1999 Grand Cru Burgundy blind with David Hamburger (Acker WInes)

May 5, 2009

More terrior specific vintage. Largest crop since 82 and one of the largest ever in burgundy. Really great vintage. Lots of grand crus declassified due to size of the harvest. Very small grapes. Cool extended growing season.

Grade is mine, ranking was done by the group.

1. Muted aromas and floral. Medium ruby. Lighter earthy style. Subtle tomato and some acids. Bullion nose. Silky and feminine. Good not amazing. Still primary. Still closed. Will improve. B+ Jadot Bonnes Mares. 8th place.

2. Darker ruby. Black fruit aromas. Not a lot of dimension but tasty and Very long. New world extraction . Tannic. Delish. Dujac? Grade: A. Tied for last place! Claude Dugat Charmes Chambertin.

3. I guess Grandes Echezeaux from sight alone- JulieAnne says she'll buy me a bottle if I'm right. Doesn't smell like Romanee Conti at all. Higher pitched. Ponsot? Very compelling and silky. Rose hips. Smoke and tobacco. Killer. Grade: A. Dujac Clos St. Denis. 5th place

4. Best aromas so far. Medium ruby. Earthy and acidic. Fickle personality. Hard now. Closed. Very tannic. B+ 14th place. Potel Romanee St Vivant.

5. Very pretty aromas. Little burnt and reduced. Killer awesome balance. Great fruit. Blueberries wood bark dense tannic but resolved. Milk chocolate. Little alcohol shows at the end. Really good and no one votes for it. David says chambolle. A. Drouhin musigny. Tied for last place.

6. Now I am having fun. Brooding serious mushroom aromas. Funky truffly tannins. Very long finish. Too young. Mind blowing. Grace. I love burgundy. Someone guesses rousseau. Primary. Grade: A/a+ 14th place. Grivot Clos Vougeot

7. Darker purple. Serious cherry juice aromas. Something odd. Big wine new world in style. Great. Seriously smooth. Dujac? Grade: A. I am way off!! It's Romanee Conti Grandes Echezeaux. 4th place.

8. Some sediment. Great lively fruity. Incredibly long. Best so far. A powerhouse. JulieAnne says rousseau. Impeccible stunning balance. Smacked in the face with earthy perfect fruit. Savage. I need to own some. Grade: A+ 2nd tie. Girardan Mazis Chambertin!

9. Darker. Medicinal aromas. So tannic. Powerful. Sharp. Hard to drink now. Lots of potential. A- 7th place. Mommessin Clos de Tart.

10. Smells Ponsot. Wow wee nose. Lavender dripping tiny wild berries. Huge finish. Killer. JulieAnne says Potel RSV. Killer. Zinger of a finish. Grade: A. 5th place. Roumier Rouchottes Chambertin.

11. Darker shy nose. Sleek and so outrageously delicious. An entire universe of perfectly balanced flavor. Bounded by silk. Modern. Dujac?. David says Dugat or Groffier. Grade: A. Groffier. Cdb, Tied for 2nd.

12. Anise and everything is right with the nose. Very long. Little poopy on the long palate. Someone says maderized. JulieAnne guesses Jadot Bonnes Mares. Grade: B. 5 votes. 11th place. Rouget echezeaux

13. Best nose of the night. Gives me chills. Little baby fat fruit and seems young. Huge and easy to drink. Buy it. Grade: A. 1st place Rousseau Rouchottes Chambertin Clos des Ruchottes.

14. Lavender and Claude Dugat. Awesome hard but like modern art the edges make a balance. Long finish. Great stuff. Grade: A/a+ 3rd place. Af Gros Richebourg

15. Odd. Some alcohol. JulieAnne says victorias secret. Va va voom. Little alcohol on nose. Stunning palate. Huge dense brooding. Grade: A. 19 votes. 6th place. Ponsot Clos de la Roche.

2007 Kistler Pinot Noir Cuvee Natalie

Pretty velvet purple. Unbelievable sappy roasted menthol aromas. Deep, lush and dense palate filled with earth and truffle. Extremely long. When Kistler gets it right, they are as good as anything. This wine is magic. I've been on a burgundy kick lately, but right now I am glad to be on the Kistler list. I wish I had more- this is my only bottle. Much stronger than the 06 version. I paid $90 from the Kistler list. Retail $120 and worth every single penny. Grade: A/ A+

Great birthday dinner at Apiary

Thanks to my friends for joining me, and special thanks to Josh, Seth and JulieAnne for bringing along some great, interesting wine.

96 Pol Roget Sir Winston Churchill (mag). So complex and complete. Dough and yeast. Grapefruit. Exotic. Makes Jill smile. Young, especially in this format. A+

02 raveneau valmur. A beauty. Minerals and stones and sea salt. Very long and very good. Mature. A.

