2009 Denis Bachelet, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Les Corbeaux
Medium, medium-plus colour. Wow: There’s a strong smell of pyrazines on the nose – blind, I’d probably lose my house pronouncing this as a 2004. The flavour is likewise corrupted. This seems very stable in the glass, and it’s not for me.
Rebuy – No
I just did something that I haven’t done for years – I bought a copy of Decanter.
Intruiged by the summary of their story on the Decanter website I decided to see what passes for cutting-edge wine journalism. First I have to say that the magazine is more impressive than the website – but what wouldn’t be hard given that the latter is a ‘mere’ promotional tool, riddled with advertisements and pop-ups. Apart from the news service and some of the ‘blogs’ their website is largely to be avoided and certainly no thing of beauty.
Returning to premature oxidation – or early onset oxidation as the BIVB prefer to describe it – for such an important subject it is worth asking ‘what took so long to publicly air this subject?’, the article’s first line says it all:
In the early 2000s it became apparent that something was going wrong…
Cool, so it only took them 11 years to take it seriously! – and also ‘why such an apologetic mention at the foot of the cover-page?’ This seems to imply that it’s the least worthy contribution after producers from Chile and Argentina, a selection of Italian wines and ‘your guide to’ Florence, Alsace and the Loire. Okay, gripe(s) over, now let’s look at the article.
Stephen Brook seemingly shoots himself in the foot before he event starts; the subtitle below the apt title (Gambling on white Burgundy) announcing
But many, less than 15 years old, are aged in such a random matter that experts cannot pinpoint the cause.
Did Stephen discuss any of the BIVB’s research with them? Of-course the cause (it is currently believed) is the higher oxidation potential of the base wines – let’s be charitable and assume what Stephen was meaning was, what is the underlying cause of that(?!)
Broadly thereafter is a decent discussion of the variables concerned, coupled with the thoughts/conjectures of a number of winemakers, including Jeremy Seysses, Caroline l’Estimé, Franck Grux, Patrick Javillier, Vincent Girardin and Jacques Lardière – the downside of their opinions is exemplified by a bit of puff from the outgoing winemaker of Jadot
But not long ago in Texas I ran a tasting of our whites from top sites from vintages in the late 1990s and the wines were impeccable.
Fine, but what does that mean given the context that the post-2000 wines of Jadot seem to be some of the most consistently p.oxed wines ‘out there’? Lardière also likes to try to deflect a little criticism by pointing out ‘it’s not just Burgundy’ – somehow missing the point that it is just Burgundy who charge €50-€500 for their whites. The merchant perspective is given by Jasper Morris who says
I’m not saying you won’t find oxidised bottles these days, but the problem is hugely reduced.
Not quite the same as Stephen Brook’s short-hand of Jasper’s words “(Jasper) believes the problem has been cracked.” If Jasper is positively inclined, I’m not even close to convinced. At-least not until empirical evidence suggests otherwise.
Overall a very late contribution to the debate, but welcome all the same in that it brings a wider exposure to this highly important issue. Stephen Brook does indeed put the majority of the salient points onto the table, my real criticism is only that he lists many comments from people whose living is made by selling these wines, but offers no balancing arguments or experience-based analysis of his own, except;
Certainly there is evidence to suggest that the problem is, if not ‘cured’, then far less prevalent than a decade ago.
Really? What is this ‘evidence’? Taking the Jadot example, and they are not alone, they seem to be in a much worse position than a decade ago…
Well maybe not all the world, but after Decanter’s recent piece, Jay McInerny is at it in the Wall Street Journal too.
Nothing new of-course, just that the story is now trickling out into a more mainstream audience – in a way it’s surprising it’s taken so long…
The shock!!!
It is fair to criticise how long it’s taken, but as they say ‘better late than never.’
I believe there’s a wider discussion of this subject in the magazine; unless you have a problem selling your white burgundy – and today it’s about managing expectations – this wider discussion in the ‘generalist’ wine press can only be helpful in finding a resolution(s) and better managing buyer’s expectations.
Or this could be titled, how to avoid oxidation – and fail!
Although I intend to have some good drinking in my dotage, I generally drink more modest stuff at home; bourgognes, villages and premiers – perhaps only a grand cru once or twice a month. Actually half the wines I drink don’t feature in these pages because they are habitual house wines – whites in particular. Yet any excuse to make a change.
