OUT OF TOWN FRIENDS @ REPUBLIQUE - (7/31/2019-8/6/2019)
A few friends came in from out of town/country so we put together a dinner for the 8 of us at Republique. Killer food/service from the team. When Chef Manzke is cooking the food is tough to beat.
WOTN for me was probably the 1999 Overnoy - one of the best wines I’ve had all year and a great counter to the “natural wines can’t age” argument. The 07 D’Auvenay was a close second, imo the best white burgundy producer and the least affordable. Out of the burgundy, my favorite was the 1999 Hubert Lignier Clos de la Roche. But most everything outside of the Bernard Van Berg showed well.
Started off with the Jerome Prevost Fac simile - which to me is the best rose being made in champagne hands down.
Flight One
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2015 Jérôme Prévost La Closerie Fac-Simile - France, Champagne (8/5/2019)
What more needs to be said about this wine? There’s so much material inside. Savory earthy strawberry that completely envelopes your palate. There’s ample acidity and killer bone dry intensity. It has a ripeness to it and fills the mouth but without feeling sweet and heavy as so many rose do
Flight Two
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2007 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru (7/31/2019)
“Persistent as fuck”. Which it was. The wine had all of the hallmarks of classic D’auvenay, powerhouse smoky yellow fruited nose with white pepper and flint. The palate is just absolutely brimming with rich golden fruit, there’s serious weight on the wine as it just crushes the mid palate deep into the finish. Has bracing powerful minerality and sparkle and an equally broad frame that’s completely filled out by the raw material. Every time having D’auvenay is a treat and an example why it’s probably the best white wine being made in Burgundy. -
2009 Hubert Lamy Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru (7/31/2019)
Balanced fruit weight and supple extract. White fruit and banana. Framed by a soft acid touch and a lush persistent mouthfeel that shows the ripeness of the vintage but in balance. I was surprised by how light on the feet the wine was, which really showed next to the punch you in the mouth powerhouse next to it. It’s always really interesting trying the pre-haut density wines. Always softer, more delicate wines and supple wines before they turned into electric powerhouses in 2013
Flight Three
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1999 Emmanuel Houillon (Maison Pierre Overnoy) Poulsard Arbois Pupillin - France, Jura, Arbois Pupillin (7/31/2019)
Initially when opened it showed rustic and clunky. We didn’t think much of it. @justinrutherford738 recommended we decant and throw it back into the cellar. We came back to it roughly 3 hours later and the wine had metamorphosed into a beautiful god wave inducing Mothra.
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The most apt description possible is the smell of a perfectly ripe strawberry being plucked from the earth and brought straight to your nose. Behind that glorious sweet earthy smell is an herbaceous citrus note that reminds me of blood orange.
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The palate is weightless but persistent. Oodles of clean beautiful bright cherry and strawberry fruit and a slight hint of funk/earth that gives it complexity . It’s elegant and balanced while tasting fresh and forward with all its glorious well put together acid. To have captured this 20 year old Poulsard in such a magical place is a treat. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Without a doubt the best Poulsard let alone Jura I’ve ever had. Thank you Justin
Flight Four
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1976 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru (8/5/2019)
cool easy fruit, mostly secondary now with ample earth, tobacco, hint of brown sugar. Ultimate definition of SOYS BOYS on the nose. At its best when first poured as the fruit was more ample but still enjoyable to see the evolution. -
1990 Louis Jadot Musigny - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru (8/5/2019)
burlier and more structured than I expected. Tannic frame that’s showing some of its secondary character but still has its fair share of ripe dark fruit. Started to pick up this tobacco infused dark plum note in the finish. ⠀ -
2012 Marchand & Tawse / Pascal Marchand Musigny - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Musigny Grand Cru (8/5/2019)
one barrel made. Ultimate chambolle spice box on the palate. Saturated with floral spice and ripe bright red fruit. Sweet ripe tannin and that tactile texture from oak round out the wine. Doesn’t scream Musigny at this stage but definitely screams chambolle! They seem really in tune with this village if you like the more forward red fruited style as they are a bit on the riper side, almost fourrier like but more structured.
Flight Five
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1996 Louis Jadot Bonnes Mares - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru (8/2/2019)
The 1996 Jadot had that really weird stewed fruit and funky meat nose that so many 1996 Jadot had (no clue what was going on in bottle. One bottle would be clean, next would be funky) but it quickly blew off that funk. Palate was also shut down initially, rustic and coarse with tannin and acid. But unlike the Drouhin it flipped the script positively. It gained this rich long powerful dark fruit and that coarseness turned into a structured weight frame. A compelling meatiness and spice started to blossom as it built complexity in the wine. Really good at the end of the night. -
1996 Joseph Drouhin Bonnes Mares - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru (8/2/2019)
The 1996 Drouhin came out all 1996 like. Tons of acid but ample broad sweet weighty red fruit that shows off the power of the vineyard. Still very primary. As it ate up oxygen the fruit starts to pick up a tart note from the acid and started to shut down. -
1999 Hubert Lignier Clos de la Roche - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru (8/23/2019)
1999 Hubert Lignier Clos de la Roche - wow wow 99 continues to impress as probably my favorite red burgundy vintage on the last 30 odd years. Double decanted roughly 4 hours before consumption.
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A lively complex wine with significant dark fruit, smoke, sweet spice wrapped in a lush package and stuffed into a powerful weighty frame. The wine is highly concentrated and dense, almost luscious ripe fruit in the mouthfeel - almost liqueur like. Tannins are soft and easy. Very penetrating and long into the finish with ample minerality to give it life.
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Wish I still had more at the price I paid
. (Which is what every burgundy collector probably says)
Flight Six
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2008 Bernard Van Berg Bourgogne-Grand-Ordinaire Le Vin Le Plus Simplement - France, Burgundy, Bourgogne-Grand-Ordinaire (8/5/2019)
Pinot/gamay blend from Grand Ordinaire. Never had the wine but I’ve heard lots about the old natural burgundy wines being made from vines on the other side of the highway. Made popular by Noma. I’m gonna guess there’s something wrong with the bottle. Really light and almost empty on the palate. Not giving much on the nose. Not sure if it went flat cause of the long decant (12+ hours) or the long decant was to try and pull it out of this stage and it never did. Either way, fun to finally see one of these but too bad about the wine itself. From what I’ve read from great palates, it’s a marvelous wine. Hopefully get a chance for a sound bottle in the future.
Flight Seven
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2010 Marcel Juge Cornas - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas (8/5/2019)
quintessential peak Juge to me. It shows the balance and almost Burgundian mark that Juge has with Syrah. Ample acidity, supple bright red fruit that’s long and spice laden into the finish. Utterly balanced and dripping with a savory cool back end. The nose is all wild fruit, herbs and meat. -
2005 Raymond Trollat St. Joseph - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, St. Joseph (8/5/2019)
one of my favorite St Josephs ever, the 2005 Raymond Trollat St Joseph. His last year of making wine and what a vintage to end on before transferring the vines over to the Gonon brothers for their VV bottling. This wine is absolutely chock full of material in the bottle. Stuffed to the gills with concentrated bold dark red fruit and a mouth coating weight. There’s a meatiness and chewy texture that builds with time. Every sip is a new experience as the wine unravels.
