Not the best – but my favourite. Thank you for your support in making this another fantastic year for us.
-Adam
- CVNE Vina Real Reserva Especial 1964 – drank in the States before the SF Paulee, in a small, very cosy restaurant with a warm energy that made the already fantastic wines even better. This ’64 was stunning and an ethereal beauty, undoubtedly the finest Spanish wine I’ve come across. It kept on getting better and better but the problem with wines that are so drinkable is that you do exactly that – drink them too quickly. Thank you Mr B for this rare and delicious treat.
CVNE Vina Real Reserva Especial 1964
- Comte Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Charmes 1987 – we opened this after a sloggy and cold trek in snowy Sichuan, after seeking to spot some of the elusive Pandas. I had more hope of coming across a panda than this bottle drinking well. How wrong I was – from the moment the cork was popped the wine burst alive and danced on the palate. It was such a classic Meursault and one that completely defied the vintage. As 87’s my birth-year I have trouble finding wines that still drink well, let alone wines that would knock an 85 white Burg to shreds. This would have done just that. Temperature was so important – drank just below room temp like a red it let all the complex aromas and flavours flow out and express themselves at their fancy. Absolutely beautiful juice.
Comte Lafon Charmes 1987
- A. Rousseau Chambertin 1967 – there aren’t any other wines that are as consistently great as Rousseau’s Chambertin. For me it’s the ultimate Burgundy – it has everything you could dream of in a wine. This was from a weak vintage but the provenance was excellent and the colour very healthy, so I was hopeful it would drink nicely even though a bottle from the same case had been a bit tired the week before. The layers were completely seamless and every drop of this a privilege to drink. Not one of the all time great Chambertin’s but certainly a fantastic ‘comfort Chambertin’ that was a pleasure to share with a good friend. It had a homely warmth and charm to it that you couldn’t help but fall in love with. Divine stuff.
A. Rousseau Chambertin 1967
- Roulot Meursault Tessons Clos de Mon Plaisir 1979 magnum – the stage was set in Pommard to bring this golden oldie home. Daniel, myself, a good friend from London, Jean-Marc, another local winemaker and a French film director all tucked into this perfectly cellared magnum. This magnum ebbed and flowed with that nutty tertiary Meursault character I adore, and had aged so well. This was a soul wine and could very easily be a premier cru. I felt the wine could happily age for another 10 years or so but today at that moment it was the perfect moment to drink it. It was the centre piece of the lunch (though the 1976 Rousseau Clos de Beze magnum was a fantastic too). A real beauty of a wine made by Jean-Marc’s father, Guy Roulot, and a real honour to drink from magnum together.
Roulot Meursault Tessons Clos de Mon Plaisir 1979 magnum
- Clair Dau Chambertin Clos de Beze 1969 – The theme of the dinner was “Extinct Domaines” – there were a few Engel and Truchot bottles and this was the only Clair-Dau. It came from that Truchot cellar many of you have bought from – bought direct from the Domaine and the provenance really showed. It had a wonderful complexity and was at the zenith of it’s drinkability. It stole the show that night (though the Truchot Charmes Chambertin 2000 wasn’t far off) and it’s unlikely I’ll come across another bottle again – let alone in that fine shape. Thanks Richard for bringing it!
Clair Dau Chambertin Clos de Beze 1969
- Ramonet Batard Montrachet 1988 – I was so happy to see this bottle. We split up a gorgeous Original Case earlier in the year and I was sure I wouldn’t see any bottles again – Ramonet from the 80’s are safe guarded like nuclear launch codes, and rightly so. This was surprisingly light when opened, almost like a 1er Cru, and subsequently decanted for an hour… and then boom! It put on so much weight in that time – we were treated to a wonderful fireworks display of white Burgundy at it’s best. I was in love with the classic Ramonet Batard aromatics – it was pure heaven in a glass and kept on getting better and better, somehow showing developing even more depth as the night wore on. This was still wonderfully fresh and in an ideal secondary state and looked like staying on that plateau for some time to come. Thank you Carey for opening this!
Ramonet Batard Montrachet 1988
- Truchot Clos de la Roche 1985 & 1986 – I had so many good Truchot bottles this year they could all have easily have made it here. I couldn’t pick between the two so had to include these both. The 1985 is similar to the very best 85 red Burgundies in that’s a real wow wine – showy, vibrant, precise, mouth coating and damn delicious, all with being very Truchot in style – brilliant juice. The 1986 is quality wise on the 1985’s level, and that’s no mean feat. Jacky himself said that his 1986’s are as good as 1985’s and that is spot on based on these bottles. We sold the 1986 a few years before Truchot’s wines became quite popular and like the Ramonet 88 I was so happy and excited to see it again – Truchot 1986’s just aren’t around anymore. Thank you again Carey for sharing this treasure.
Truchot Clos de la Roche 1986
Truchot Clos de la Roche 1985
- Coche Dury Meursault Rougeots 1996 – as pristine a bottle as we could possibly ever drink. Based on this bottle – the Rougeots is not SO far away in quality from the Corton Charlemagne so at a 5th/6th of the price doesn’t seem like a bad price. You get the full Coche experience and spades more. Drank with both my brothers at my favourite restaurant in London – this managed to combine being explosive with having fantastic terroir transparency. At an ideal stage to try, it’s steady on it’s secondary plateau with no signs of budging anytime soon. What an insanely good bottle!
Coche Dury Meursault Rougeots 1996
- DRC La Tache 1990 – a dream of a wine. Only the truly great wines possess a quality I champion – and that is having the ability to completely humble you. This was a seriously moving wine I shan’t forget – it touched every part of you and silenced me to a fault. It’s never-ending finish, harmony and complexity of tastes was just astonishing. It was complete, sensual and just glided in the mouth like cashmere. Chris – thank you for sharing this.
DRC La Tache 1990
- Leflaive Montrachet 2012 – drank off the menu at one of those French establishments you go for the wine rather than the food, though they always assume that you must have came for the grub (until at least, you begin ordering the wine). Picked off the encyclopedic menu we knew this would probably be our only chance to try this vintage of Leflaive’s Montrachet, especially as there were only 140 bottles. We opened this up – bottle number 100 no less – at the beginning of dinner with the idea of drinking it by itself or with a healthy dollop of epoisses at the end. I tasted a few drops and wow, what potential – but straight into the decanter for two and half hours. The wines we had till then were all on point, a surprisingly open Raveneau 2011 Clos, a fantastic Coche Dury 2007 Caillerets and a brilliant but baby of a Rousseau 2012 Clos St Jacques. Then this Montrachet – it was unlike any other white I’ve had before. It was juice from another planet – with a thick, rich, unctuous texture and absolutely massive, spine tingling intensity that left us in awe. This was a beast of nature strutting it’s full force – with lightening energy and such a beautiful array of unimaginable complexity, complete with an almost mystifying depth to it. This was a profound wine and I felt very lucky and privileged to have drank it. All in all we left happy customers and sure – will come back for the food anytime..
Domaine Leflaive Montrachet 2012