I finally finished this week a project that entailed 120 thousand words and visiting over 100 domaines since the end of July last year – but I can’t give any more details this year I think. Now I can concentrate on the Spring Report (oops…) and open a couple of bottles to celebrate. The first one is Leflaive’s 2005 Chevalier-Montrachet; I didn’t really plan to open one before 2020 but I’ve heard p.ox reports. The other has been in the cellar for three or four years, from only a single barrel of 1985 Richebourg from François Gros. Let’s see!
2005 Domaine Leflaive, Chevalier-Montrachet
Medium golden colour. The first notes on the nose were – ouch – of Jerez, I left the bottle for five or six hours. On returning there’s merely a suggestion of that oxidative note, more to the fore is dense core of aroma that smells of old oak and some suggestions of mature aromas. Full in the mouth, flavour growing in the mid-palate with cool acidity; the flavour is intense and very long, some creamy and toffee elements too – though it’s not particularly moreish. Day two it’s a little (not lots) better, still with a hint of oxidation. Day three there is none, perhaps the colour is also more yellow than gold. Now it has creamy depth with a hint of lanolin (normally I expect this on 15+ year-old wine). In the mouth it’s full and powerful a hint toffeed and still maybe not the greatest mid-palate flavour – but for the first time I’ve topped up my glass. So, this Chevalier is in an awful place right now. Accepted there were sherry aromas when opened, and even on day two. But no-one tasting this wine on day 3 would say it was premoxed, it has become cleaner every day; it was on the same level after 72 hours (open) as after 48 – just that rather frumpy presentation that many 05s show.
Rebuy – No (Probably! – anyway it’s too expensive now)
1985 François Gros, Richebourg
Bottle 78 of 320. The cork easily slides out in one piece – but what a disappointing looking thing – tiny compared to a villages cork from 08. Still, they say size isn’t everything! Medium colour – perfectly clear with just a hint of amber at the rim. Clean smelling, some dried leaves but no obvious fruit to start with, time adds some wet leaves and damp soil too. A narrow, soft and sweet entry but with good acidity and then suddenly there’s tannin in the mouth. Plenty of mid-palate flavour that seems to be molten essence of barrel and perhaps some minerality – much nicer than it sounds and is very complex and very long. The finishing flavours include in their complexity a hint of something volatile and also a hint of something oxidised. Far from seamless, but a wine that offers something new with every sniff and every taste. Lovely, but despite plenty of tannin, seems to be losing a little cohesion – if you have some of the the other 319 bottles I wouldn’t think that they will get better. On day two – despite overnighting in the fridge – too much oxidation for enjoyment.
Rebuy – No
So, the Chevalier improves just as the Richebourg fails – On one hand He gives and on the other He takes away. It wasn’t much of a ‘celebration’ really 😉
Like a duck paddling away below the surface I’m trying to give the impression of everything being serene above the waist. The fact is the next Burgundy Report (already the 8th year!) is coming together in a much more orderly/timely fashion than usual – in fact you will only have to wait until the 15th because I’ve requested some stuff from external parties, and that’s their deadline – I suppose if they deliver it early you can have it early too 🙂
I’ve been going through a bit of a white clear-out phase, and didn’t want to subject you to the same notes every week, but during the last 6 weeks I’ve managed to go through the following, only some of which have been mentioned in the diary:
So 8 oxidised from 27 – but that’s too charitable I think, as I included some young wines. If we look at 2002 and older it’s 8 from 19…
Moving swiftly on, here’s an article about Faiveley that was published last weekend….
That’s it, enough chocolate for today; 120g of ‘Grand Cru Croquant’ Easter rabbit – a nice 70% ‘Cacao Hispaniola’ – and very nice too, particularly with 5% tiny almond nougat pieces adding a crunch to the texture. The more industrial chocolate of a Lindt bunny awaits – maybe tomorrow!
