Treat yourself to a dose of `non-interventionist´writing. An article that had me smirking on the tram to work; Eric Asimov with his tongue only slightly in-cheek. Here is a great follow-up post – really absorbing, insightful writing – and reading!
Heading to Dutch Siberia (Friesland) today and not back until late Friday – so it will mainly be offline stuff for a few days…
2002 Tollot-Beaut, Beaune Greves
Deep cherry-red. The nose is quite super; a deep and forward mix of black and red cherry over subtly creamy oak. Depth, concentration and velvety texture, pushed by the mouthwatering acidity this is very long. There’s still a littly oaky bitterness on the finish, another 2-3 years and I think this will be absorbed. Despite the open nose there’s a real brooding sense of character to this wine. Top-notch Beaune that will amply repay cellar time. Rebuy – Yes
This bottle really improved my mood after the two corked bottles. Also we had a ‘Truffière’ Corton-Charlemagne. I’m still not sure of the provenance of this label, I think it might be a second label of Vincent Girardin(?)
2003 Le Truffière, Corton-Charlemagne
An oversize and overweight ‘statement bottle’ with a super-deep punt. Medium yellow. The nose shouts ‘pear-drops’ before becoming a more subtle blend with classic white blossom and higher-toned alcoholic notes. The palate is quite well concentrated and reasonably long, it just needs an extra dab of acidity to carry the ample mid-palate through into the finish. Almost good. Rebuy – No
What do these bottles have in common?
Well, they were opened 30 minutes apart and both were corked. I’d been looking forward to opening the Bonneau, so chose my birthday – the perfect example of Murphy’s Law, or as the Germans prefer to say; ‘Shit Happens’.
Anyway, post Corton-Charlemagne, I decided to cleanse my palate with Marc Morey’s 2002 Chassagne 1er Morgeots – what a mistake-a to make-a. This (red) Chassagne was even more heavily tainted than the white – in fact so much so I couldn’t even bear to describe how bad.
Fortunately two other bottles came to the rescue – one of which was really excellent, I’ll get to that tomorrow, but for the record, the Bonneau had some (slightly oxidised) potential:
1991 Bonneau du Martray, Corton-Charlemagne
Medium golden. Hints of oxidation – though mild – concentrated, nice texture, more oxidatative notes but acceptable, good acidity and heavily corked…
2001 Domaine Guyon, Vosne-Romanée
Medium ruby-red. The nose starts with deep and spicy, even rubbery oaky elements, slowly there are high-toned red fruit and floral aspects and eventually more plummy fruit added to the mix, the last drops in the glass smell fantastic. There’s a real kick when you first taste this, a burst of concentration and mouthwatering acidity. Initially there’s lots of spicy and slightly 
bitter oak in the finish too – this takes quite a while to improve – but only a little, taking on a more licorice style. For me there’s still far too much oak marking this wine and I’m sure it will never be fully absorbed – great for those that like this style, but I find it a shame that good underlying material is ‘coloured’ in this way. Rebuy – No
Not to be confused with the domaine Antonin Guyon, this small domaine is based in Vosne, the latest bottles have the label Michel et Jean-Pierre Guyon, but the design remains the same. They typically make concentrated wines and use a lot of toasty oak but the results can be variable; the 2002 Vosne and Echézeaux took up the oak pretty well, but as you can see, this 2001 less so.
Coming to the end of the 4th year of Burgundy Report, the format has essentially remained static since issue 1; there’s been the odd design tweak here and there but otherwise it’s the same. I’m constantly aware that this format could become rather stale; i.e. the (potentially mad) ramblings of one individual. To hopefully counter (or at least delay) that situation I’ve decided that a little democracy is called for.
From the last report of 2006 (in a little over a month) the considerable knowledge of the readership can be deployed – should they wish. Just like this update log, at the bottom of every, new content page will be your chance to comment, offer alternative views, or correct the patently false! Or even just comment on some-one else’s comment! There’s a depth of knowledge in the readership that no individual could replicate; winemakers, relatives of winemakers, sellers of wine and don’t let us forget – ‘enthusiasts’. Let’s see if some of that knowledge can be brought out with this change.
Typically just as I find what I believe to be the best technical solution I see something ‘even better’ on the horizon – but why wait(?), first let us see if it brings some value.
The last Gevrey of the week is the deepest coloured, most juvenile and perhaps most concentrated; it also came from a producer that I don’t think I’ve tried before – Thierry Mortet is the younder brother of the late Denis Mortet and also based in Gevrey-Chambertin. His range when I last saw them listed is quite small, only 4 cuvées. Some of his bother’s skill is surely evident in this wine.
2001 Thierry Mortet, Gevrey-Chambertin
Medium-plus red, still with a strong cherry-red hue. The nose starts quite masculine with a strong Gevrey-earth character supporting a melange of red and black berry fruit, slowly this becomes softer and a little higher toned if not better focused. The palate is full and concentrated and obviously started life with a real injection of oak, but the residual effect is more about soft, fat texture and a little bitterness in the finish. The bitterness doesn’t last long and is eventually replaced with a reasonable length and a more creamy aspect. The tannins have a little rasp right at the end, but this is a very accomplished wine, and quite concentrated for an 01. Really very good. Rebuy – Yes
2001 Domaine Ponsot, Gevrey-Chambertin Cuvée l’Abeille
Medium ruby red. The nose starts with a little undergrowth then soil, both fade to reveal a diffuse red-fruit curtain – improvement is required and the patient are rewarded; first with a deeper plum fruit before a lovely high-toned and focused red fruit effect – very nice. The palate is much less ripe than the 01 Bachelet Gevrey that precedes it, providing a sour-cherry fruit which is not unattractive and mirrored by the balanced, mouth-watering yet somewhat tart acidity. The overall texture is excellent with understated velvet tannins. In the end this is a wine that even with food, is just a little too tart – I can enjoy it, but I wouldn’t rebuy it. Rebuy – No
2004 Philippe Colin, Chassagne-Montrachet Les Vergers
Medium-pale lemon yellow. There’s a well-integrated nose of toasted bread and rich fruit. Very forward acidity is the initial impression. The acidity is very smooth and very mineral in aspect, initially rather dominating the linear fruit, but there’s no missing that sneaky and very creamy length. Once my palate adjusted (I don’t think the wine materially changed) I was able to see the extra kick of citrus edged fruit in the mid-palate and appreciate the super purity. Drink this today direct from the fridge or with a buttery sauced dish, alternatively store away for 5 years before revisiting. On day two there’s quite a honied aspect to this wine, and less intensity to the acidity. I preferred day 1. Rebuy – Yes
Subtitled: The Magnificent Dukes and their Courts.
Let’s be clear about this at the outset – this is, despite its main title, a virtually wine-free book. Of-course, gifts by way of a few barrels here and a few barrels there pop-up from time to time but no more often than a prince of the realm has ‘his brains scattered in the mud’.
This book covers the dynasty of the Dukes of Burgundy, ‘princes of the blood, but owners of vast estates existing in their own right and over which France had no juristiction’; estates which made these Dukes and their vassals some of the richest of the ‘middle-ages’. It’s about the political intrigue of the time and kingdoms won and lost and like all the best history books – they really know how to kill a man.
Close to 300 pages, this is a scholarly work, in parts it’s also not always the easiest read, possibly because it’s been translated from the original French of its author – Joseph Calmette (d.1952 – it was his last work) but it certainly holds the attention. For history buffs this is recommended.
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