A holiday week in the south of France – though plenty of typing was interwoven. Our first bottle was the 2016 Château Thivin, Côte de Brouilly Les Griottes de Brulhié – and like most Thivin, for my palate, it was delicious. Deeply coloured and fruited – just a great bottle – the oak is not completely gone, but now is on a quite modest level. Next the crémant, 2014 Louis Bouillot, Perle d’Or – a sample, but drunk as any bottle should be. Open, good fizz – even a decent fizz for the last glass on day two. Tasty wine, and for about €12 a bit of a steal to be honest – excellent! Another bottle of the Roty – that’s at the third of this case in the last 2 weeks and it was as delicious as the previous bottles. Why not some white? okay, 2016 Domaine de Serrigny, Savigny-lès-Beaune – fresh, aromatic, depth of fresh, alive, concentrated yellow-citrus flavour – the first time that I’ve noticed some barrel notes in the finish – but frankly the wine remains delicious. The last of this week’s south of france selection was 2016 Laurent Martray, Côte de Brouilly Loïs – eventually deeply coloured wine – I say eventually because the cork was like a piece of cement in the neck – eventually being removed in 3 pieces – not the fault of the attractive wax capsule – I’m sure. More direct and acid-forward than the Thivin – like an acid cherry. Tasty but not showing at it’s best – I think the cork could have some bearing on that…

Well, let me tell you that the Domaine Romy 2018 Beaujolais Nouveau Le Mouflet was that very rare beast – a Beaujolais Nouveau Rosé! This wine was light coloured, transparent, nicely structured and fresh in a way that the best gamay manages to surpass in the vas majority of rosé pinot noirs. It was simply great!
Rebuy – Yes

Then came the 1997 Sylvain Cathiard, Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Malconsorts
My last one of these was almost undrinkably bretty, but this starts fabulously with a great and complex mature burgundy nose – so good! After 30 minute, unfortunately, this adds a bit of brett into the mix. A wine that remains drinkable, but much less ‘sniffable’ as it nears its last pours.
Rebuy – No

Lastly the 2017 Bernard et Armelle Rion, Chambolle-Musigny Les Echezeaux
A deep colour for the vintage. The nose is herby but with a very fine fruit and faint flowers too. Big wine, some structure, some herb on the mid-palate complexity too – but what a great depth of fruit as we head into the finish. A wine that softens with air – becoming ever-more friendly. Pretty excellent!
Rebuy – Yes

2010 Roty, Bourgogne Grand Ordinaire
I tasted, and loved, this way back in late 2013 – so much so that I ordered a case. Fast-forward 5 years and I eventually got it delivered – what a silly boy! Whilst I may have missed out on a few years great drinking, I’m sure that in that time I found some adequate substitutes! Based on the first two bottles – yes, this wasn’t the only one this weekend! – it seems this wine will still be drunk with great pleasure over the next couple or three years!
Medium, bright, young colour. The nose is analogous to the colour – medium, bright, pretty red fruit. Once-more the palate follows the theme – here with a lovely silky texture. Easy-drinking, pure and whilst über-drinkable – no overt signs of maturity. I think it was a fuller wine when young, but it has lost little of its drinkability.
Rebuy – Yes

2005 Daniel Rion, Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Beaux-Monts
Fuller colour. An equally fuller and deep nose – fine-textured dark red fruit and the last vestiges of a once stronger oak. Ample – mouth-filling wine. Concentrated and well-textured – lots of volume of smooth, dark-red fruit flavour here. To borrow a word, hedonistic. Not yet complex, or mature, but delicious today, and like the nose with the faint traces of a, once, much stronger oak. The best it’s tasted since release – but still a baby…
Rebuy – Yes

Wow – week 47 done already – where did all that time go? Anyway, two wines that doubly underscore the fabulous utility of less well-known appellations – Savigny white and Ladoix red, anyone?

2016 Serrigny, Savigny-lès-Beaune Blanc
What a little beauty! Fresh, faintly phenolic like a good Chablis, depth and zing like a great Savigny blanc – Did I ever say how much I enjoy Savigny whites? – I probably did! Simply excellent wine – yum!
Rebuy – Yes

2005 G&P Ravaut, Ladoix 1er Le Bois Roussot
The nose is good but a little pinched – it’s not yet lighting my fire. The palate on the other hand is muscular but lithe, silky but profound – the fruit is a dream. This wine is presumably still young as it’s never been better than now – except, maybe, the nose. Simply great wine and a pleasure to drink the bottle dry in one evening!
Rebuy – Yes

Home-made Shepherd’s Pie (for the detail-conscious, actually Cottage Pie!) so what to drink? This fell nicely to hand:

2001 Fourrier, Griotte-Chambertin
I opened this 2001 with a bit of trepidation – well, it’s said that JMF had some cork problems in this vintage – but this is in perfect shape.
Not such a big nose, a faintly spiced and roast fruit that’s slowly starting to grow some more mature dried leaf aroma and even a little (grounding) Gevrey earth. Medium bodied, with a very fine texture and an almost equally fine and complex width of flavour too. Not super long but a comforting wine that’s completely delicious, indeed excellent – How excellent? Well it didn’t last the whole evening! However, this is, for me, a prime example of why I found JMF‘s Clos St.Jacques of the era a more interesting and complex wine – I can see that the Griotte is usually better today vs his CSJ, but not 20 years ago…
Rebuy – Yes – at the original price 🙂
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Certainly not every year, and hardly every second or third year, but every so often you have to do it properly eh? Or how can you have benchmarks?

