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Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé 2001
2001 is such a lovely vintage to drink now, all the de Vogue are drinking now beautifully except the Musigny, which is still too young! The declassified Musigny Blanc is opulent and somewhat lactic and a touch cheesy. Lots of retained freshness for a 20 year old white! All of the de Vogue 01s have a delineated red cherry and airy spice backbone, and it’s especially transparent in the Chambolle Musigny 1er Cru (young vines in Musigny). Needless to say I have a soft spot for their Amoureuses! Tasting Notes De Vogue Bourgogne Blanc 2001 The 2001 de Vogue declassified Musigny Blanc is opulent and somewhat lactic and a touch…
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2019 Burgundy Vintage Report
Due to the various travel restrictions within France and the UK caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, I did not visit Burgundy this year to taste the 2019 from barrel. Fortunately, a few merchants in the UK got producers to send their bottles of 2019 to London, and the merchants (as well as with the help of 67 Pall Mall) rebottled the 2019 wines into smaller sample bottles and sent them directly to us. I was lucky enough to taste more than 130 samples at home in December and form an initial view of 2019 Burgundy Vintage. Whites Many 2019 whites are concentrated yet high in alcohol and acidity. One can…
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100-Point Rating Scale
Wine Score and its Purpose Wine score is essentially a ranking of wines based on comparative assessment of their quality. It is one of the simplest ways to help drinkers / collectors on deciding which wine / producer to buy or to look out for. How Does The Rating Scale Work For those who have read a fair amount of wine reviews would know that most wine critics use the 100-point scale, which confusingly starts from 50 points (and most critics score between 60-100 points). From a mathematically point of view, one might expect the average score to lie close to 75points, as a “central” value (e.g. if one chooses…
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Octavian Vaults – The UK’s Foremost Wine Storage Facility
Octavian Vaults is considered to be the “Rolls Royce” of professional wine storage facility in the UK. Located in Corsham in Wiltshire (about 12 miles from Bath), an area historically known for their building stones, so called “Bath Stone” or “Great Oolite Freestone”. The underground cellar is 100 feet deep (157 steps down as I have counted) and it is as big as 20 football pitches. Getting to Octavian from London wasn’t as tricky I thought it would be. There are frequent trains from London Paddington to Chippenham every 30 minutes, a 69 minutes train journey plus another 15 minutes on the cab from the train station to Octavian. The…
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Premox Issue – Domaine Hubert Lamy Saint Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly 2010
After reading and hearing mixed reviews on the 2010 Hubert Lamy Saint Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly, I decided to test all 12 bottles from the case with Coravin. I purchased this case last year from a UK wine merchant, it has always been stored in a temperature and humidity controlled warehouse since arrival in 2011 (10-12 degrees, c. 80% humidity). I took delivery from the warehouse yesterday (i.e. provenance in theory is great). Test date: 29th July 2020 A 15ml sample was taken out from each bottle with Coravin and all tested straight out from the case at c. 15 degrees (59 Fahrenheit). Results 3 out of 12 bottles…
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Domaine Dujac 2018
Domaine Dujac managed to retain freshness superbly in this warm vintage, most wines were at a modest 13.5% alcohol, with a couple of cuvees close to 14% alcohol (Malconsorts). Grape pickings started on the 25/26th from Puligny Montrachet, then pickers went straight to Cote de Nuits afterwards. Most cuvees had maximum wholecluster this vintage, 90% stems. The reds are rich and fragrant, especially the wines from Gevrey Chambertin (see my 2018 vintage report). I was also pleasantly surprised by their Chardonnay this year, the whites are more aromatic than the 2017. Domaine Dujac owns 17.3ha of vineyard in total. Biodynamic approaches but not certified. Tasting Notes Morey Saint Denis Blanc…
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2018 Burgundy Vintage Report
After tasting more than 50 producers and close to 800 wines in Burgundy and at En Premier week in London, it is evident that 2018 is a variable vintage for the reds, and one should not jump into buying before prior tasting or research. Vintage 2018 was a warm and dry vintage, many vines suffered hydraulic stress. Since the 2018 summer was very hot (we had the warmest summer in the UK since 1976!), the harvest date played a huge role in making good wines – Producers who starting harvesting their Pinot Noir in Cote de Nuits in the first week of September generally managed to produce wines with less…
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Domaine Joseph Colin 2018
2018 is Joseph Colin’s second vintage and he is honestly in a league of his own in Saint Aubin. Incredible purity and tension in all his whites. A producer to look out for in the coming En Premier campaign. Joseph Colin owns 6 hectare of vineyards in total, 21 whites and 1 red wine. Winemaking Style Joseph focuses on picking date, he started harvest on the 28th of August and picked grapes for the whole month depending on the ripeness and acidity. Aged in 500L oak for 12 months. No batonnage. In 2018, Joseph did not filter his wines for the first time. Less than 20mg/L of sulphur added. Most…
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Domaine Y. Clerget 2018
2018 is Thibaud Clerget’s forth vintage at Domaine Y. Clerget and it is great to see him taking the reins of the family Domaine that was founded in 1268. Thibaud made some blockbuster Volnay and Pommard this year, buyers will require patience to let these wines age. Tasting Notes Meursault 2018 Harvested on the 2nd of September. 20% new oak. A generous profile of ripe stone fruits and fleshy lemons. An honest village level Meursault. (83/100) Volnay 2018 A blend of two parcels, one 65 year old and the other 45 year old. 35hl/ha. No new oak. Great concentration and density for a village Volnay. Densely packed bouquet of dark…
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Domaine Pierre Girardin 2018
One of the most anticipated visits of my trip in Burgundy last month was Domaine Pierre Vincent Girardin, a new address in Meursault with gorgeous and smart Chardonnay and seriously good red wines from a mixture of Pierre Vincent’s own vineyards and purchased grapes. Most producers usually excel in making either Chardonnay or Pinot Noir in Burgundy, but I honestly can’t decide one here. A producer to keep an eye out for. Pierre Vincent started harvest on the 26th of August for the whites and 1st of September for the reds. Yields for reds were between 30-38hl/ha and 50-55hl/ha for whites. Winemaking Style One of the things that stands out…
