This very adequately followed a half-bottle of Billecart-Salmon…
2005 Tollot-Beaut, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Les Lavières
Medium, medium-plus cherry-red. A deep and impressive nose that’s edged with dark cherry and darker oak. The palate is very well concentrated, soft tannin and excellent acidity. The fruit is dark shaded, buttressed by oak flavour and has a nice creamy medium length. Very, very good.
Rebuy – Yes

This Barthod has a small problem – it is from a domaine with ever-more renown, hence, prices are on the up – this is a great wine but in a vintage like 2005 the value certainly lies elsewhere; the previous Volnay 1er Brouillards from Voillot costs the same and frankly is such a massive step up in complexity and elegance that the Barthod has no chance to make up the gap! NB this is still a top-class villages, but it’s an expensive one – that said, if you haven’t already bought some, you may already be too late – so it doesn’t really matter!
2005 Ghislaine Barthod, Chambolle-Musigny
Medium, medium-plus cherry-red. The nose shows a transient deep and toasty oak nose – then it’s gone. At 20° the nose is diffuse and flabby but at 17° there is some tightening, black cherry and just an edge of reduction. The palate starts just a little rough, but I think this is just a little dissolved carbon dioxide as there is quite some improvement, eventually it’s lovely. Following the Voillot, this is more masculine with darker shaded fruit and perhaps more density, but certainly missing a little of the magic complexity of that wine. Lots of dimension and a very impressive finish. It needs a little time in the glass, but this is a top-class villages.
Rebuy – Yes

Burghound went overboard (perhaps) on the 05 Voillots so I was happy to find a few bottles – if this, the ‘smallest’ bottling is any benchmark then Burghound was ‘on the money’ and I can’t wait to try the higher scoring wines. Seems I did very well to pick up a few magnums!
2005 Joseph Voillot, Volnay 1er Les Brouillards
Medium cherry-red colour – relative to its age and other wines of the vintage it’s quite light in colour. The nose is forward and shows a lovely perfume; floral top notes and bright red berries with red cherry at the base. Fine silken texture, perfect acidity and a slowly fading, cream-edged finish. Not powerful, but it has real dimension, class and elegance – excellent.
Rebuy – Yes

2005 Dureuil-Janthial, Nuits St.Georges 1er Clos des Argillières
Medium, medium-plus colour. The nose is wide and fresh, faintly creamy but far from effusive and goes through quite a sulfurous phase before smelling more of violets. In the mouth there is a plush background to soft and creamy red fruit that lasts well into the finish – just a little coconut edged. There is good mid-palate dimension and an oak-driven richness. A very good bottle, but today I’d like a little more personality.
Rebuy – Yes

For 2005 there are some cosmetic updates from the domaine; now we have a more flared bottle shape and a it’s heavier too. The price has gone up quite a bit, which made me want not to like it, but…

2005 Jean-Marc et Hugues Pavelot, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er La Dominode

Medium-plus colour. The nose starts as a sumptuous swirl of deep cherry and well-integrated oak, an hour from opening and it’s tighter with edges of tobacco and cocoa. Like the nose, this starts hyper-concentrated yet plush, but like the nose it’s a transitory period before it tightens to show its inner self; intensity, excellent acidity and furry tannin before a good finish. Sumptuous and hedonistic for 25 minutes, underneath there’s the power and structure for 25 years of development. Given the tightening I would suggest drinking only over the next 6 months before sleeping for at least 10-plus – but buy all you can find, and that’s despite a 30% price increase over the last 4 vintages.
Rebuy – Yes

A nice piece from Eric to start us off.

This is the last note from my small sojourn into the world of 1997’s – I’m sure that’s probably enough for this year – so tonight I begin dipping into the younger 2004 and (mainly) 2005’s that are newly populating the cellar. But back to the Damoy – this was actually a bit of a surprise; unheralded producer, relative underperformance of the cru, weak vintage – yet overachieving versus expectations. Almost enough to become a ‘buy’.

1997 Damoy, Chapelle-Chambertin
Wide and interesting, just a little diffuse but there’s plenty of complexity and a little earth. Relatively fresh, starting wide and narrows/concentrates into the finish – and it’s a good creamy finish. The overall stance of this wine is one of understatement – but it’s very nice and if seen at a good price…
Rebuy – Maybe

1997 Lambreys, Clos du Lambreys
A forward nose, leafy, tobacco. The palate is subdued, relatively balanced but shows a nice little burst of interest in the mid-palate before fading. It’s quite nice, but not more.
Rebuy – Maybe

1997 Jean Grivot, Vosne-Romanée Les Suchots
A wide, slightly diffuse, earthy, mineral nose with fruit shaded to the red. Some reasonably fresh notes that overlay a dense, tight core – almost separated from the rest of the wine – comes together more in the glass. Some grainy tannin and a reasonably long finish. This is almost good – not as dense but fresher and more interesting than his Richebourg in this vintage.
Rebuy – Maybe