Knights of Burgundy, 39th dinner. June 18th 2009
Posted on 18/06/09 11:18
Author: vicpug
Category: Knights of Burgundy
Meeting No: 39
Date: June 18th, 2009.
Theme: Open: Premier or Grand Cru, red and white.
Present: Sir David of Cirro, Sir Ian of Palatte, Sir Samuel of Pontifico, Sir Leon of Romanee, Sir Peter of Heathcote, Sir Ralph of Plenty, Sir Thomas of Stocks, Sir Phillip of Oporto, Sir Ian of Umpirico, Sir Paul of Rousseau, Sir Philip of Politico.
Food:
First Course – Tempura garfish rolled in nori, gingered wombak cabbage, horseradish cream sauce.
Second Course – Baked Asian pie of minced chicken, pork belly and eggplant.
Third Course – Seared lamb loin with citrus pepper, crisp lamb sweetbread, grilled lambs tongue, braised cos lettuce, pan-fried noodles, shitake sauce.
Fourth Course – Warm, dark chocolate fondant pudding with red bean ice cream.
Wines:
(In addition to the group ranking, I give the highest and lowest ranking the wine achieved, together with those who ranked it as such; you get some idea of how much we can differ in our appreciation. I also give the total ranking points after the overall ranking)
1975 Bollinger RD Champagne (PS): Very coloured, orange. Nose showing maderisation. Palate still with some fizz, a bit short, a little sweet and sourish. An elegant geriatric. Some, notably Sir Leon, appreciate such aged Champagne; the rest of us would rather drink beer. Not ranked;
NV Billecart Salmon Rose Champagne (RG): Onion skin colour. Nose quite fresh, rich. Palate rich, meaty, attractive. Good mouthful, dry, a little sour on the finish. Not ranked;
1. 1998 Corton Charlemagne (Rapet) (SC): Bright gold. Nose full, a little straw-like, maybe even yeasty but not unattractive. Palate soft and round, nice acidity. Pleasant but without much finesse, lacks backbone, inoffensive. Ranked 7th (66). High – 2nd (PM); Low – 10th (LC);
2. 2000 Criots Batard Montrachet (Blain Gagnard) (IR): Medium gold. Initially, nose smelled like drains, slightly maderised, breathed up better. Palate quite good with fine acidity, breathed up to show good structure and length. Notwithstanding its faults, this wine was highly regarded; I thought the palate remained a little flat, the nose a little dirty. Ranked 2nd (35). High – 1st (PM, TJ, RG, PhS, IR); Low – 9th (SC);
3. 1995 Chassagne Montrachet Morgeot (Germain) (RG): Deep gold. Rich, penetrating, developed nose with lots of sulphur overtones, attractive. Palate with good weight and acidity, dryish. Drinking pretty well but some might find the ‘developed sulphur’ a bit overpowering. Ranked 4th (43). High 1st (LC, IB); Low – 8th (DB);
4. 1997 Charmes Chambertin (Rousseau) (PhS): Very coloured, cloudy, needed decanting. Nose fine, mellow and developed. Palate medium-weight, soft and round, finely balanced, drinking well. Prematurely developed, even for a ’97. Ranked 1st (30). High – 1st (PS, DB, SC); Low – 8th (RG);
5. 2007 Clos de la Roche (Boisset) (PS): Young colour, purple. Nose young and fresh, strawberries. Palate soft and young, medium-weight, open, tannic. Pleasant but not profound. Ranked 6th (65). High – 2nd (PS); Low – 10th (PD);
6. 1996 Morey St. Denis La Riottes (Perrot Minot) (PM): Some colour. Good, restrained nose. Palate rich and long with good acidity and aftertaste. Perrot Minot is comparatively unsung but makes very good wines. Ranked 8th (79). High – 4th (TJ); Low – 10th (PS, PhS);
