It’s been a while since I posted any tasting impressions here – though you should know that my research never ceases 🙂 See below just the September & October bottles – but here’s such a counterpoint that I thought it worth marking…
2004 Alex Gambal, St.Aubin 1er Murgers des Dents du Chien
Brown and oxidised. This is the first sub-standard (worse than!) bottle of this cuvée that I’ve ever had. A cuvée that I bought from its inaugural 2001 vintage chez Gambal until Boisset bought the domaine and bottled his 2017s for him – I just, maybe foolishly, passed on the 2003 vintage. Originally all were in cork – so these two – and there was a small DIAM interlude prior to Boisset who returned to cork.
There’s nothing else to say, this was thrown down the sink and it was my last of the domaine’s 2004s.
2005 Alex Gambal, St.Aubin 1er Murgers des Dents du Chien
There’s a small discolouration at the top of this cork – a cork that slides out rather more easily than I’d like – it’s got the mark of wine up 90% of its length too – hopefully, this was opened just in time…
The colour is deep – but it’s still a yellow-gold – nothing brown. What a nose! An acidulated but ripe yellow citrus – it’s particular; I won’t try to be a pseud and say Amalfi or Menton lemons – but it has character and a great invitation. In the mouth – great definition and depth of flavour and I really like the structure – it’s an architectural wine with plenty of supporting minerality – it’s got muscle too. I went for a second and a third glass of this wonderful wine. My only half-critique was that blind I would have guessed a 1990s wine – that old creamy depth of finishing flavour seeming a little older than the label – and perhaps that was down to the cork. But I’m hoping my last 3 glasses on day 2 will be just as good. This was a wonderful ‘old’ burgundy…
‘Early onset oxidation’ is little reported these days as the story has been re-hashed so much and so often. Many producers remain set in their ideas on what works and what doesn’t – so we still have many oxidised wines – my last, a 2014 Corton-Charlemagne. Outside of DIAM or screw-cap sealed bottles, it’s still a mug’s game if you wait 10 years…
Wines in September & October:
