2010 Louis Max, Nuits St.Georges 1er Les Damodes
Medium, medium-plus colour. The nose starts with a breath of CO₂ and a faint reductive note – the CO₂ is hardly obvious after 15 minutes (I hadn’t shaken…). In the mouth I did still find some gas so eventually gave the bottle a good shake – there was plenty to remove! The nose, sans gas, takes on a more red-fruit character with faint herbs, spices and high tones – I get a suggestion of flowers too – nice. The palate is also red-fruited with good balance and very good mid-palate intensity – lingering quite well too. Likeable wine.
Rebuy – Yes

What a great way to start the weekend!

2008 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey, Rully Les Cailloux
Medium lemon yellow. Wide, fresh and perhaps a little of CO₂ gives it a an aromatic lift – yes, there’s some gas at the back of the palate too, but it’s not totally intrusive. The texture becomes ever-smoother as the gas fades, but without losing the lovely acid balance: there’s citrus and a core of ripe (lemon) yellow fruit, with just the right amount of understated sweetness. This drinks wonderfully well right now – don’t delay, buy today!
Rebuy – Yes

2010 Rebourgeon-Mure, Beaune 1er Vignes-Franches
Medium-plus colour. The nose remains tight but with glossy dark fruit. Wide and rather acid-led intense – that’s not a complaint by the way, it’s an exciting and tasty wine. The dark fruit insinuates its way into your tongue and gums – it’s very nice but could be a bit more complex I think – the 2009 was much more ‘involving’ at this same stage – but it’s young and it’s a well-made baby that sits in my glass, and I have to say, doesn’t sit around very long before the glass is drained. Clean, sharp and hinting at more to come – I’m game…!
Rebuy – Yes

1999 Denis Bachelet, Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes
Medium-plus colour. Drunk directly after the 2010 Camille-Giroud cuvée ‘L’, and this has a little more energy and a lot more dark fruit. To start there a few pesky sulfites on the nose, but they quickly lift – what’s left is a dark, clean, black fruit conserve and just the early impressions of mature leaf notes. In the mouth this doesn’t have the breadth of concentration or texture of the Camille-Giroud wine, it is (not surprisingly) narrower but perhaps because of that seems more intense. Lovely dark fruit flavours reflect the aromas and there’s a super mid-palate crescendo of flavour – it’s just beautifully balanced/fresh. This, whilst still a relative baby, is drinking beautifully now – definitely no shame to pop the cork on a bottle or two!
Rebuy – Yes

Cuvée ‘L’, as I’m sure all readers here will know by now, is the code for the combination of all the lees (at bottling time) of the C-G’s reds – villages, premiers and grands crus – a blend of which is left in tank for a good few months more to settle out the fine lees.

2010 Camille-Giroud, Bourgogne Cuvée L
Medium-plus, rather purposeful colour, and it’s perfectly bright too. The nose is less demonstrative, indeed a little tight, but wait long enough (30 mins?) and a beautiful high-toned floral note is your reward. In the mouth this has balance, poise, and a decent slug of ripe tannin too. The flavours seem a little tight too, but there’s no missing the depth of concentration, good texture – clearly not a ‘Bourgogne’. Whilst eminently drinkable now, this is very much a wine to wait for – I’m sure my magnums will eventually herald some interesting blind guesses! Very good Burgundy despite the lowly label…
Rebuy – Yes

I have to say, I’m slightly at a loss how to describe this wine. The cheap plastic capsule and the cork bear a stylised ‘MB’ (possibly!) but the label has no more info, except that the wine was selected in the cellar of Stanislas – but by who? I’ve recently seen other Burgundies at auction 1991-1993 with identical labels/capsules but for other producers such as Rapet. So a négoce wine that puts the producer name centre-stage, but anybody’s guess who!(?) Well, that would be one interpretation, anyway…

1991 “Stanislas Heresztyn”, Clos St.Denis
Medium colour. The nose is clean and has a little pinot interest, but far from a 1991 grand cru I’d say. In the mouth this is also spotlessly clean, balanced and I would go as far as to say rather tasty – yet some way short of my expectations for a Côte de Nuits Grand Cru from 1991. Nice wine but maybe it was triple-filtered to make it clean and long-lasting but without significant interest…(?) I have a couple more, but they are quite drinkable, so no great loss…
Rebuy – No

Stanislas Heresztyn 1991

Capsule for all

Jean-Pierre Colin 1989

Domaine Raphet 1993