06 giroud corton charlie. Oaky. Full rich and one dimension. Nice not exceptional. B+

90 williams seleyem pinot noir sonoma coast. Burgundian and still good. I'd guess nsg blind. Bright. Very nice. I didn't know California pinot could age this long. A-

76 Lopez de Herradia Rioja Bosconia. Jalapeño and earth. Delish. Dusty. Long and funky and I really like it! JulueAnne says lacks long finish. Burgundian. Thanks Josh. A.

97 Mortet Chambertin. Earth shattering. A+ all the way. Dense rich complex earth. Nose gives chills and makes everyone smile. A+ JulieAnne says very comfortable. All agree near its peak. Thanks again Josh!

91 Muga Predo Enea. Seth says is the greatest value per dollar of any wine made today. At
first stinky. Then nice and very long. A-

Blind. Seth says olive. Filled with power. Some guess old some guess new world. Qupe syrah! I am stumped, and correctly guess syrah. Then I veer way off and say Sine qua Non. It is a 1994 Bien nacito hillside select. A-

92 thackery orion. Mmm aroma. Rustic and powerful. High alcohol. Jill says like raw leather. Rough. B+

2001 merkelbach erdener treppchen riesling auslese. Delish peach puree. Luchee. Petrol. Wonderful. A. Thanks Seth!

05 shafer firebreak. Doesn't smell good. One of my fav California producers. Everyone says like nail polish remover. Too much. Just doesn't work. C-

67 yquem A++ Seth got some from the next table, and I drunkingly brought over the empty mag of sir winston to share (oops, I really though it wasn't empty)

2005 Bouchard Vigne de L'Enfant Jesus

Wonderful aromas of menthol and earth. Deep rich sappy palate. An enchanted mushroom. pine forest of flavor. Huge finish. Lovely burgundy and will only improve. Jill guesses burgundy blind, and says like scorched pine needles, 2005 burgundies I've tried haven't shut down. I wonder if there won't be a dumb period for this near-perfect vintage. Retail $80, grade: A (Jill agrees)

2000 Kistler Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast

Starting to develop secondary mushroom aromas, to go with its black fruits. At first it is acidic, but after being open for an hour it is starting to shine. The palate is full of blue and black fruits behind its classically earthy textures. This is ready to go, and a little past its prime. Acids slightly stick out at the end. Still I like it. This wine proves Kistler's high quality production in the more challenging vintages. Not available at retail, was about $40 on release. Grade: A-

1996 Krug

Subject of an enjoyable debate with JulieAnne and Josh. I say any wine with a 3 minute vibrating finish is a work of genius and a truly great wine. This has it. It is complex with doughy hazelnut and lemon rind and an excellent sleek texture. JA and Josh both say it has potential but now just has one dimension. I'd love to drink more of it, and argue more. Grade: A+.

2006 Mendel Unus

Deep luxurious purple. Captivating aromas of baked plums, warm earth, menthol and vanilla. Rich palate with dark chocolate, pretty berries and cherries, and a long, smooth finish. Delicious wine, with character and depth. I found this for about $30 in the Naples, Florida. Jill agrees, this is way in front of the wine we had last night. Grade: A.

2007 Sequana Sarmento Vineyard Pinot Noir

Nice light pinot color. Some interesting (good) strange (not so good) smells. Something like wet wood bark with cherry powder. Pure, very nice fruit on the palate and a long, but slightly hot finish. We drank with fish, and it didn't work. I'd suggest drinking it with meat. Now after dinner I like it more. Interesting, and fairly priced. Retail $30, grade: B+.

Meursault with Wine Workshop (from 11/13/2008)

More wine than most other communes. Charmes is fat. Perrieres is like grand
cru leaner .

1. 04 roulot les meix chavaux. Somewhat simple aromas and closed this is just too young. Its got all the stuffing but not drinking great tonight. I do see potential. Yeasty. B

2. 02 boillot poruzots. More of a nose and fuller deeper and stonier than the roulot. Flinty like tko. Finish goes on and on. A.

3. 02 Bouchard genevrieres. A little stinky like cheese. Silky slick mouth feel and a little oxidized. Someone says bubblegum. Sweet and tasty but oddball. B+

4. 02 boyer-martenot charmes. Pear and green apple aromas. Simple and flat. Tails off quickly in the finish. Not crazy about it. Pass. Getting worse and sherried. D.

5. 02 Matrot charmes. Better again. More fleshy and robust with some sea salt and brine. I like this one. Talkative finish. A-

6. 02 Girardin charmes. Sediment. Inexpressive nose and tired wine. Yawn. Darker than the others. Then after 20 minutes turns nice and full. Full and rich buttery hazelnuts. . B+

7. 04 boillot charmes. From the upper part (the good part). Rocking pear and peach nose. This is excellent. Excellent body compelling saline wonderful complete finish. Favorite so far. One to buy. A.

