That some of these rare Vosne 1er Crus are seriously good.
Big D wanted to explore the smaller 1er Cru vineyards of Vosne last night at Monday Table. Everyone was instructed to bring along a bottle of Gaudichots, Cros Parantoux, Aux Reignots, La Croix Rameau or Les Petits Monts and some fascinating flights were formed. It was a terrific evening with some outstanding wines.
2007 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut: Intense citrus and mineral to the aroma. Very direct and concentrated in the mouth. Vibrant and airy with plenty of flint and a touch of mint. Super-fine bead, long chalky finish.
2016 Domaine Felettig Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Reignots: A very spicy nose of aniseed and sandalwood. There’s some cherry fruit and the palate is rich and velvety. It is a luscious wine with a cool, stony finish.
2015 Chanson Père & Fils Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Petits Monts: Some volatility that punches floral spice notes into the nostrils. It is waxy, with sweet, juicy fruit and plenty of minerally acidity.
2015 Jacques Cacheux & Fils Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru La Croix Rameau: Complex aromatics of menthol and red and black fruits. It is deep, rich and creamy with great presence and volume. The long, velvety finish is carried by plush tannins.
2015 Domaine Robert Sirugue Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Petits Monts: Pretty, accessible, elegant and wide-open. Very much red fruited and possessing an engaging ginger spice note. Sweet mid-palate and a finish that is precise and that really fans out.
2016 Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Reignots: Intense nose of Asian spice, menthol, pine needles and dark fruits. It is rich and sappy with great build and texture. It has outstanding length of flavour.
2012 Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Reignots: A nice, calm and even nose, still showing youthful red and black fruits along with a suggestion of beef stock development. It is rich and sweet in the mouth with nice minerally detail to the back-end.
2012 Domaine Machard de Gramont Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Gaudichots: Meat and soy notes greet the nose. It has some Chinese 5 spice powder too. It is stony on the palate with nice detail and a relatively compact feel.
2011 Domaine Francois Lamarche Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru La Croix Rameau: A strange, slightly aldehydic nose. The palate is decent, with sweet berry fruit and plenty of floral spice. It has a certain ’11 leanness to it, lacking the generosity of the wines around it.
2012 Domaine Robert Sirugue Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Petits Monts: Earthy, spicy and floral. Plump, sweet fruits in the mouth with a nice up-tick of minerally acidity to finish.
2006 Jacques Cacheux & Fils Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru La Croix Rameau: Nice poise and balance. Has some compost and earthy development. There’s a pine needle note and it is plump, sweet and full in the mouth. It builds through the palate and finishes with excellent persistence.
2009 Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Reignots: Intense and complex aromas of freshly grated ginger, pure red berry and cherry fruits, stones, and Asian spice. It has flesh and fabulous clarity and detail. It is silky, ethereal, voluminous and oh so long. A brilliant wine.
2006 Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Reignots: Has some Hoisin and beef stock notes along with sarsaparilla root, coffee and dark fruits. It is full, sweet and textured with good intensity and plenty of spice.
2006 Emmanuel Rouget Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cros Parantoux: The nose is a simmering beef stock seasoned with plenty of Asian spice. It is full, sweet and textured with black cherry fruit and plenty of meaty nuance. The finish is gentle and long with nice underlying minerality.
2005 Domaine Francois Lamarche Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru La Croix Rameau: Plenty of spice mixing it up with youthful cherry fruit. It is sweet and luscious in the mouth but relatively contained and juvenile. Length of flavour is very good. Needs time.
2012 Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Reignots: Delicious black cherry fruit with some meaty development. It is a deep and engaging wine, highly perfumed and possessing latent power. There’s sweet, intense fruit and it has fabulous acid drive. It is so expansive and has a supremely long finish.
1999 Emmanuel Rouget Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cros Parantoux: A tiny hint of TCA detracted from what could have been a brilliant bottle. It was earthy, complex, sweet and layered, with great power and drive.
2002 Nicolas Potel Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Gaudichots: Quite earthy with plenty of spice too. The palate is relatively compact, with crunchy red fruits and loads of mineral. There’s good cut to the finish.
1982 Château Suduiraut Cuvée Madame: This too was slightly corked. It was luscious and concentrated, loaded with apricot jam.
1967 Château Suduiraut: complex aromatics of honey, sweet walnut, apricot jam and lavender. It was full, luscious and intense in the mouth. It had great freshness and detail and finished clean and long, leaving a vanilla imprint.