7. 1991 Chambolle Musigny Les Cras (Ghislaine) (LC): A little colour. Good nose, a bit medicinal. Palate very rich and long, tannic, long aftertaste. I very much liked this wine but it was positively pilloried by everyone else. There was considerable discussion and confusion as to whether it was corked or suffered from mercaptans. I could detect neither and marked the wine accordingly. Vicissitudes of the wine taster… Ranked 12th (124). High – 5th (SC); Low – 12th (everyone else except IR who ranked it 11th);
8. 2004 Bonnes Mares (Castagnier) (SC): Young colour. Very fresh nose, some thought herbaceous or sawdust-like. Palate very rich and substantial, some stalkiness. Many picked this as an ’04 prior to unmasking, and therefore saw characteristics that were sensorially invisible to me. However, the stalkiness is suggestive of an unripe character so I can’t dispute the ‘herbaceous’ conclusions. Ranked 11th (108); High – 6th (LC); Low – 11th (PM, PD, RG, PhS, PS);
9. 1996 Griottes Chambertin (Fourrier) (DB): Some colour. Fine, rich nose, although there was a trace of cork. Palate very rich with fine fruit-acidity. Fine wine marred by a defective cork. Ranked 10th (101). High – 6th (PD); Low – 11th (LC, TJ, DB);
10. 2004 Gevrey Chambertin Les Cherbaudes (Fourrier) (IB):Very fine nose. Palate medium-weight, lush, open, sweet and attractive. No trace of herbaceousness on this ’04, at least nobody spotted it. Ranked 3rd (39). High – 1st (PD); Low – 7th (LC);
11. 1993 Corton Les Bressandes (Chandon de Brialles) (PD): Some colour, orange. Lovely aromatic nose, very attractive. Palate with good weight and acidity, elegant. A wine of finesse. Ranked 9th (93). High – eq 2nd (SC); Low – 12th (IR);
12. 1993 Morey St. Denis Bussieres (Georges Roumier) (TJ): Nose rich, understated, profound. Palate with rich weight, succulent, tannic and backward. Top wine but needs time. Ranked 5th (57). High – 2nd (RG, SC); Low – 9th (PD);
1982 Banyuls (Domaine du Mas Blanc) (LC): (Idiosyncratic contribution) Quite coloured, yellow on edge. Nose fine, malty, Muscat-like, very attractive. Palate medium weight, long with long aftertaste, only a little sweetness. Well matched by Sir Leon, the master matcher, with the only slightly sweet chocolate dessert. Not ranked;
1983 Taylor Vintage Port (TJ): Nose fine, lightish. Palate very fine, medium-weight, nice length. Lovely drinking but could still take a bit of time. Not ranked.
Date: June 18th, 2009.
Theme: Open: Premier or Grand Cru, red and white.
Present: Sir David of Cirro, Sir Ian of Palatte, Sir Samuel of Pontifico, Sir Leon of Romanee, Sir Peter of Heathcote, Sir Ralph of Plenty, Sir Thomas of Stocks, Sir Phillip of Oporto, Sir Ian of Umpirico, Sir Paul of Rousseau, Sir Philip of Politico.
Food:
First Course – Tempura garfish rolled in nori, gingered wombak cabbage, horseradish cream sauce.
Second Course – Baked Asian pie of minced chicken, pork belly and eggplant.
Third Course – Seared lamb loin with citrus pepper, crisp lamb sweetbread, grilled lambs tongue, braised cos lettuce, pan-fried noodles, shitake sauce.
Fourth Course – Warm, dark chocolate fondant pudding with red bean ice cream.