8. 04 roulot charmes. 70 year old vines. Lighter than the others. Also completely delicious but more subtle. Packed full of peach pit, cold rocks. One to sit and sip and sip. Just growing. Sense of piece and calm. Lighter body. Some say it lacks intensity. A-

9. 02 chateau de puligny montrachet perrieres. Much more salty nose. More chiseled and lean and full of character. The place comes out. Perrieres strongly exibits the definition of terroir. David says anise. Loving this one. A.

10. 02 Girardin perrieres. Simplier more fruity nose. Richer and riper but some of the salt and brine is missing. Tasty but not so special from this vineyard. David says powder and chalk. B+

11 matrot perrieres. Sulfur and poopy nose that blows off a little. Off bottle. Not clean. C.

12. 2000 Lafon meursault. Village wine. A little thinner mid palate missing structure. $100. Nice at this price there's better. B.

13 00 lafon clos de la barre. Wow I really like this one. Singing. Dancing. A beam of light. Lemon curd and sea rocks. Melding. $150. A

14 00 coche chevalieres. The nose makes me laugh. It is crazy. So complex. Rich and full and complex and salty and creamy wotn in the tough company. Toasty oak and everything. Unbelievable multi minute finish. $350. A.

2005 Kistler Kistler Vineyards Chardonny

Jill says lemon curd. Beam of sunshine. Vanilla bean creme brulee. Thinking of ordering a beer if no corkage at Hasaki but I've never been this happy with a beer. Delicious and long we both grade
A.

2004 Roty Mazis Chambertin

Dark ruby. This is a beast. Animal, funky mossy and primal. Absolutely huge finish. Dramatic. Captures the essence of Mazis. There's a green streak, like most of the 04 red burgundy I've tried. Here it fits in nicely. This is way too young. It has tremendous potential and should be aged. I'm thoroughly enjoying it however. I opened it as a celebration- my wife is joining me for a glass, very rare these days. She says delish. I paid $90, price has climbed to about $150. At that price, it is in tough company. Grade: A-.

1990 Faiveley Nuits st Georges 1st Cru Clos de la Marechale

Some bricking. Smells mushroom, and lavender. Despite the greatness of the 90 vintage, this is over the hill. Lots of delicious minerals and menthol, but a beam of acids on the back. Fun to drink, but not blowing me away. Grade: B+, Josh B

2001 Trimbach Riesling Clos st Hune

Pale, youthful yellow. Aromas of tangerine and petrol. Full palate. Rich and dense with orange marmalade to go with its petrol. Delicious, funky and impressive for its lively acidity and real sense of place. Highly collectible and expensive. Grade: A. Josh: A-

1986 Chave Hermitage Blanc

Over the hill. Josh says petrol. Perfectly preserved bottle, but the fruit is all gone. This was probably nice 10 years ago. Historically interesting, but not great wine. Auction only. Grade: B-, Josh says B-.

2007 Sea Smoke Southing Pinot Noir

Dark ruby. Captivating aromas like a mentholated forest. Fresh, and dark. Ripe, sleek and luxurious palate. Deep dark pinot, done in a Californian, juicy style. At first it was tight showing a lot of alcohol, but after being opened for 5 hours, it is quite nice, albeit with prominent alcohol. I'm on the Sea Smoke mailing list. I paid $50. Grade: A-

1997 Lamarche Clos de Vougeot

Mature burgundy, a nice treat. '97 is a earthy, woodsy vintage. Smells like dried autumn leaves. Iron laced rustic flavors, a little disjointed with prominent acids, but good, long finish. I paid $35 about a year ago, from a wine connection email. Can't beat that, for an aged grand cru. Grade: A-.

1992 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Riesling Spätlese

This is a recent release from the Zilliken cellar. Compelling petrol and apple juice aromas. Seems quite youthful. Well balanced sweetness. Delicious, and good value. Retail $35, grade: A.

2007 Alesia Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast

Shows the power of the excellent 07 vintage. Compellingly young dark purple. Delicious cherry menthol pinot aromas. Silky texture with a lot of depth. Long finish, with a slight alcoholic heat. This is the lowest price Ryhs pinot, but it rocks. Only currently available from the Rhys mailing list. Retail $35, grade: A.

2005 Mollydooker The Boxer Shiraz

This is an alcoholic mess. Huge, dark and viscus. I liked this a few years ago, but it isn't aging gracefully. Its unbalanced. On the front it has a lot of spicy sweet dark fruits. Smoky oaky. Then like everclear. If you have any left, drink with very strong foods. Possibly a weak bottle. Retail $35, grade: C.

1999 Trapet Chambertin

Glorious aromas of gingerbread cake, and a wild, enchanted pine forest. Waxy spicy cherry palate. Amazing depth. Great balanced long finish. At age 10 still a baby. Hold at least 5 more years. Just delish. Andrew de Montille gives it an A. I agree.