Mixed wines with friends
Posted on 19/12/06 08:14
BBQ at home with friends and restaurant.
Champagne Dehours - Cuvee Confidentielle
45% Pinot Meunier and 55% Chardonnay. This is made at a lower pressure - so is a cremant style. Nose has red fruits and earth overtones. Very subtle and elegant. Palate continues the nose. Has nice creaminess and richness with hints of brioche. Maybe a little bit too rich and over generous - appears to be a little heavy. Dosage is apparently 8g/litre - maybe too high for this style of cuvee. Fair to good.
Champagne Bruno Michelle Cuvee de la Terre
This is 100% Chardonnay full malo with some small barrique maturation.Lovely spice and citrus on the nose and palate. Mousse is ultra-fine and persistant. Palate is long and unctuous - penetrating acid. Great purity and finesse. Stunning.
Champagne Benoit-Lahaye Bouzy Brut.
Colour is straw with hints of gold, mousse is very fine and subtle. Nose exhibits typical robustness of Bouzy Pinot Noir but with great purity and elegance. Palate carries the red fruit and smoke characteristics of Bouzy but with hints of strawberries and apple. Great length and real class here. Superb.
2004 Bended Knee Pinot Noir.
Colour is cherry red with hints of rose pink on the edges, nose shows great perfume and red fruits aromas, entwined with touchs of oak and forest aromas. Palate carries on from the nose, real perfume and class here. All very delicate and complex, not a big blockbuster extracted green fruit bomb - just purity and finesse. Classy.
Champagne Egly Ouriet Brut Tradition
Pale straw gold colour, nice fine mousse, an elegant yet very rich style - has the meaty richness of its Bouzy component - great with food. Good.
Champagne Egly Ouriet 1998 Grand Cru
Colour verging on almost pink, red fruits and strawberries on the nose, big rich pinot dominant style with great weight and complexity. Heavy and viscous. Definitely a food style. Very good.
2004 Corton Charlemagne Domaine Bouchard.
Very pale straw with hints of green, nose shows lots of new oak. Intense and rich and very very enjoyable right now. Maybe in a more commercial style and probably does not need 10 years in the cellar - but a huge mouthfull to enjoy right now. Very classy Chardonnay here. Impressive.
1984 and 1994 Chambertin Clos-de-Beze Rousseau.
Quite elegant and well made wines from some of the worst vintages on record. Both were in excellent condition. The 1984 was maybe a little tired but still showed some good complexity and richness. The 1994 was excellent indeed - great finesse and weight with typical Rousseau spice and elegance. Great bracket.
1995 Clos Vougeot Domaine Engel.
Classic spice and richness from Engel. Always a great Clos-Vougeot - maybe one of the best of all the producers. Colour is still red with only subtle hints of any browning. Showing no hard or green flavours that some 1995's can show. Great wine.
1998 Vosne Romanee Les Beaux Monts Domaine Leroy.
Huge wine showing quite a few stalks - but very pure and long - opened up in the glass to reveal great purity and classic Vosne spice. Oh so long on the palate. Quite amazing - sensational Vosne.
1985 Clos la Roche Rousseau
Great finesse and spice. Still holding together quite well for a 1985 - maybe showing a little hardness on the finish. Very pleasant to drink right now.
1999 Clos Vougeot Domaine Leroy
Wow, huge nose but shows very little stalks ( whereas the 1998 Vosne showed a lot of stalks). Red fruit purity - smoke and spice - awesome length. Awesome everything. There are some great Clos Vougeots out there - this is one of them. A great Clos Vougeot can compete against the other great Grand Crus. Stunning.
45% Pinot Meunier and 55% Chardonnay. This is made at a lower pressure - so is a cremant style. Nose has red fruits and earth overtones. Very subtle and elegant. Palate continues the nose. Has nice creaminess and richness with hints of brioche. Maybe a little bit too rich and over generous - appears to be a little heavy. Dosage is apparently 8g/litre - maybe too high for this style of cuvee. Fair to good.
This is 100% Chardonnay full malo with some small barrique maturation.Lovely spice and citrus on the nose and palate. Mousse is ultra-fine and persistant. Palate is long and unctuous - penetrating acid. Great purity and finesse. Stunning.
Champagne Benoit-Lahaye Bouzy Brut.
Colour is straw with hints of gold, mousse is very fine and subtle. Nose exhibits typical robustness of Bouzy Pinot Noir but with great purity and elegance. Palate carries the red fruit and smoke characteristics of Bouzy but with hints of strawberries and apple. Great length and real class here. Superb.
Colour is cherry red with hints of rose pink on the edges, nose shows great perfume and red fruits aromas, entwined with touchs of oak and forest aromas. Palate carries on from the nose, real perfume and class here. All very delicate and complex, not a big blockbuster extracted green fruit bomb - just purity and finesse. Classy.
Champagne Egly Ouriet Brut Tradition
Pale straw gold colour, nice fine mousse, an elegant yet very rich style - has the meaty richness of its Bouzy component - great with food. Good.
Champagne Egly Ouriet 1998 Grand Cru
Colour verging on almost pink, red fruits and strawberries on the nose, big rich pinot dominant style with great weight and complexity. Heavy and viscous. Definitely a food style. Very good.
Very pale straw with hints of green, nose shows lots of new oak. Intense and rich and very very enjoyable right now. Maybe in a more commercial style and probably does not need 10 years in the cellar - but a huge mouthfull to enjoy right now. Very classy Chardonnay here. Impressive.
1984 and 1994 Chambertin Clos-de-Beze Rousseau.
Quite elegant and well made wines from some of the worst vintages on record. Both were in excellent condition. The 1984 was maybe a little tired but still showed some good complexity and richness. The 1994 was excellent indeed - great finesse and weight with typical Rousseau spice and elegance. Great bracket.
1995 Clos Vougeot Domaine Engel.
Classic spice and richness from Engel. Always a great Clos-Vougeot - maybe one of the best of all the producers. Colour is still red with only subtle hints of any browning. Showing no hard or green flavours that some 1995's can show. Great wine.
1998 Vosne Romanee Les Beaux Monts Domaine Leroy.
Huge wine showing quite a few stalks - but very pure and long - opened up in the glass to reveal great purity and classic Vosne spice. Oh so long on the palate. Quite amazing - sensational Vosne.
1985 Clos la Roche Rousseau
Great finesse and spice. Still holding together quite well for a 1985 - maybe showing a little hardness on the finish. Very pleasant to drink right now.
1999 Clos Vougeot Domaine Leroy
Wow, huge nose but shows very little stalks ( whereas the 1998 Vosne showed a lot of stalks). Red fruit purity - smoke and spice - awesome length. Awesome everything. There are some great Clos Vougeots out there - this is one of them. A great Clos Vougeot can compete against the other great Grand Crus. Stunning.
