From a case of halves bought at auction about 4 years ago. It’s a couple of years since I had one, so…

1986 Henri Rebourseau, Mazis-Chambertin
The nose on this is rather understated, it takes over 30 minutes to start offering up some decaying leaves – better than it sounds – just! Cushioned, round, smoothly textured – there remains some fat here. Plenty of sweetness sufficiently offsets acidity which approaches sharp, without quite getting there. There’s a little earthiness in the mid-palate flavour, but the finish is all about sweet, baked fruit. All the bottles of this have been different (no surprise for a wine over 25 years old, in halves) but this is one of the better ones. I’d go as far as to say this is really quite nice!
Rebuy – Maybe

Hmm, it seems that time passed too fast for typing…

Since that rather lovely 1997 Rion NSG, I opened another ’97 – Bouchard Père’s Le Corton – aromatically as interesting as the Rion, and though it was more concentrated than the Nuits, it was far less generous. Tasty enough, though some way from maturing. Then yesterday was a 2009 Hautes Côtes de Beaune (Blanc) from Edmond Monnot: Full, reasonably rich but with enough acidity to balance – brilliant value but still only ‘maybe’ rebuy. And today? Well it’s a while since I looked at one of these…

2005 Antonin Guyon, Chambolle-Musigny Clos du Village
This starts gorgeously wide and even with a bit of more northerly spice, and perhaps there’s a hint of reduction/oak too – but it lasts only 15 minutes – so probably reduction. Eventually this narrows and shows a more herbal red fruit – still, it’s quite nice. Big, round, with plenty of acid/tannin (soft) structure – this is has a beautiful intensity of flavour. In the context of the vintage, and perhaps the best village of the vintage, this is quite good – in the context of an average vintage, this is fabulous. Plenty of structure didn’t slow down it’s disappearance!
Rebuy – Yes

I’ve followed this wine for over 10 years now, and I must say, unequivocally, this is its finest showing. If you have some, try one now. Wait, no, try two!

1997 Daniel Rion, Nuits St.Georges 1er Les Vignes Rondes
Still, comfortably a medium, medium-plus colour. The nose is deep, with a little top-end spice and fresh clean leaves below – there’s a hint of Vosne about this now. Mouth-filling, but smoother than any 1997 has a right to be. Sure the acidity could be a little more precise, but it is quite sufficiently supportive. The tannin is still where it should be, rippling but not dragging. The wine ending on an upward, mouth-watering note – depsite whatever I said about the acidity! This is absolutely delicious. I’m not sure if it has ever been or ever will be better…!
Rebuy – Yes

2006 JC Boisset, Morey St.Denis 1er Monts Luisants
Not much more than medium colour, but it’s still a relatively young colour. Wide, flighty aromatics with a hint of spice, herb and dark-shaded red fruit – I keep coming back for another sniff – lovely. Less full than last time I opened one of these; it’s becoming a little more muscular and sinewy, very little fat, yet the sweetness of fruit remains an adequate foil to the fine acidity. Lovely growth of flavour in the mid-palate and it clings on really well in the finish – which shows a little raspberry fruit. The texture has a faint hint of astringent ‘drag’ – but faint. I’m enjoying this a lot, and think it may be hard work to save my last two or three bottles. Hard work indeed…
Rebuy – Yes

I needed an antidote to the last two night’s 2004s. Rather something to banish the aromas and flavours of the Bouchard Père – it is a very rare occurence for me to tip wine away, but I really couldn’t face drinking the other half of that bottle. It seems that (today, at least!) I chose wisely!

1985 Joseph Drouhin, Gevrey-Chambertin
Medium amber-red colour. The nose, unlike previous bottles, has no oxidative references, just warm, sweet stewing/roasting fruits – perhaps a little sweet rhubarb compote! Clean, sweet fruit rolls over the tongue aided by understated, yet slowly mouth-watering acidity. There is the last vestige of tannin, but today is no more than a slight drag on the texture of the wine. Medium, but very tasty length. Relatively simple but very tasty and of-course mature as you like. In the end, this turned out to be a wine to drink quickly – after 40 minutes there was the flavour of something oxidative developing in the finish – never really more than an anecdote, but still something to focus on, rather than simply enjoy what was in the glass – but I managed to persevere!
Rebuy – Maybe

How disappointed am I(?) I really don’t like the tag of being a Jonah, but here’s a bottling which I’d always thought had avoided the 2004 malaise, yet I must be fallible – it hasn’t.

2004 Bouchard Père et Fils, Volnay 1er Caillerets Ancienne Cuvée Carnot
Medium colour. The nose starts absolutely gorgeously – fine red fruit, very fine actually, with a slight musk. Like the Jadot of yesterday, this seemed clean for the first pour, but slowly the musk faded to reveal P2-3. It must be on a higher level than the Ursules, because I can taste it too. Putting that to one side, this wine has a similar freshness and vivacity to that Jadot, so anyone less sensitive than me will find much to enjoy here. For me it’s just about drinkable – but it’s not putting a smile on my face…
Rebuy – No

Doing my rounds of the cellar, and after much case moving, I came across a couple of 6-packs of 2004s, this one and Bouchard’s Volnay cuvée Carnot. Both seemed clean of pyrazine when I last tasted them (years ago) so it would be interesting to see if that was still the case – and if it was, then the perfect duo to take a view on what 04 had the potential to offer. Let’s start with the Jadot…

2004 Jadot (Héritiers), Beaune 1er Clos des Ursules
A rather beautiful medium colour when it catches the sun. The nose starts understatedly unimpressive but I can’t be sure there’s any pyrazine here. Time in the glass and this opens, becoming very pretty indeed, showing a lovely transparent red fruit and yes pyrazine, but at the most, P1. I thought this was a ‘clean’ wine when tasted in its youth, but at this level its honestly not a negative. Middle-weight, with very understated tannin and quite nice texture. High-toned fruit never displays the pyrazine on the nose. Drinkable, indeed quite tasty wine.
Rebuy – Maybe

Whilst most wines from 04 (that are not taint dominated) have a delivery that reminds me of the generally hard and miserly ’94s, this wine seems more like a good ’92 – and I like good ’92s very much. This is a wine where I would eventually pick out the vintage, but also one I’d be quite happy to drink again