Anyway a few things in this entry. Coming back to my note on Decanter’s ‘April Fool Fun’ perhaps the fool was on them: I looked in the morning to see that there was a not so funny story about North Korea buying all the second wine of Latour from the 2009 vintage, I didn’t have time to read it all so decided to return. At lunchtime – nothing – only an empty entry still in the RSS feed. Later there was an apology, apparently because too many people believed the story. I guess I kind of understand, given that they live by their advertising, and a lot of that advertising comes from the ‘Châteaux’, but no winners there…
Back to wine, and a couple of Easter Saturday bottles. In my ‘spirit’ of drinking up ‘older’ whites – which in the current oxidative era that we find ourselves means anything older than 5 years, here’s another. And drunk just in time it would appear.
2002 Antonin Guyon, Corton-Charlemagne
My last of these, the previous two were rather oxidised. Medium gold. The nose has hints of toffee – a sort of tarte tartin – lots of depth, and yes it’s just tending to oxidation, but to this minor extent I can live with it. Width, decent acidity and good intensity. The length has hints of oxidative notes that to a certain extent compromise the finish but there are also nice creamy hints with waxy lanolin. Drinkable.
Rebuy – No
1988 Camille Giroud, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Charmes
Medium colour. The nose starts in that Italian (many years in barrel) botti vernacular, it really needs at least an hour for that to fade, below it builds a core of dried fruits, above is some faintly volatile floral notes. In the mouth there’s a cushioned, slightly padded level of tannin and a very interesting intensity of mature fruit flavours in the mid-plate. The finish is understated but long. Interesting rather than ‘great’, but very much enjoyed.
Rebuy – Yes
Thursday night and it’s dinner in the Château du Clos de Vougeot, but before dinner, 40 grand crus to taste from the 2008 and 2002 vintage. It’s the second time I’ve been invited – I know, I’m a very lucky boy. Perhaps I’m also a bit more humble than one heavily accented voice I heard complaining in English about this that and just about everything – that will have been the person here on somebody else’s dollar no doubt – there are too many of those people in the world I’m afraid!
Back to the ‘Château’; It’s hard not to marvel at the magnificence of both the place and it’s setting, even when the security asks ‘do you have one of these’, I say ‘I don’t think so’ then he says ‘well I’m sorry then, you must park outside the walls of the Château’. Oh-well!
More of the tasting in the next Burgundy Report, but here are a trio of wines that were served with dinner – note, bravo to the service team as everything is served hot, they are most efficient – I include the notes for your interest.
2001 Jadot, Criots-Bâtard Montrachet
Given the deep colour I have a concern about oxidation, and there is an edge to the nose, but there’s also still enough detailed, pretty fruit to keep my interest. Across your tongue there’s plenty of freshness and a very good balance. The flavour is quite savoury in the mid-palate and it’s quite long too – detailed but no fireworks. Blind, I certainly wouldn’t assume this to be a grand cru that costs more than €100. Eventually my glass gives up more aromas of oxidation. My neighbour pulls a face when he smells my glass – he enjoyed his very much, but it was from another bottle. Bottle variation and some oxidation, I expect that this was a good (tax advantageous) opportunity to get rid of 100 bottles or-so…
Rebuy – No
1990 Joseph Drouhin, Grands-Echézeaux
Still deeply coloured. The nose starts with forceful aromas of freshly turned leaves, after 30 minutes it’s on a lower lever but my glass actually needed almost an hour to finally develop sweet and detailed dried red fruits, meat and herbs – the aromas were probably peaking as I was sleeping in my bed – but burgundians don’t decant do they 😉 In the mouth this is sweet and quite powerful. The mid-palate structure is actually a little rustic, but who cares when there are so many dimensions of flavour. Energy and character here, and it’s a long way from it’s peak – bravo!
Rebuy – Yes
1988 Bouchard Père et Fils, Le Corton
Hmm I had this two years ago – but at Bouchard. This also starts with quite leafy aromas of undergrowth. Much narrower, this ripples its muscles right from the outset, never really softening up – I only had it in my glass for 30 minutes. The core is of sweet, dark red fruit. Overall mineral and long, but probably drunk 20 years too soon 😉
Rebuy – Yes
After the oxidised Roulot bourgogne yet another (fotunately my last) p.oxed Bouchard Père 2002 Meursault Perrières yesterday. I though the case was already finished until I found this singleton, I must have been saving it for a happy day in the future….
The replacement was a Françoise et Denis Clair St.Aubin 1er Dents du Chien – a decent bottle (note to follow) – and also a decent bottle of Castagnier 1996 Bonnes-Mares. Finally some success!
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