Ian Fitzsimmons
Ian Fitzsimmons
Or woman.
2019 Burgundy
- Thread starter Keith Levenberg
- Start date
Pavel Tchichikov
Pavel Tchichikov
don't blow the cover; I am content with his thinking that you and I are The Simply Disorderly Geek and The Geek Who is Disorderly in All Respects, with the added benefit that he never knows who is who on a given day.
Jayson Cohen
Jayson Cohen
I never knew Captain Kopeikin drove a golf cart. Fascinating stuff here on Disorder!!
Ian Fitzsimmons
Ian Fitzsimmons
You could use your real name, too, Clark Kent.
Keith Levenberg
Keith Levenberg
Bruno Lorenzon 2019 Mercurey 1er Les Champs Martin
William Kelley's been giving this producer some raves & he's one of the few doing this I have no guilt in point-chasing. This bottling is in the middle of the range, above a village wine or two and below some subplot or reserve-type bottlings. It's a beauty right off the bat (and not gassy!) with super-pure red-toned fruit and an undulating, satiny texture. A whisper of cedary wood is light enough not to kill the rosy freshness. I doubt it's an ager (not much tannin that I could tell, and my few science experiments in aging Cote Chalonnaise wines haven't ended well - I've many fond memories of similarly lovely Jacqueson Rullys but I just opened an '05 found lying around and there were no benefits, only detriments, from the bottle age) but it's so pretty and satisfying it's got me curious enough to see what those fancier bottlings are about.
William Kelley's been giving this producer some raves & he's one of the few doing this I have no guilt in point-chasing. This bottling is in the middle of the range, above a village wine or two and below some subplot or reserve-type bottlings. It's a beauty right off the bat (and not gassy!) with super-pure red-toned fruit and an undulating, satiny texture. A whisper of cedary wood is light enough not to kill the rosy freshness. I doubt it's an ager (not much tannin that I could tell, and my few science experiments in aging Cote Chalonnaise wines haven't ended well - I've many fond memories of similarly lovely Jacqueson Rullys but I just opened an '05 found lying around and there were no benefits, only detriments, from the bottle age) but it's so pretty and satisfying it's got me curious enough to see what those fancier bottlings are about.
Jayson Cohen
Jayson Cohen
I have this coming in a couple weeks. I was holding off for shipping season. Looking forward to trying.
Keith Levenberg
Keith Levenberg
2019 Camus-Bruchon Savigny-les-Beaune Aux Grands Liards
Vines planted in 1916 and 1922. Regular purchase for me and this is by far the most ethereal vintage I've had to date, at least at the start. Pale, perfumed, and brightly rosy in both complexion and aromatics, it feels more like something you inhale than something you drink. It solidifies a bit with its sticky grip on the back end and then some more after it had been open awhile, but instead of solidifying into the rocky, craggy form it often takes the tannins turn gently silky with just a small bit of firmness to let you know there is some inner muscle here.
2019 Louis Boillot Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cherbaudes
Vines now aged 100+. No-doubter from the first sip, intensely aromatic with super pure, deep red fruit, then lands on the palate like a grand cru, just this big red sphere of beautiful fruit with perfect symmetry, a highly polished veneer, and an expansive scale that reaches all the far nether regions of the palate. Really high quality fruit: it's richer and denser than some other vintages that have actually tasted riper. So much surface appeal the first glass doesn't last very long, neither does the second - it's not one of the wilder vintages of this wine, the non-fruit stuff is still buried, but it's definitely one of the grander vintages just on shape and texture alone, especially since this wine from both Boillots can get very down and gritty. The grit comes later on as the tannin seizes up and gets a little edgy towards the end of the bottle.
Vines planted in 1916 and 1922. Regular purchase for me and this is by far the most ethereal vintage I've had to date, at least at the start. Pale, perfumed, and brightly rosy in both complexion and aromatics, it feels more like something you inhale than something you drink. It solidifies a bit with its sticky grip on the back end and then some more after it had been open awhile, but instead of solidifying into the rocky, craggy form it often takes the tannins turn gently silky with just a small bit of firmness to let you know there is some inner muscle here.
