Hallelulia! I was beginning to fall out with Guy!

His wines are honest and tasty, never the nth degree of class or complexity – but always fulfilling that important question: Did you enjoy it? – yes. Last week I came home from travels and decided what better to recover than Guy’s 1999 Clos de la Roche – hmm – horribly corked! So last night after a hard couple of days I though; ‘okay the 1998’. First sniff was okay, second… cork., I swore under my breath!

So why not continue the sequence with 1997…

1997 Guy Castagnier, Clos de la Roche
Medium ruby-red colour with more than a passing shade of amber at the rim. The fresh nose has some lovely componets; high tones, coffee, sweet undergrowth, unfortunately they don’t really meld together in a particularly interesting way. The palate has more interest, starting with a narrow entry it opens nicely on the mid-palate and shows good intensity. The acidity sticks out a little but there is sweetness and a very impressive length. Overall there’s no real class here – it’s very drinkable despite the rough edges, but hardly a grand cru experience – at least it wasn’t corked!
Rebuy – No

2005 Jean-Claude Boisset, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Les Hauts Jarrons
From 45 year-old vines. Frankly on opening this reminds more of shiraz than pinot – Clarendon Hills style – you can take that as a criticism. The colour is deep purple – only just see-thru. The nose starts deep and, well – shiraz like; some high tones and mineral with a faint sweet topping. The nose very slowly unfurls, first with black cherry then red berry fruit – now we’re talking – day 2 and it’s lovely. The palate is linear and intense but there’s no expansion in the mid-palate, rather a laser-like run for the finish making it almost ‘lean’. That finish is quite long and also a little mineral, but very understated. The texture is, however, textbook pinot noir with soft tannins underpinned with very good acidity. If the nose was a little more fruit-driven (day 1) and if the mid-palate was to fill-out a little, you could easily mistake it for Leroy. Note that other ‘JCB’ Savigny 1ers like Serpentières and Dominode are better still, yet all cost only about €16! Hard to drink today as this needs lots of time, but infinitely better, yet cheaper, than most ‘luxury’ bourgognes…
Rebuy – Yes

2005 Camille Giroud, Bourgogne Pinot Noir
A wide and ripe nose with red-shaded fruit – eventually a toffee note comes through too. On the palate there’s still some dissolved carbon dioxide – 2005 was the first year that David Croix didn’t rack during elevage. There’s good depth and balance and a very above average length for the appellation. A very easy re-buy choice, as blind you would think this at least a villages wine.
Rebuy – Yes

2004 des Chézeaux (Ponsot), Griotte-Chambertin
The nose starts high-toned with a backdrop of vintage 2004 cedar. Slowly the cedar recedes giving space for a much more mineral aspect than is usual for this vineyard and certainly less alluring. The palate is silky with fresh acidity and super intensity, but unusually the length is again very mineral. It’s actually quite super, but I’d never pick it as Griotte. Day 2 the nose is transformed to the classic soft, but deep red cherry, perhaps including also a shade of raspberry and importantly the cedar is totally vanished – that’s very promising. The palate gains a little more depth and the finish remains unchanged – mineral but very long. This could become a super wine – but wait for 2015 as a minimum – I think it will need it as it was even slightly better on day 3!
Rebuy – Yes

Here is a bottle designed to cause injury to delivery personnel – at about 50% heavier than the standard bottle it will add 4 kilos (9 pounds) to a 12-pack – though perhaps they only come in six-packs. Some might call this a statement, but it’s a more like ‘mine’s bigger than yours’ if you ask me…

Anyway I’ve wanted to get to grips with a wine from this maker for a while – he seems to polarise opinion; ‘brilliant wines, but not my style’ say influentiul critics. I’m assuming there will be a lot of oak – but let’s see.

2004 Lucien Le Moine, Bourgogne Rouge
Medium, medium-plus cherry-red colour. Obviously a 2004 with soft cedar top-notes that mingle with raspberry and eventually redcurrant. When opened there is too much carbon dioxide; you can see the density and good texture but little else. I stoppered it and returned next day. The CO2 is gone and the fine texture and good depth remain. I’m sure there’s more villages wine than than ‘regional’ in this blend – it’s almost good and apart from the texture I see little overt oak. So what’s the rub? – Well, €18 per bottle (in Beaune) – it’s good, but not that good.
Rebuy – Maybe

I probably won’t pay the (high) entry price to check on the more famous labels.