Fourrier

2004 Fourrier Griotte-Chambertin

By billn on October 18, 2010

Medium, medium-plus colour. The nose starts with plenty of mushroom rather than the customary reduction, actually with swirling the reduction does make an appearance – a wine that needs a little air. Air dissolves the mushrooms and delivers a lovely pure red berry note, though this is also a transition to deeper, slightly darker red fruit aromas – rather primary though, as is the Griotte fashon. The well-padded palate starts quite silky though there is some bitterness to the finish, that said it’s in a bitter-chocolate style which is far from problematic. Like a number of 04s the acidity is a little elevated but that’s its position on the aging curve, nothing more. There is an interesting and very slowly emerging stony flavour in the finish. None of the disappointingly monolithic Clos St.Jacques proportions here. A very good wine that drinks quite well considering its age. Not a trace of the vintage malaise either.

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2004 Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes

By billn on October 01, 2010

Medium-plus colour. The nose starts a little, inky and earthy with plenty of background reduction – the reduction is a minor flavour component too – it neads to aerate a little, so I decant. An hour later and there’s a higher-toned red fruit note, faint alcohol too but the reduction is gone. The last drops have a lovely redcurrant lift. Decent impact, perhaps a little monolithic like some other Fourrier 04s, but the lingering flavours and the overall balance are very good. I don’t discern any vintage character, but I have the impression I’d probably rather drink a majority now than leave them all in the cellar.

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2004 Fourrier Chambolle-Musigny Vieilles Vignes

By billn on August 15, 2010

Medium-plus colour. The nose shows herbal hints of mint and a faint cedar, but it’s hard to say if it’s part of the the 04 character, whatever, it’s on a very low level, overall a liitle floral and not too dense, eventually it delivers a nice acid cherry aroma. Fresh, with just a little astringency to the tannin. There is just enough sweetness to carry what would otherwise be mouth-puckering acidity. Not quite as clunky as the Clos St.Jacques currently shows and the good fruit flavour comes through well in the finish. Almost good.

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2004 Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin Clos St.Jacques

By billn on August 05, 2010

The wine is quite darkly (medium-plus) coloured – though far from young in shade, most 02s still look younger. The nose starts in that awkward slightly toasty oak way that Fourriers (to my bemusement) often do – they don’t see that much new wood, particularly the toasted type – I think it is reduction that needs to blow off. Less than 5 minutes in the glass and the oaky character is gone, now we have a deep, quite dark impression and a hint of cream gone lactic – it’s a hint so it’s still nice – a slight suggestion of dry forest leaves before a fruit note builds from the core, the fruit becomes ever-more prettier. In the mouth this has a silken texture and a concentration that builds as you head into the mid-palate. Initially I find the acidity not quite seamless – I’ll wait a little, hoping for either my palate or the wine to come together. The almost absent tannin only starts to reveal itself as a late bitter component in the mineral finish. The balance improves with food but I find the mid-palate flavours a little lumpen – smells great though.

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2001 Fourrier Chambolle-Musigny Vieilles Vignes

By on November 30, 2009 #asides

Medium colour. High-toned, slight pickle aroma over a meatier base. The acidity is to the fore and like the nose, it’s not the finest type, it has a balsamic aspect. Whilst the acidity dominates, there are hints of what this wine was, and what it could have been – a long, long old-vine creaminess. It retains some drinkability, but that drinking window is almost closed. Day two it’s certainly better. the volatile element mainly gone – but that’s the nature of volatility

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2001 Fourrier Vougeot Les Petits Vougeots Vieilles Vignes

By on November 30, 2009 #asides

Medium ruby-red colour, still a hint of cherry-red. There’s a little herb and an undercurrent of red fruit – everything is quite tidy. In the mouth this is barely medium-bodied, very slightly acid-forward (but that’s its age) but smooth overall. A little tight, but not unrewarding. Actually far better than my first bottle of this some years ago…

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2003 Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin Combe aux Moines

By on November 30, 2009 #asides

I double decanted the bottle then left it in the refrigerator for 1 hour as my room temp was about 28°. Medium, medium-plus colour though still cherry-red. The nose still manages to open up with a dark, reductive, slightly toasty oak impression – but it stays in the glass for less than 5 minutes. Slowly it builds a width of creamy, macerating morello cherry aromas, ever-so slowly adding depth with time – very faint herbs overlay the fruit and eventually a little toffee. In the mouth the first word that comes to my mind is unctuous as the sweet fruit wraps around your tongue, though the fruit’s smiling face turns to a frown as the tannin begins to assert itself – it’s like fine sand in texture but far from astringent. The acidity is on a relatively low level so it both dulls the mid-palate (no extra dimension) and adds little to the slightly earthy, salty finish. Unctuous, but I can’t say succulent – there’s just not the freshness for that – I honestly found the second glass a chore. For all that, it’s rather a concentrated and serene wine and about the best 03 I’ve tried recently from the 1er/grand cru levels, I’m also convinced that the pretty fruit will further improve, but I’m not convinced it will ever (for my taste) overcome the shortcoming of the acidity…

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1999 Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin Combe aux Moines

By on April 30, 2009 #asides

I have to preface this note with the fact that the paint was worn from the end of the capsule, there were signs of seepage and the label was rather dirty – none of my other wines from storage have been in such condition. It’s a singleton, and hopefully (cosmetically at least) a one-off so maybe not representative. The colour is medium ruby-red. The nose starts with an impression of oak (despite Fourrier using very little), some sous-bois and a hint of brett – only the last drops in the glass show some very fine berry fruit. A forward personality in the mouth – good acidity and intensity without great weight. The flavours linger well, it’s smooth but the mid-palate is a little lumpy. My thoughts are mixed; this was certainly tasty, very tasty, but aromatically disappointing. If this bottle and that brett is representative, I’d be thinking of drinking a majority of bottles in the near future for their personality and keeping just a few back for longer term, I wouldn’t be buying more.

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2002 Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin Clos St.Jacques

By on April 30, 2009 #asides

Medium ruby-red colour that’s just turning to offer a hint of mahogany at the rim. The nose starts with red fruit but also a dark, reductive undertow that initially makes one (wrongly) think to oak – it takes a little over 90 minutes (without decanting) to disappear. Over time the nose becomes lovely and transparent, just a little powdery and young though. From the start there is sweetness coupled to perfect acidity – it’s relatively narrow at the entry but there’s a tight core of concentration in the mid-palate – this also shows a dark, reductive flavour for as long as the same lasts on the nose. This is about transparency rather than impact and is exactly to the Fourrier ‘template’, if arguably not to the terrior. The finish a good one, if not really remarkable. Very tasty, indeed I would say its balancing of sweetness and acidity make it delicious.

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