A couple of empty soldiers from a tasting chez Bouchard Père which I will write-up in my Bouchard visit report – the others from a very above average Saturday evening with old friends.

2007 Comtes Lafon, Montrachet
Wines like this, whilst definitely a premox gamble, define for me the pinnacle of white burgundy – the best 2007s being easily a match for the best of 2014 – my two modern-day reference points.
Good, deep but young yellow-gold colour. Shimmering, bright, wide, ripe citrus fruit with a touch of creme caramel. Sleek, wide, powerful wine – of perfectly fine texture and the simply amazing combination of deep, ripe fruit and a waterfall of mineral edginess. I can drink white of any age with great enjoyment, but here is a wine that defines young. So long, shimmering with energy – just like the nose – still with that caramel from the nose rounding out the finishing flavours. Despite the caramel, great wine.
Rebuy – Yes

2000 Comtes Georges de Vogüé, Musigny Vieilles-Vignes
Oof that’s deep colour. The nose is sleek, with plenty of volume but the aromas remain compact and never fully open. The palate reflects the nose; sleek, great drive, perfect silken texture. It’s a big wine, amply concentrated, but like the nose, and quite rare for a 2000, hardly ever gets out of second gear. It’s a beautiful glass but hardly offering 40% of the potential that I see in reserve. Clean, concentrated but ungiving.
Rebuy – Maybe

1996 Joseph Drouhin, Musigny
Yes! What a nose! Open, complex, floral and with beautiful fruit – young but offering everything on a plate – brilliant. In the mouth you would be forgiven, despite fine drive and energy, for not spotting this as a 1996, the acidity is perfectly covered. Complex, fresh, giving, open, just about all that you wish for – except – any overt maturity. Despite it’s bravado and a peacock’s tail of a finish, this is still a bit of a baby, but what a baby. Great wine again!
​Rebuy – Yes

2001 Comtes Lafon, Meursault 1er Les Perrières
A deepish colour. The nose is a little tired, but not oxidised – it remains, almost, an invitation. The palate starts narrow then opens wider and wider – there is an energy zip here and a really profound depth of delicious finishing flavour – surely for drinking up, but excellent and clearly head and shoulders better than the brown one of these opened and directly poured away two years ago.
Rebuy – Maybe

21998 Marquis d’Angerville, Volnay 1er Clos des Ducs
Quite a deep and still a younger colour. Ooh – broad – such a big nose – a little diffuse but complex. On day two, though, it’s simply first class – wide, silken, supple and fine fruited. There is volume in the mouth here – quasi grand cru for sure! Full, still with a lick of faintly astringent tannin, but layers and layers of slowly mouth-watering flavour. A baby – and will probably be an even greater baby in another 5 years-plus. Bravo!
Rebuy – Yes

No notes taken at the time, but easy to recollect:

2007 Comtes Lafon, Monthelie 1er Les Duresses
Directly a lovely wine – open like all 2007s, but with a little more zip to the energy and more complexity than most. Very stable wine too – it was opened on Friday but only finished on Sunday – when it was equally good, having spent time in the fridge. Very easy to recommend…
Rebuy – Yes

1990 Michel Juillot, Corton-Perrières
The cork slid very easily out. No oxidation but the nose has a certain amount of brett – below my pain threshold, but not by a lot – fortunately it’s hardly visible in the flavours – so one maybe two glasses might be tolerated. BUT! We had steinpilz risotto – and wow – the nose wasn’t much better, but the previously modest palate became absolutely delicious. Note to self – if in doubt about a middle-aged red, drink it with mushroom risotto!
Rebuy – No

Rewarding, weekend sippers…

2016 Celine et Frederic Gueguen, Chablis 1er Vosgros
Not such a wide nose, but it has depth. Ooh, this slips easily, silkily, into the mouth, but it is also a wine of deep concentration. Widening over the palate, slightly steely, obviously flinty, such an intensity of fresh, pure flavour – but flavour that says ‘wait!’ Excellent stuff but this for your cellar just now.
Rebuy – Yes

2017 Julien Brocard, Chablis Boissonneuse
Already number 6 from a case of 7! – Yes I know, don’t ask! – but it is so hard to keep my hands off!
A hint of extra fresh and ripe lemon on the nose. The palate is simply more dynamic – beautifully fresh, a hint of sucrosity that’s not obvious on the 2016. A beautifully shimmering finishing energy – lemony fruit in this finish. Not the intensity or concentration of the last but simply a wine of complete and delicious accessibility. Bravo – great villages…
Rebuy – Yes