By: AJ McClellan
Friday night was truly epic. We tasted our members on some killer white wines from our cellar and then the members started to pull some bottles from their lockers. The wines opened number to many to mention but below are a the highlights from the night….
1997 Remoissenet Richebourg – A great bottle of wine with subtle red cherries and a big mineral earthiness. After a while in the glass the wine blew up to show slight spice with a long finish.
1999 d’Auvenay Bize Leroy Auxey Duresses – I was amazed with this wine. The nose showed apricot, pear, almond extract, and honeysuckle. The palate was creamy and rich with the texture of honey and brilliant balance.
1996 Dom Perignon Oenotheque – This was my first time to try a Oenotheque, and after tasting it I can see why it commands such lofty prices. The wine had just the right amount of effervescence, a slight simmer of bubbles. The nose was intoxicating with pealed peaches, quince, limestone, and lemon. The palate was wonderful with apricots, and fresh granny smith apples.
1999 Hudelot Noellat Richebourg – Each time I taste this wine it blows me away. The nose shows classic Burgundian notes of tilled soil, red cherries, wild mushrooms, and a rocky minerality. After some time in the glass this wine blows up showing notes of plum, and vanilla bean with a wonderful finish of forest floor and cooking spice.
2001 Palmaz Cabernet Sauvignon – This wine is fast becoming my go to bottle for a delicious California Cabernet. The nose reminds me of the purple smarties with a light coating of milk chocolate paired with a fine cigar. The palate shows excellent fruit with a backing of spice and a long finish.
1999 Vincent Giradin Chevalier Montrachet – This is a great bottle of wine but it takes some time to come around in the glass. Upon opening the wine has a distinct popcorn nose with a hint of sulfur. If you have the discipline to leave the wine alone for an hour and a half you will find that the wine fills out keeping the popcorn but blowing off the sulfur and gaining in its stead a soft fruitiness and a zingy minerality.
1982 Pichon Lalande – This wine has been in my top five since I first tasted it. This bottle was absolutely perfect, the tell tale green pepper nose with a hint of jalapeño that I normally find off-putting is a integral part of this wine adding to the complexity and completing the wine.
NV Jacques Selosse Extra Brute – Another first for me, this bottle was amazing. The small production NV Champagne tasted as if it had been aged for 20+ years showing a nuttiness that you would expect in well aged Vintage Champagne. After the almond extract was a layer or shaved green apples and peaches followed by a subtle floral note and a massive minerality.
1996 Claude Dugat Charmes Chambertin GC – Phil opened this bottle almost three hours before service. When I first tasted the wine it was massive and tight but with a beautiful core of fruit and tannin. I tasted the wine again at the end of the night (6 hours later) and it was singing. The tannin, while still prevalent, had mellowed out considerably and the fruit had blow up showing black and red cherries with currants and raspberries.
1998 Meo Camuzet Vosne Romanee 1er Cros Parantoux – Yet another first for me. Cros Parantoux is a tiny vineyard nestled in next to Richebourg and produces wine that is, in my opinion, worth a Grand Cru designation. This bottle was fantastic showing great fruit notes of dark cherry and blackberries. The palate was full of earth and minerality with dark forest floor and a long finish.
1998 Armond Rousseau Chambertin GC – Another fantastic bottle of wine. Rousseau is quickly becoming one of my favorite producers with their earthy style of wine making. This bottle showed sour cherry and forest floor on the nose. The palate was soft and lush with a brilliant finish.
1989 Armand Rousseau Gevrey Chambertin 1er Clos st Jacques – Very similar to the Chambertin but with a little more funk on the palate.
1978 Cheval Blanc – I love good Bordeaux and this bottle is just the ticket. Trumpet mushrooms with a rocky minerality and dark dried fruits on the nose. The palate is a dream with just the right amount of earth and a finish of cigar box.
1969 Remoissenet Nuits St Georges 1er Les Cailles – Mossy with a note of dusty black and red cherries dusty earth notes with a big barnyard lurking in the background. The palate shows old pruned fruit with big barnyard and old funky forest floor.
1976 Chateau Gilette – A great way to finish the night. This wine was amazing with soft quince, pear, white peach, and honeysuckle on the nose. The palate was thick and honeyed with a surprising amount of freshness for a wine that has been around for 35 years. Although only in the bottle for 13 years 