2019 Louis Boillot Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cherbaudes
Vines now aged 100+. No-doubter from the first sip, intensely aromatic with super pure, deep red fruit, then lands on the palate like a grand cru, just this big red sphere of beautiful fruit with perfect symmetry, a highly polished veneer, and an expansive scale that reaches all the far nether regions of the palate. Really high quality fruit: it's richer and denser than some other vintages that have actually tasted riper. So much surface appeal the first glass doesn't last very long, neither does the second - it's not one of the wilder vintages of this wine, the non-fruit stuff is still buried, but it's definitely one of the grander vintages just on shape and texture alone, especially since this wine from both Boillots can get very down and gritty. The grit comes later on as the tannin seizes up and gets a little edgy towards the end of the bottle.
Pavel Tchichikov
Pavel Tchichikov
you'd think "ethereal" and implied levels of concentration of 2019 would not collide in the same sentence, but if you read to the end of the note (either because you are an avid reader or your brain in atrophied and you expect to find a numerical rating) it all makes sense. Having tasted the likes of 09s and 15s in situ with Guillaume helps as well. The riper/denser specimen at this address are aromatically closed and compact on palate entrance out of the blocks, but as the sense of underlying density is unavoidable one confronts a "how can anything this concentrated be so balanced and effortless" moment for which "ethereal" is about as good a descriptor as any.
Keith Levenberg
Keith Levenberg
2019 Louis Boillot Nuits St Georges Les Pruliers
The other century vine offering chez Boillot, both near annual buys for me. Kind of on the austere side relative to the Cherbaudes. It gives an intensely stony impression like someone had mixed a bag of cement powder into the vat. If you are looking for a true rockhead wine this will definitely fit the bill. But I kept waiting for the fruit to pop out, and it seemed to keep teasing at it but was still reluctant to poke through the earth and blossom. If I'm making this sound fruitless, that is overstating things and a factor of having the Cherbaudes fresh in my mind. It's not like this is lacking for fruit or even fruit ripeness at all, it's just a cool, windswept ripe instead of warm, sunny ripe, but the tannins are still nicely combed and there's nothing hard or edgy about this.
The other century vine offering chez Boillot, both near annual buys for me. Kind of on the austere side relative to the Cherbaudes. It gives an intensely stony impression like someone had mixed a bag of cement powder into the vat. If you are looking for a true rockhead wine this will definitely fit the bill. But I kept waiting for the fruit to pop out, and it seemed to keep teasing at it but was still reluctant to poke through the earth and blossom. If I'm making this sound fruitless, that is overstating things and a factor of having the Cherbaudes fresh in my mind. It's not like this is lacking for fruit or even fruit ripeness at all, it's just a cool, windswept ripe instead of warm, sunny ripe, but the tannins are still nicely combed and there's nothing hard or edgy about this.
Keith Levenberg
Keith Levenberg
2019 Camus-Bruchon Savigny-les-Beaune Les Pimentiers
Now the other old-vine Savigny from CB. Planted 1929. A little more luscious and a little less cerebral than the Grands Liards this year. Once you shake off the CO2 the main theme here is the beautiful, pure pinot fruit, a stream of blue-tinged berries with that old-vine feel of being succulent and densely packed but also slender in form. It's suavely textured with a gloss that smooths out all but a wisp of its tannin. But an easy, crowd-pleasing drink right now regardless of whatever it's got in reserve.
Now the other old-vine Savigny from CB. Planted 1929. A little more luscious and a little less cerebral than the Grands Liards this year. Once you shake off the CO2 the main theme here is the beautiful, pure pinot fruit, a stream of blue-tinged berries with that old-vine feel of being succulent and densely packed but also slender in form. It's suavely textured with a gloss that smooths out all but a wisp of its tannin. But an easy, crowd-pleasing drink right now regardless of whatever it's got in reserve.
Peter Creasey
Peter Creasey
Jean-Claude Bessin Valmur Chablis Grand Cru '19 -- light golden yellow, fragrant, a bit flinty, racy citrus and floral flavors in bouquet, good tension, pleasing richness and complexity, ample acid offset by solid fruits, good staying power, superb value. [92]
Nice pairing with crab cakes and sugar snap green peas.
. . . . . . Pete
Nice pairing with crab cakes and sugar snap green peas.
. . . . . . Pete
Ian Fitzsimmons
Ian Fitzsimmons
I drank through several bottles of 2005 Bessin Valmur between 2015 and 2021 and was never really impressed with it as a grand cru Chablis, despite my high hopes. OTOH, I've liked the vielles vignes villages quite a bit in times past.
Keith Levenberg
Keith Levenberg
2019 Bouchard l'Enfant Jesus
Sweet caramelly scents from the oak, but honestly not as overoaked as you might suppose, no toast or raw wood or anything like that. The current stylistic regime at Bouchard has had both hits and misses - this one might be somewhere in between. I think the hits have involved a little bit more power and muscle under the makeup (the Corton pulls it off) but here the red-toned fruit is a little too watercolory in its saturation to pull it off. I get that the Beaune negociants try to sell their Beaune calling cards (this, Ursules, Mouches) as quasi-grand crus because it's a "brand" thing, but I don't know how often they're equipped to carry that weight. This one wasn't, although it was perfectly pleasurable to drink.
2019 Digioia-Royer Chambolle-Musigny Fremieres VV
This is superb and maybe the best bargain in Chambolle at the moment (was $60 from Envoyer, and I actually ordered some twice after forgetting about doing it the first time, but, no regrets now). ~85 year old vines yield fruit with bloodlike richness and succulence, perhaps a bit darker in tone than the Chambolle norm with fruit kind of bringing to mind both the fresh and saucy elements of black raspberries, but still tailored to a slim fit. Just the essence of what makes pinot noir fruit so sexy. It even leaves behind an enticing perfume in the empty glass.
Sweet caramelly scents from the oak, but honestly not as overoaked as you might suppose, no toast or raw wood or anything like that. The current stylistic regime at Bouchard has had both hits and misses - this one might be somewhere in between. I think the hits have involved a little bit more power and muscle under the makeup (the Corton pulls it off) but here the red-toned fruit is a little too watercolory in its saturation to pull it off. I get that the Beaune negociants try to sell their Beaune calling cards (this, Ursules, Mouches) as quasi-grand crus because it's a "brand" thing, but I don't know how often they're equipped to carry that weight. This one wasn't, although it was perfectly pleasurable to drink.
2019 Digioia-Royer Chambolle-Musigny Fremieres VV
This is superb and maybe the best bargain in Chambolle at the moment (was $60 from Envoyer, and I actually ordered some twice after forgetting about doing it the first time, but, no regrets now). ~85 year old vines yield fruit with bloodlike richness and succulence, perhaps a bit darker in tone than the Chambolle norm with fruit kind of bringing to mind both the fresh and saucy elements of black raspberries, but still tailored to a slim fit. Just the essence of what makes pinot noir fruit so sexy. It even leaves behind an enticing perfume in the empty glass.
Peter Creasey
Peter Creasey
Keith, interesting comments on the Bouchard l'Enfant Jesus '19, especially since I buy this most every year. On another slant, the Bouchard operation in Beaune is a most worthwhile joy to visit and their dining room culinary treats were stellar last time I was there.
It's also interesting that you mention the Ursules and Mouches as these are bottlings that I have found tantalizing over the years; however, given my attempts at cutting back my wine purchasing, these two haven't recently made the cut.
. . . . . Pete
It's also interesting that you mention the Ursules and Mouches as these are bottlings that I have found tantalizing over the years; however, given my attempts at cutting back my wine purchasing, these two haven't recently made the cut.
. . . . . Pete
Keith Levenberg
Keith Levenberg
I did the cellar tour at Bouchard once - amazing premises indeed. I didn't rate as important enough to get invited into the dining room for hors d'oeuvres though.
Peter Creasey
Peter Creasey
Bouchard has a full-service kitchen that can capably serve the dining room.
. . . . . Pete
. . . . . Pete