2012 Roumier Morey-St-Denis Boussiere, 1997 Armand Rousseau Clos St-Jacques, 2007 Armand Rousseau Lavaux St-Jacques, 2009 Cecile Tremblay Vosne-R Beaumonts, 1995 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne, 2014 Henri Germain Meursault-Charmes, 2014 Ch Chamirey Mercurey La Mission, 2010 H Gouges Nuits-St-Georges Pruliers, 1990 Adrien Belland Chambertin

The Jurade de Saint-Emilion du Singapour gathered again on 29 August 2019 to indulge in another evening of great camaraderie, excellent food and fine wines. Yoshi was the venue, helmed by the man himself Mr Yoshiyuki Kashiwabara whose omakase creations reflect great skill and refinement. The actual surprise was the wine theme: nothing of Bordeaux, but of Burgundy 1er. We don’t necessarily need to confine ourselves to Saint-Emilion just because we’re the Jurade. A couple of bottles fell out of theme but who can decline any Chambertin Grand Cru or Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru? Many thanks, everyone, for your generous contributions, particularly to Russ for the great organisation.

2008 Dom Perignon, courtesy of Russell. Lovely luminosity but it appeared to be somewhat reticent, proffering fleeting glimpses of ferrous minerals and clear citrus with some chalkiness. Slightly more expressive on the palate where I thought it may blossom but it simply receded into a shell, coiled tightly with stern ferrous elements, bitter lemon and grapefruit, not helped at all by its crisp dryness that proved unyielding. Shutting down, not unlike the 2008 Philipponnat Clos des Goisses that I popped couple of months back. Best to lay down all your 2008 champagne while you drink up the other odd years that are lighter (2007, 2009, 2011).

2014 Ch Chamirey Mercurey La Mission 1er, courtesy of Kieron. This over-achieving monopole is still stunning in every way, exuding a cool sheen of icing and vanillin on the nose with a white floral tone that is, at once, already imbued lovely gentle complexity. The palate lived up to expectation, excellent in concentration and presence of clear citrus and delicate minerals without being too overtly dense, displaying fine transparency with superb depth and expanse. Very correct in its poise and balance. Outstanding.

2014 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassage-Montrachet Clos du Caillerets 1er, courtesy of Kieron. The inaugural vintage of this superb monopole is absolutely mesmerising on the nose, seducing the senses with enticing detailed floral tones that matched perfectly with a minerally palate, highly understated in its subtle complex of gravel, saline minerals, ferrous elements and graphite, softly focused with very fine inner definition, finishing gently even as it grew in stature over time. Outstanding.

2014 Domaine Henri Germain et Fils Meursault-Charmes 1er, courtesy of Sandy. Deep peculiar nose of fluoride and menthol, rather open and enticing, subtly layered with saline minerals on the medium-bodied palate, displaying delicate clear tones that persisted well into the finish. Very fine.

2015 Domaine Bernard-Bonin Meursault Les Genevieres 1er, courtesy of Melvin. Don’t let its paleness deceive, for this wine proffers an effusive deep floral fragrance layered with an attractive dense chalkiness, displaying even concentration and linearity even as it turned more minerally over time, tapering to a cool waxy finish.

1995 Domaine Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru, courtesy of Irene and Shuang Bai. Poured from magnum. Darker hue than usual. Served too cold initially where it was shut, proffering just some apricot. However, it snapped into great focus when it warmed up to correct temperature, displaying very fine concentration of white fruits and yellow citrus with very refined intensity and verve, supported by a bed of restrained saline minerals along with a recessed chalkiness. Louis Latour has seldom been as convincing as this. Excellent.

1990 Adrien Belland Chambertin Grand Cru, courtesy of Christie. Great colour. Absolutely superb on the nose, an effusive glow of complex red fruits, mint and minerals that is simply indescribable. Medium-bodied and fleshy, layered with lovely velvety textures that confer subtle intensity, utterly seamless throughout its length, finishing with lasting persistence. Caught at its peak. Excellent.

2009 Domaine Cecile Tremblay Vosne-Romanee Les Beaumonts 1er, courtesy of Russell. Deeply colored. This wine impressed immediately with its effusive glow of complex dark plums and black currants splashed with gloss and varnish, delivering on its delicious promise with superb suppleness, presence and feminine textures underscored by some dominant salinity. Showed good linearity and persistence but it seemed to lose some of its focus and shine later when lined up against the classic purity of old style pinot expression.

2010 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Pruliers 1er. Very lovely effusive earthy pungency on the nose, matched by a classic old style pinot expression on the palate. Softly rounded and fleshy, imbued with superb purity of evolved red fruits that exude great feminine elegance and superb balance, just a tad short which is to be expected of a 1er. Stood its ground even when drunk alongside the Armand Rousseau below. Outstanding value.

1997 Domaine Armand Rousseau Gevrey-Chambertin Clos Saint-Jacques 1er, courtesy of Stephen. Dusty red, but the nose is absolutely beguiling with a generous fragrance of evolved red fruits and tangerines, well replicated on the palate with a touch of gentle earthiness. Medium-bodied. A tad acidic, pitching the palate at a higher tone but really lovely and delicious.

2007 Domaine Armand Rousseau Gevrey-Chambertin Lavaux Saint-Jacques 1er, courtesy of Andrew. Right on the heels of the preceding Clos-Saint-Jacques, this younger sibling also sports a good spread of gentle red fruits and tangerines, distinctly feminine in its softly-rounded youthful suppleness without the structured masculinity of Gevrey-Chambertin, imbued with very fine acidity and earthy minerals. Open with fine intensity, just a tad short. We tasted it blind, where I thought it might have been Volnay.

2012 Domaine Georges Roumier Morey-Saint-Denis Les Boussiere 1er, courtesy of KC. Darker in colour, dominated by an ample expanse of roses and cherries on the nose. Superbly supple, beautifully nuanced with some charred elements, softly rounded. Again a little short, but still undeniably gorgeous.