Wednesday, November 30, 2005

"To die for" Burgundy Tasting - 2001 Gevrey-Chambertin Grand Crus

Firstly, immense thanks to Henry aka "Burghead" and Andy aka "Jiu Shen" (Chinese "God of Wine"), for organizing this wonderful event. Andy, for his tireless sourcing and careful storage of the wines, and Henry for organizing all the "boyz", and for reproducing Allen Meadows's illuminating blurb on the Gevrey Grand Crus, and attendant tasting notes.

The juice flowed as follows:

>Chambertin, Armand Rousseau
>Chambertin, Phillipe Charlopin-Parizot
>Chambertin-Clos de Beze, Bruno Clair
>Chambertin-Clos de Beze, Frederic Magnien
>Ruchottes-Chambertin, Georges Roumier
>Mazis-Chambertin, Dugat-Py
>Chapelle-Chambertin, Loius Jadot
>Griotte-Chambertin, Claude Dugat
>Latricieres-Chambertin, Jean et Jean-Louis Trapet
>Charmes-Chambertin, Joseph Roty
>Mazoyeres-Chambertin, Perrot-Minot

Dinner was fine Cantonese cuisine at Jiang-Nan Chun Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore. Wines were served blind and randomized. Careful double decanting was undertaken for all but two of the wines poured.

To begin proceedings, 2 whites were poured - Chandon de Briailles Corton Blanc 2002 and Rapet Corton Charlemagne 1998. Apologies- I was late to the tasting because I had to walk my labradoodle pups, so I rushed through the whites without being startled or impressed.

Bottle 1 > The tasting began with a real bang! "Bah kua" (barbequed meat) on the nose, very giving, effusive. No let up on the palate either, bright red fruits, fresh cut flowers, minerals, finishing long. James and I concurred that it was like rose petals swirling in a glass. Finesse with a capital "F". Impressive and classy. Frederic Magnien Chambertin-Clos de Beze

Bottle 2 > Rather closed and restrained. Brooding, like a fruit bomb waiting to explode. Maybe a couple of years in bottle would allow it time to fill out? Bruno Clair Chambertin-Clos de Beze Personally, Bruno Clair's style is not my favourite. Find his wines to be a little austere. Much prefered the Magnien's expression of Clos de Beze on this night.

Bottle 3 > Caramel and floral notes. Firm with lots of structure on the palate, with a nice acid frame. Not an "in your face" kind of pinot. Lots to like. Louis Jadot Chapelle-Chambertin

Bottle 4 > Grilled meats on the nose with stems thrown in. Quite green, bitter and dusty in the mouth for me. Christophe Roumier Ruchottes-Chambertin

Bottle 5 > In your face, new world nose. Overipe black fruit, big and bold. Very sweet, almost cloying. Reminds me of a Peter Michael Moulin-Rouge. Not meant to be a compliment. Don't think Henry would have liked this very much either. Dugat-Py Mazis Chambertin

Bottle 6 > Damp earth and the smell of rain. Lovely fruit infused with minerals and balanced by just the right amount of wood and acid. A thouroughbred. Loved it. Jean et Jean-Louis Trapet Latricieres Chambertin

Bottle 7 > Aromatically pungent. Tastes almost like medicinal cough syrup (Benadryl comes to mind). Presently, the wood is still a little overbearing for me. Strong elements are present, but very closed. We're probably drinking this a bit young. Joseph Roty Charmes-Chambertin. I have a great fondness for Roty's style as borne out in his village wines, so had high expectations for this bottle.

Bottle 8 > Liquorice. Very chewy and sweet. Not much elegance here and quite one dimensional at this tasting. Still think this is very fine though. Armand Rousseau Chambertin

Bottle 9 > Big nose of dark fruit and freshly brewed java. Lots of firm, yet fine tannins, sappy and well structured. Still young, but its fruit profile and depth, promises greatness. Claude Dugat Griotte-Chambertin

Bottle 10 > I know i liked this quite a bit, but at this point, had imbibed a substantial amount, and the neurons were a bit sluggish. Tasting notes simply say "beautiful". Charlopin Chambertin

Bottle 11 > Delicious red fruit lifted by an acid backbone. Needs a bit of time to shed its wood perhaps? Perrot-Minot Mazoyeres-Chambertin

My 3 favourites were as follows:

Magnien Clos de Beze
Trapet Latriceires
Claude Dugat Griotte

The wines were all great, but some were more equal than others on this night. It truly was a burg tasting "to die for"......



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