Tasting Dinner With Cristal, Cullen, Echezeaux, Clos Vougeot, Tokaji & More!

"In the midway of this our mortal life,

I found me in a gloomy wood, astray"

                      (Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy)

I am almost there...turning 50 soon. I am also midway in the daunting project of drinking all my 1964´s. :-)
After this night and the wines below I am halfway there - 93 out of 186 bottles down the hatch!
Gotta turn up the pace!

On this night is was time for our annual tasting dinner in our tasting group.
All wines tasted double blind except for the ones I brought.

With the bubblies we first got some foie gras and then a perfect, succulent Coquilles St-Jacques.
2004 Louis Roederer Brut
It opens with a bang! This winner has a fine, elegant nose with notes of fresh bread, ginger, steel, smoke and a salty scent that is salivating. Very, very good.
The taste is tight and refined with notes of lemon cream, licorice, toasted bread and gravel. A long, balanced finish with a creamy acidity. Still young, this will be even better in 3-5 years time.
92p   (tasted 2014/11)

 

2002 Moet & Chandon Brut
When I tasted this vintage three years ago I thought much better of it. Tonight is shows of a rather narrow, flat nose with notes of warm bread, red ripe apples and earth. Good but short.
The taste is fresher and displays some fine red apple notes as well as warm gravel and dried flowers. A medium long finish with a hint of bitterness. Fairly good but in a awkward stage?
83p   (tasted 2014/11)

2004 Cristal
This is a show stopper! Still young of course, but there is so much to enjoy! A deep, beautiful, fresh nose with notes of lemon peels, sea weed, shellfish, cap gun smoke and a hint of toast. So, so refined and complex. A treat.
The taste is pure like a mountain river and displays notes of sweet/sour lemons, hard lemon candy, wet rocks and sea weed. The finish goes on for minutes. I would love to drink this is 6-8 years time, please invite me those who have a stash of these! :-)
96p   (tasted 2014/11)

2002 Dom Perignon
This is a very good wine but still I got a little disappointed when it was revealed, I expect more from Dom Perignon. The nose is deep, open and spicy with notes of lemon cream, freshly washed clothes, yellow apples and a hint of butter cookies. Very, very good. Yummy but not overly complex.
The taste feels younger than the nose with notes of lemon peel, ripening yellow apples, toast and assorted spices. A long, fresh finish. Very good.
Where is the cofffe notes? Go figure. Still young, this could evolve into a swan, wait and see.
90p   (tasted 2014/11)

For the first course we were served a moist cod with a pumpkin sauce, a great dish for these wines.
1995 Corton-Charlemagne, Bonneau de Martray
A big, mature, fine nose with notes of dried tropical fruits, coconut flakes, almond paste, melted butter and mosquito repellent. Very complex and interesting. Even a hint of botrytis buried deep down. Great.
The taste is intense and mature with notes of dried apricots, rubber, cold cream and dried flowers. A very, very long finish with a fine warmth. Lots of minerals in the finish. Fully mature and drinking great.
92p   (tasted 2014/11)

1999 Bienvenues Batard Montrachet, Jean-Claude Bachelet
And things got even better! The nose is deep and creamy with stunning notes of yellow apples cooked in cream and honey, cap gun smoke, butter fudge and summer flowers. Very old viney ripe. Just beautiful.
The taste is very intense, pure and hedonistic with notes of candied lemon peel, minced ginger, iron, Lemoncello and a hint of fine vanilla. The finish goes on for over a minute. Just entering its maturity level. Great wine!
94p   (tasted 2014/11)

2002 Cullen Margaret River Chardonnay
Shame on me! I thought that this and the previous wine came a rock throwing distance from each other. But you have to have a Superman arm to throw this distance...
One of the finest wines of the evening, this beauty displays a utterly gorgeous nose with notes of sweet lemons, candle grease, sweet minerals, bonfire in a distance and a hint of milk chocolate. A lovely purity and intensity. As the above, just entering its maturity.
The taste is stunning with a creamy yellow fruit and additional notes of candied orange peel, elderberries, a sweet minerality, butter biscuits and a touch vanilla. Very, very, very long.
95p   (tasted 2014/11)


For main course we had deer fillets with a truffle risotto and onions cooked in port. I brought the wines for this flight, so I knew what we were tasting.

