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Chateau Trotanoy
A superb tasting of Chateau Trotanoy from the best vintages between 1998 to 2018. Edouard Moueix the third generation of Moueix family came to London Landmark Hotel and illustrated the terroir of Trotanoy, vintage styles, and the modern approaches (post-2005 vintage) brilliantly. Overall, I find their style very masculine and structured – Plenty of intense dark fruits, mocha, with structured tannins that requires extensive cellaring. Trotanoy has lots of similarities with Petrus (both made by the same winemaker), as well as masculine with lush dark fruits, though I find Trotanoy more tannic. My favourite vintages of Trotanoy are 2005, 2009, 2015, 2016, and 2018. Though I wouldn’t mind as pour…
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Domaine Leroy / d’Auvenay & Bizot Dinner
The Leroy / d’Auvenay wine night finally happened! It was Charles Lachaux’s (from Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux) 30th birthday and he was in London for his 2017 release. The timing couldn’t be better for this dinner – A once in a lifetime experience to taste an incredibly rare collection of Domaine Leroy / d’Auvenay & Bizot wines in double blind. No participants knew when their wines were being poured and all the wines were revealed at the end of the night, so we were not distracted on guessing who brought what and working out which bottles were ours. Everyone brought two bottles (as minimum) and wines were served in flights of 4…
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Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé 2003
Revisiting the 2003 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé with Jean-Luc Pépin. A roller coaster vintage with some outperformer and many hit and miss bottles due to the extreme heat. 2003 is one of the most unusual vintages in Burgundy that growers and drinkers will remember vividly for a long time. The 2003 Bourgogne Blanc is drinking at its peak and tasted like a Northern Rhone Blanc. Interestingly there were no acidification in their Musigny, Chambolle Musigny 1er Cru (mini-Musigny) and Les Amoureuses. My favourite of their 2003 was Les Amoureuses, not much heat or clumsiness, showing gently spiced floral notes. Jean-Luc blinded us on a bottle of 1989 Musigny, which…
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Domaine Arnoux Lachaux 2017
It’s always a pleasure to visit Charles Lachaux from Domaine Arnoux Lachaux. Charles has completely changed the estate for the better since he took over from his father in 2012. 2017 is another cracking vintage at this Domaine, I feel that his 2017 has taken purity and finesse to another level, a massive step up from the 2015 vintage, though I have a soft spot for their 2016 wines, which are utterly delicious. 2017 is approachable and collectors would be able to enjoy the 2017 before the 2016 and 2015. Charles had a yield of 42hl/ha on average. The wines were aged in barrels for 12 months. 62,000bts produced in…
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Domaine Perrot-Minot 2017
Christophe Perrot-Minot is one of the most noteworthy winemakers in Burgundy, he has been making one of the most sublime style of Pinot Noir after he changed style in 2010. Visiting Christophe last month and tasting his portfolio of 2017 was truly exhilarating. Vineyards Christophe owns 14.2 hectares of vineyards in Cote de Nuits from Nuits Saint Georges to Gevrey Chambertin. Winemaking Style Christophe Perrot-Minot said his style changed since 2010 vintage, especially with the introduction of high percentage of whole cluster. In 2017, Christophe got between 35-38hl/ha, considerably lower than many producers. Maximum 20% new oak from Francois Freres and 1 year old barrels from Domaine de la Romanee…
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Domaine Lamy-Caillat, the rising star in Chassagne Montrachet
Visiting Sebastien Caillat from Domaine Lamy-Caillat was one of my highlights of my trip to Burgundy last month. This micro-Domaine based in Chassagne Montrachet started producing wines in 2011 and are already getting some serious praise from many Burgundy lovers. Not only is Sebastien one of the most prominent winemakers in Burgundy, he is also a civil engineer by training. Sebastien created a machine that adds a thin layer of wax (0.2-0.5mm thick) on top of the cork to reduce the rate of oxygenation. Sebastien humbly told us how excited he was when he received a call from Aubert de Villaine (co-owner and co-director of Domaine de la Romanee Conti)…
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Domaine Anne Gros 2017
Domaine Anne Gros produces one of the most elegant and light-footed wines in Vosne Romanee, her wines are arguably the most feminine in style compared to the 3 other Gros estates (Anne’s cousins), as well as other female winemakers in Vosne Romanee, i.e. Leroy, Mugneret Gibourg and Cecile Tremblay. Anne Gros has been in charge of the estate since 1988 at the age of 22 after she took over her father’s entire estate. Domaine Anne Gros has c. 7 hectares of vines, mostly treated organically (though not certified). Winemaking Style Grapes are 100% destemmed and fermented without cold maceration. White wines are then aged for 12 months in oak barrels…
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Domaine Denis Bachelet, the King of Charmes Chambertin
Domaine Denis Bachelet is one of the more mysterious estates in Gevrey Chambertin to many of us, one of the reasons is because of their small production, they only produce 5 red cuvees with mostly Bougogne and Cote de Nuits and only one Grand Cru. However, please don’t be deceived by this low-key estate as their wines are some of the best in Gevrey Chambertin, their quality very often punches above its appellation, and arguably Denis Bachelet produces the best Charmes Chambertin. Note: Denis Bachelet has a nickname “King of Charmes Chambertin” amongst the consumers. This Domaine doesn’t normally do tastings but Denis Bachelet’s son, Nicolas Bachelet kindly received us.…
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Maison Benjamin Leroux 2017
Tasting at Benjamin Leroux was very enjoyable. Despite the slight confusion with the appointment time, Benjamin kindly showed us around and gave us an interesting tasting of his 2017 portfolio of whites and his selection of Grand Cru reds plus a few eccentric vineyards as a bonus. My favourite was his Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrieres and his Chambertin, as well as a couple of surprises from his Clos Vougeot and Nuits Saint Georges Les Boudots. Benjamin Leroux started his negociant business in 2007 after he left Domaine Comte Armand, his sizeable estate is located just outside of the Beaune ‘ring’ D470 (or as I like to call it, the…
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Olivier Bernstein 2017
Olivier Bernstein is one of the hottest negociants in Burgundy, he is undoubtedly a new breed of premium negociant that is producing wines which have superior quality over most Maisons and Domaines. With his splendid quality of Premier Cru and Grand Crus, as well as his controversial and aggressive En Premier release pricing in the past three vintages, Olivier Bernstein has quickly gained a reputation. Born in Touaine, Olivier Bernstein was raised in a family with the fondness of classical music and good taste. In 2002, Olivier bought 8 hectares of vineyard in Roussillon and started making wines. However, Olivier has always been fond of great Burgundies and naturally he…
