2002 Red Burgundies: The Grand Crus Part I was last night's EWS tasting. As always, it was held at the Warwick Hotel's conference room with a nice sized crowd for tasting, about forty. We tasted blind, all the bottles safely hidden in brown lunch bags and numbered well before our arrival. I have listed the wines in the order they were tasted.
Bonnes-Mares, Lucien Le Moine:
- Nose: Cinnamon, fennel seeds, moth balls, port, anise liqueur
- Palate: Long finish, blueberries, tart, young tannins
Musigny, "Cuvée Vielles Vignés." Comte de Voüé:
- Nose: Blueberries, cinnamon, black stones, anise cookies
- Palate: Acidic, minerals, sharp tannin, black stones, beginnings of harmony
Grands Echezeaux, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti:
- Nose: Raspberries, green notes, wisteria vines, minerals, game, cherry
- Palate: Fresh red fruit and green tannin
Corton-Bressandes, Follin-Arbelet:
- Nose: Red currant, raspberry, cranberry, cherry), minerals, barnyard
- Palate: Big red fruit, simple, young tannins
Romanée-St. Vivant, Leroy:
- Nose: Oak, Barnyard, toasted eel-skin, game, cherry
- Palate: Tart, cinnamon, clove, silky tannins
La Romanée, Bouchard:
- Nose: Minerals, chlorinated water, tight
- Palate: Good acidic spine, camphor, greens
Romanée-St. Vivant " Cuvée Vielles Vignés,"Dominique Laurent:
- Nose: Popcorn, epoxy, creosote, barnyard funk, hanging game
- Palate: Tart cherry, creosote, long lasting firm tannins, game
Clos Vougeot, "Musigni" Gros Frere et Soeur:
- Nose: Game, charcoal, horseshit, diesel, mushrooms, iron
- Palate: Firm and round, game, cherries
Romané St. Vivant, Jean-Jacques Confuron:
- Nose: Game, cherry candy, raspberries, cinnamon
- Palate: Zippy, ethanol, anise liqueur, great mature tannins
Musigny, Drouhin:
- Nose: Nutmeg, spice cake, Grand Marnier, yellow chartreuse, amaro, cherry
- Palate: Focused red fruits, soft tannins
Clos Vougeot, Jacques Prieur:
- Nose: Port, minerals, autumn spices, cherries
- Palate: Dense, raspberries, minerals
Bonne-Mares, Georges Roumier:
- Nose: Cedar, raspberries, game, glass, pet
- Palate: Crushed red fruit, firm tannins, defined acidity
Bonne-Mares, Robert Groffier:
- Nose: Glue, hung meat, lilac, horseshit, roasted salted game, Riesling
- Palate: Oily, rich, irony, cherries, smoke
The best thing about Burgundy is it keeps you guessing. More than the smells I encountered, the fun of this tasting was in knowing there was a name for the thing I was smelling and, right before I came to it, having to stop because my lungs filled up, then going back to it only to find a new smell had taken its place.
Burgundy is beautiful, elusive, sexy and as funky as George Clinton. My favorites smell of cherries wrapped in horseshit with Slim Jims on the side when they first open. Then they go all over the place. I've been told this doesn't appeal to everyone. If so, I wish less people would buy them so the prices would come down.
All these wines were wonderful. Not a dud in the lot. As should be expected from grand cru burgundy, trying to declare a best would be like trying to capture lightning -- their whole mission in life is to change constantly. What I will tell you is that last night, in that room, with those thirteen bottles, in that company, during that weather, in that sweater, with that lighting, I thought that the Bonne-Mares, Georges Roumier, showed best, closely followed by, Bonne-Mares, Robert Groffier, and Romanée-St. Vivant "Cuvée Vielles Vignés," Dominique Laurent.
After a very close collective vote, with every bottle making a showing, the group decided the Romanée-St. Vivant "Cuvée Vielles Vignés," Dominique Laurent was the runaway winner, with Romanée-St. Vivant, Leroy, and Bonne-Mares, Robert Groffier close together in second and third. What's that tell you? Nothing, and that's the glory of good burgundy. Enjoy!
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