Out of the fog. And into la cave…
Between the 24hr delay and my usual rough first day, I had more trouble than usual getting into my rhythm here, but I’m happy to report that I’m back in form, as they say here. Got a good ten hours of sleep last night, and then laced up and ran six miles through the vines of Volnay and Pommard this morning, with the result being I feel like a new man. And that new man was thirsty!
So, I hit the autoroute and headed up to Chambolle for a 9:30 tasting at Sigaut, where Anne and Herve have made some fabulous 08s, and another set of gorgeous 09s. I am most happy to report that our barrel of Scott Paul 08 Chambolle-Musigny is in excellent shape, and we have decided to bottle it at the end of the month. So, we will not release it until sometime this fall, as it will really benefit from six months or so in bottle. It is round and rich and lovely, and has been getting better every time I’ve checked in on it for the last 16 months. I am also thrilled to report that our barrel of 09 Chambolle is drop-dead stunning – more on that in the months to come.
Then I cruised back down to Nuits-St. Georges to taste with Jean-Marc Millot. God, this man just makes elegant and refined beauties every vintage. His Grands Echezeaux – both 08 and 09 – are his best yet. Sadly there are only two barrels produced every year. We are lucky to get our five cases for the entire west coast. The whole range was rocking chez Millot today, and his little Cote de Nuits Villages remains one of the best values in all of Burgundy. We’ll have the 08s in this fall…
Then I was invited to lunch with J-M and his wife and daughters at restaurant l’Alambic in NSG – my first time there and very very nice. Loved the foie gras on spice bread appetizer, and the porch loin with mushrooms and potatoes gratin was delicious. Just a light Burgundian lunch…
After that, i stopped up in Gevrey to taste at a new producer who is making a lot of noise – Olivier Bernstein. I found the wines to be excellent as advertised, but I also found them way too marked by the 100% new oak he uses. It’s a conundrum – the wines are very very good, but not in the style that I personally prefer. I will probably pass, but if you’re not scared away by a lot of wood, the wines are indeed superb…
Yesterday seems like a year ago. I’m glad I took copious notes, because otherwise I would not have remembered a thing. It’s tough to start a tasting trip in the cellar at Mugnier – because you know that everything else is probably downhill from there! The 08s there are things of absolute ethereal beauty. It is difficult to put into words how silky and elegant these wines really are. Of course the Musigny is head and shoulders above everything else, but the Fuees was so crystalline and pure and long that it may have outshone the Amoureuses on the day. “Why can’t more wines be like this” was the quote from another customer at the tasting. Indeed. Some people just have a special touch, and Frederic Mugnier is surely one of them. Period. (the Mugnier 07s arrive in a few weeks – watch your email for your chance to grab these highly allocated items…)
It was great to reconnect with Hugues Pavelot at his domaine in Savigny les Beaune. Perhaps the
best values in truly excellent Burgundy are found at this address. I am so excited to finally get them into our portfolio – we’ll have the SLB village and a few of the 1er crus early this fall. All the details soon…
And that should bring us up to date for now. I’m off to Beaune for dinner with friends, and then up to Chablis in the morning to spend the day with Frederic Gueguen…