1964 Echezeaux, Guy Leblanc
A wonderful, sweet, hedonistic nose with notes of dried strawberries, forest floor, cooked root vegetables, pipe tobacco and a hint of balsamic vinegar. A lovely nose with depth and definition.
The taste is round, sweet and structured with notes of dried raspberries, undergrowth, beetroot juice and pipe tobacco. The finish is long and balanced. This is a great bottle of mature Burgundy.
92p   (tasted 2014/11)

1964 Echezeaux, Domaine Lafont
A deep, sturdy, ripe nose with notes of morello cherries, dried raspberries, espresso coffee, warm earth and a hint of truffle. Sweet and fine. A lovely maturity.
The taste is sweet and fine with notes of chocolate covered strawberries, Earth, old leather and mushrooms. A fine acidity. A long, soft finish. This is in a fine state of maturity.
90p   (tasted 2014/11)

2012 Echezeaux Les Loachausses, Anne Gros 
A different creature altoghether compared to the previous two glasses. A young, fresh and tight nose with notes of red cherries, forest floor, thyme and some new leather. Very pure and focused. In 10 years time this will be a stunner!
The taste is young, tight and promising with notes of hard cherry candy, root vegetables, forest floor and new leather. The finish is very long and intense. Needs a lot of time but boy, this will be good!
93p   (tasted 2014/11)

2012 Clos Vougeot,
This is even more backward than the 12 Echezeaux. A tight, tight nose with notes of blueberries, wild strawberries, moist earth, rosehip and a touch of licorice. Dense and structured. Will need plenty of time.
The taste is young and impressive with masses of sweet red cherries, rosehip, dusty earth and dry licorice. Some intense tannins and a high acidity. More impressive than enjoyable today. Wait at least 12 years!
90p   (tasted 2014/11)

1964 Clos de Vougeot, Lamuriére
A big, sweet and somewhat clumpsy nose with lots of sugared coffee, overripe raspberries, moist earth and fried mushrooms. Very sweet. Some dog fur. Fully mature.
The taste is round and sweet with notes of cooked raspberries, moist undergrowth, licorice and old leather. A medium long, good finish that ends dry. This is on its way down but is drinking well on this night.
87p   (tasted 2014/11)

1964 Clos de Vougeot, Marquis de Villeranges
Aaaah! What a wine! This beauty sports a deep, decadent nose with notes of wild strawberries, Christmas spices, milk chocolate, cooked parsnips and the scent of a perfect walk in a autumn forest. Just stunning!
The taste is perfectly mature with notes of ripe strawberries, forest floor, warm herbs, beetroots and some bonfire notes. The finish is long, structured and aristocratic. A beautiful wine.
96p   (tasted 2014/11)


A creamy soufflé makes up dessert with three bottles of sweet wine.

2009 Tokaji Aszu 5 Puttonyos, Chateau Derezela
A young, seedy, medium sweet nose with notes of ripe peaches, roasted nuts, minerals and a touch of resin. Candied lemons after a while . Very good.
The taste is tight, young and concentrated with notes of vanilla dusted peaches, sweet minerals and resin. A medium long finish with a good acidity. Young but drinking fine.
88p   (tasted 2014/11)

2002 Tokaji Aszu 6 Puttonyos, Disznókó
A big, creamy, sweet nose with notes of canned apricots, sweet almond paste, rubber, botrytis and detergent. Complex and very fine. I definitely hade this pegged as a Sauternes...
The taste is big, sweet and lovely with notes of saffron spiked apricots, fried nuts, detergent and over ripe peaches. A very fine warmth. This is good!
92p   (tasted 2014/11)

1998 Pinot Gris SGN Quintessence, Léon Beyer
A medium bodied, deep, mature nose with notes of sweet white currants, oil cloth, almond paste and some rubbery notes. Very, very good.
The taste is tight and intense with lots of body and structure combined with a very high acidity. Sweet apricots, warm hay, rubber and pine nuts. Very long and yummy. This is good.
90p   (tasted 2014/11)