Wines:
(In addition to the group ranking, I give the highest and lowest ranking the wine achieved, together with those who ranked it as such; you get some idea of how much we can differ in our appreciation. I also give the total ranking points after the overall ranking)
1975 Bollinger RD Champagne (PS): Very coloured, orange. Nose showing maderisation. Palate still with some fizz, a bit short, a little sweet and sourish. An elegant geriatric. Some, notably Sir Leon, appreciate such aged Champagne; the rest of us would rather drink beer. Not ranked;
NV Billecart Salmon Rose Champagne (RG): Onion skin colour. Nose quite fresh, rich. Palate rich, meaty, attractive. Good mouthful, dry, a little sour on the finish. Not ranked;
1. 1998 Corton Charlemagne (Rapet) (SC): Bright gold. Nose full, a little straw-like, maybe even yeasty but not unattractive. Palate soft and round, nice acidity. Pleasant but without much finesse, lacks backbone, inoffensive. Ranked 7th (66). High – 2nd (PM); Low – 10th (LC);
2. 2000 Criots Batard Montrachet (Blain Gagnard) (IR): Medium gold. Initially, nose smelled like drains, slightly maderised, breathed up better. Palate quite good with fine acidity, breathed up to show good structure and length. Notwithstanding its faults, this wine was highly regarded; I thought the palate remained a little flat, the nose a little dirty. Ranked 2nd (35). High – 1st (PM, TJ, RG, PhS, IR); Low – 9th (SC);
3. 1995 Chassagne Montrachet Morgeot (Germain) (RG): Deep gold. Rich, penetrating, developed nose with lots of sulphur overtones, attractive. Palate with good weight and acidity, dryish. Drinking pretty well but some might find the ‘developed sulphur’ a bit overpowering. Ranked 4th (43). High 1st (LC, IB); Low – 8th (DB);
4. 1997 Charmes Chambertin (Rousseau) (PhS): Very coloured, cloudy, needed decanting. Nose fine, mellow and developed. Palate medium-weight, soft and round, finely balanced, drinking well. Prematurely developed, even for a ’97. Ranked 1st (30). High – 1st (PS, DB, SC); Low – 8th (RG);
5. 2007 Clos de la Roche (Boisset) (PS): Young colour, purple. Nose young and fresh, strawberries. Palate soft and young, medium-weight, open, tannic. Pleasant but not profound. Ranked 6th (65). High – 2nd (PS); Low – 10th (PD);
6. 1996 Morey St. Denis La Riottes (Perrot Minot) (PM): Some colour. Good, restrained nose. Palate rich and long with good acidity and aftertaste. Perrot Minot is comparatively unsung but makes very good wines. Ranked 8th (79). High – 4th (TJ); Low – 10th (PS, PhS);
7. 1991 Chambolle Musigny Les Cras (Ghislaine) (LC): A little colour. Good nose, a bit medicinal. Palate very rich and long, tannic, long aftertaste. I very much liked this wine but it was positively pilloried by everyone else. There was considerable discussion and confusion as to whether it was corked or suffered from mercaptans. I could detect neither and marked the wine accordingly. Vicissitudes of the wine taster… Ranked 12th (124). High – 5th (SC); Low – 12th (everyone else except IR who ranked it 11th);
8. 2004 Bonnes Mares (Castagnier) (SC): Young colour. Very fresh nose, some thought herbaceous or sawdust-like. Palate very rich and substantial, some stalkiness. Many picked this as an ’04 prior to unmasking, and therefore saw characteristics that were sensorially invisible to me. However, the stalkiness is suggestive of an unripe character so I can’t dispute the ‘herbaceous’ conclusions. Ranked 11th (108); High – 6th (LC); Low – 11th (PM, PD, RG, PhS, PS);
9. 1996 Griottes Chambertin (Fourrier) (DB): Some colour. Fine, rich nose, although there was a trace of cork. Palate very rich with fine fruit-acidity. Fine wine marred by a defective cork. Ranked 10th (101). High – 6th (PD); Low – 11th (LC, TJ, DB);
10. 2004 Gevrey Chambertin Les Cherbaudes (Fourrier) (IB):Very fine nose. Palate medium-weight, lush, open, sweet and attractive. No trace of herbaceousness on this ’04, at least nobody spotted it. Ranked 3rd (39). High – 1st (PD); Low – 7th (LC);
11. 1993 Corton Les Bressandes (Chandon de Brialles) (PD): Some colour, orange. Lovely aromatic nose, very attractive. Palate with good weight and acidity, elegant. A wine of finesse. Ranked 9th (93). High – eq 2nd (SC); Low – 12th (IR);
12. 1993 Morey St. Denis Bussieres (Georges Roumier) (TJ): Nose rich, understated, profound. Palate with rich weight, succulent, tannic and backward. Top wine but needs time. Ranked 5th (57). High – 2nd (RG, SC); Low – 9th (PD);
1982 Banyuls (Domaine du Mas Blanc) (LC): (Idiosyncratic contribution) Quite coloured, yellow on edge. Nose fine, malty, Muscat-like, very attractive. Palate medium weight, long with long aftertaste, only a little sweetness. Well matched by Sir Leon, the master matcher, with the only slightly sweet chocolate dessert. Not ranked;
1983 Taylor Vintage Port (TJ): Nose fine, lightish. Palate very fine, medium-weight, nice length. Lovely drinking but could still take a bit of time. Not ranked.
