2007 Bouchard Père et Fils, Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Suchots
Well, what a gorgeous welcome this wine offered! Medium-plus coloured with a depth of faint spice and warm fruit – ‘drink me’ the label could have said! Round, sweet and supple with a fine supporting acidity. The texture has just a hint of cushioning and there’s certainly a bit of 1er cru dimension in the mid-palate. The finish becomes stricter and more stony – good, I don’t want everything too welcoming and friendly. A 2007 that will amply repay opening right away. Drink Me indeed!
Rebuy – Yes

I only started with three of these, and last year I opened two, within a few weeks of each other, and both were corked. I came across this lonesome bottle the other day and thought to myself – ‘what’s the point of it taking up space if it’s also going to be corked(?)’ Of-course the wine gods play tricks on you, don’t they…

2003 Fourrier, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Combe aux Moines
The tell-tale small bubbles of CO₂ in the neck, as the cork slid out, told me that this would need a shake or decanting, but of more immediate concern, how did the cork smell? Hmm… it smelled of sweet fruit – excellent, we are in business! The first pour was indeed a bit like cola and smelled a little reduced too, so time for the ceremonial half-dozen shakes! I came back 20 minutes later to find a more than interesting wine. The colour is still more than medium and whilst there are no-longer the purples of youth, there is no amber either. The reduction has now left, and the nose seems to have the first hints of leafy development, though this moves into the background as a warm, but polished, dark cherry note comes to the fore with a faint whiff of prune too. There is lovely acidity here which helps wrap the silky wine around your tongue. The mid-palate is sweet and has good density of fruit, the finish is modest but interesting. As time wears on, the wine becomes fatter and the fruit begins to reflect the prunes of the nose. It is a tasty, and easy drink, but I have a preference for prunes on a plate not in my glass – drink it faster than me and you may not notice!
Rebuy – Maybe

I’m off the whites for a bit – after 34,35,37,28,26°C during the last working week, we are now dumped back into 15-17°C – something to warm my heart is required…

2005 Bertagna, Chambolle-Musigny Le Village
Medium-plus colour. The nose is concentrated essence of dark cherry with hints of cherry stone too – it needs no time to warm-up in the glass, staying very primary over the 30 or-so hours it was consumed. In the mouth this is concentrated and smooth, initially part of the flavour components had a volatile impression but it was soon gone – that’s the thing with volatility I guess 😉 Wide, plenty of impact – super acidity balances the impressive concentration and finely textured (lurking) tannin too. I thought this brilliant on release – but much from Chambolle was in this vintage – and I’m still not disappointed to have bought the bottles.
Rebuy – Yes

Not sure How I ended up with this one – part of a mixed ‘summer’ case I think. Turns out to be quite nice:

2010 Alain & Isabelle Hasard, Mercurey Champs de l’Abbaye Les Marcoeurs
Deeper and more intense colour after the Duband wine. Likewise, the nose seems deep, and the dark cherry notes give a polished impression. In the mouth, this really is quite silky and competent, yet, it never really fires the imagination like the Duband did – it just lacks some defining character – it is simply a silky, pretty wine, and perhaps a slightly riper wine than the Duband. I note that it also costs about 25% more so I would say offers less value too. All that said, it remains a good wine.
Rebuy – Yes

All my early experiences of the wines of David Duband proved that, for me, they were very commercially styled wines, and frankly I didn’t like them. I’m not sure when the change was exactly – 2005? 2006? or maybe 2007? But there has been an extraordinary change of course by this winemaker, not just eliminating the sickly-sweet oak, but also embracing the whole cluster. Because of the latter trait, they may not be to everyone’s taste, but you have to applaud what’s in the glass…

2010 David Duband, Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits Louis Auguste
Medium, medium-pale colour. The nose is rather stemmy for the first few minutes but becomes ever-more interesting – eventually it is a simply beguiling blend of redcurrant and smoky wild strawberry – a gorgeous thing. The palate is consistently fresh and zingy, such that I’d be opting to drink this over the next 2-3 years just in case it became shrill, but today it is fresh, decently intense, very tasty and, not forgetting, gorgeously perfumed. Bravo!
Rebuy – Yes

I really don’t remember what I paid for this – it was part of a mixed-bottle order – but I assume that it wasn’t particularly expensive, so, I clearly didn’t buy enough, and I’m sure the fact that it was 33°C outside didn’t sway my verdict one bit! I hope there’s some left at the merchant, but preferably with better corks – seldom have I seen a cork with so many creases and lenticels – the moment it was extracted I thought the wine would be bad, but what do I know!? 😉

2011 Remi Jobard, Bourgogne Aligoté
Medium-pale lemon yellow. The nose starts with a hint of savouriness, but that doesn’t hang around long – what’s left for the longer term, is a waxy yellow lemon aroma. Direct from the fridge this is just glorious – perhaps a faint hint of CO₂, but more-so, it has a lovely acidity that you ride into the citrus mid-palate that then expands further with mouth-watering fruit flavours dripping from your gums – rather decent intensity too I would say! On a day like today, a dream-wine despite its modest price.
Rebuy – Yes

2010 Alex Gambal, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Les Charmes
A wine that was finished all too quick – though that’s a good sign! The first notes had just a hint of reduction, but less than 10 minutes after opening, those notes were gone. What remained in the glass was just a little more about barrel than vineyard I felt, but it was a pretty, spicy impression with just an undercurrent of fruit – only the last drops in the glass delivered a beautiful acid-cherry note. In the mouth, this is little more than a middle-weight, but one with plenty of complexity and interest – again there seems to be many barrel references, but there is an innate and captivating balance and grace to this wine – such a shame I couldn’t save any for further appraisal on day 2 – it was too delicious!
Rebuy – Yes