Our good friend and member Phil Roberts came in on Wednesday, it was a great night and we popped some brilliant bottles. Phil put his notes up on www.wineberserkers.com and I asked if we could borrow them for Graileys…
By: Phil Robert
97 Leflaive Folatieres - pop and pour, this really took some time to open up but I was relieved to see no oxidative signs at all. This is really what drinking good white burgundy is all about. Tropical fruits with stony minerality and a nice acid backbone. This did nothing but put on weight and character over the 5 hours I followed it. Drinking perfectly now.
74 de Montille Volnay - a recent find. Showed musty notes with a pop and pour, and we debated about whether it was corked or not. I figured we could come back to it later and it ended up being a very nice bottle for the price. Very light in color, still a fair amount of fruit left with tart raspberry and a hint of roses and spice. Clearly past its prime but definitely worth the price of admission. The last couple of pours were great.
82 Cos d’Estournel – served blind pop and pour, it had a nice floral component I thought it might be an old world syrah, but as it put on weight it was clearly bordeaux and an elegant one at that. Finely balanced, with dusty plum and cherry, cassis and leather. Another one that put on weight and character over time.
73 Dom Perignon – the fill level was suspect and there was little fizz remaining, but the flavor profile was one that I have not experienced. It was like a chameleon, changing every time you stick your nose in the glass. A little oxidative showing a nutty profile, but there were notes of chocolate, rasberry, caramel. toffee, flan. A cornucopia of flavors. Wow.
97 Guigal La Turque – pop and pour and followed over 3 hours. Carries that floral viognier component so distinctive to Lala’s. Showing meaty iron notes with fresh fruit, ripe berries and a trace of vanilla. Not the best I have had though.
89 Pichon Baron – smelled like a classic Cali cab blinded, pop and pour. As it opened up after an hour it was a stunner. Much like the bottle I opened a year and a half ago. Cassis and tobacco, fully ripe fruit with a hint of pepper and black berry. One of my favorite vintages of PB and did not disappoint.
A nice Wednesday evening for sure…