brioche, herbs and meadow flowers. More red fruited than the Gros. Morollo cherries and a suggestion of brandied plums. In the mouth, pure and bright. Succulent and juicy. Generous but linear. Well balanced. However, some saw the wine as a little ‘caramalised’ or mentioned a ‘volatile, lifted, slightly oxidated’ character. I saw a fully ripe, but not overripe, rich Grand Cru with an attractive savoury, developed character. Satiny tannins. For me, in the pair, the Gros edged it due to its greater precision. A lovely wine though. Ready to go now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/5/2017 - fcxj wrote: 96 Points
2002 dinner. Lovely purity and acidity, huge dimension to this wine. Nearly toe to toe with La Tache.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/14/2016 - chbeaumont wrote: 94 Points
Well coloured; riveting, expressive nose; ripe, soft tannins, velvety. Plush finish. The real deal. Loads of time in hand.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/13/2016 - R&L Likes this wine:
Bought at auction. 13.5% abv. Medium ruby color. Clear. Great nose of dark red fruits, some vanilla. Earthy, minerals. Very balanced. Long finish. This is drinking great and could still go for a while. Best Rene Engel I have had yet. YES! I would purchase this again.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/22/2015 - western wrote: 94 Points
Light garnet/ruby color. Nose offers up a melange of small ripe red fruits, spice, undergrowth, flowers. Absolutely superb palate, ripe fruit with silky tannins balanced by great mineral acidity. Persistent finish. A magic GC Burg.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/11/2015 - dansamsoe Likes this wine:
Drinking spectacular right now. Beuatiful nose with pure cherry fruit. The bouquet is great and the palate even better. Power with weightless lift. Wine doesn't have to be much betteer than this. Wine of the year so far.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/31/2015 - Marc wrote: 95 Points
John's Birthday Degustation Dinner (Hippopotamus Restaurant, Museum Hotel, Wellington, New Zealand): Light ruby. Spectacular and etherial, lifted nose flys out of the glass, pushed by some VA. Glorious wild strawberry fruit. The palate is light on its feel and shows great vibrancy. Drinking beautifully today, this will continue to grow in stature and will always be a very light wine that convinces on its transparency. 95+
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/8/2015 - HowardNZ Likes this wine: 94 Points
Some recent 2002 Burgs: Bright, vivid red colour. Decanted 3-4 hours earlier. An attractive, spicy red-fruited nose. On palate, very pure and fairly primary with flavours of bright red berries and some subdued forest floor. There's tons of drive and power here and Grand Cru fruit weight with sleek, fine-grained tannins. Intense, rich and ripe. Returning to the bottle more than 24 hours later, the bouquet was moving towards the secondary with savoury, autumnal and underbrush nuances. The palate had similarly moved more mellow, older red plums, rather than raspberries, drinking beautifully, giving a glimpse of where it will be in 5-10 years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/6/2015 - William Kelley Likes this wine: 96 Points
The 2002 Engel Grands-Echezeaux is another bomb from the late, great Philippe Engel, bursting from the glass with lovely pure aromatics of wild berries, hedgerow fruit and subtle soil tones. The nose is not unlike Engel's 2002 Clos Vougeot, but on the palate the wine is even more intense, focused and firm at the core, with bright acids, crunchy fruit and beautifully ripe tannins, and it is here that the terroir differentiation is most apparent at this early stage. A terrific success. This is a long way from peak maturity, but the stunning quality is already apparent: what a legacy!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/28/2015 - ricknat1 wrote: 94 Points
Fruit forward. Big attack, medium finish. Drinking well right now.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/11/2011 - Pacalet wrote: 91 Points
Medium red in color, nose of wood spice, licorice, red flowers, menthol. Medium plus palate with slight vanilla note, very well balanced, ripe, elegant, fine tannins but primary, will be great in 3-4 years...
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/5/2011 - Greg Pierce wrote:
No detailed note, but this was drinking fantastically well. Crisp and light with terrific cranberry and red fruits and a hint of beef blood on the nose. Really awesome pinot noir.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/2/2008 - toddjerry wrote: 90 Points
Medium light color, less dark fruit than expected. Light in the mouth, sour cherries, lots of forest floor, still high-toned acid. Still young and will improve, bringing out secondary complexities. Solid, but not outstanding (yet).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment