The usual suspects gathered at Buona Terra on 09 January 2025 to celebrate Sir Bob’s special day without any specific theme, but we still dug deep. After all, it is only with the man himself that we’d get a chance to taste d’Auvenay and Romanée-Conti and other greats. Many thanks, and many happy returns, Sir!
2012 Champagne Louis Roederer Cristal, courtesy of LF. Dull golden. Fabulous lift of clear citrus and fig, well replicated with excellent density on the lively palate, boasting lovely tension with a tinge of austere minerality within its refined sheen of soft bubbly froth. Very cleanly delineated with fine precision, developing an all-encompassing suave intensity that swept through to its pointed finish.
2018 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er La Perrière, courtesy of Kieron. Luminous gold. The nose suggests an older wine, featuring roasted cashews and apricots set against a recessed chalkiness. It is almost Leflaive-like, highly integral with a gentle lithe except that the predominant white fruits are dryish and a little unusual in their attenuation, producing some fleeting intensity but lacking in detail. I hit the nail, though this pinot blanc is more developed than expected.
2012 Domaine Joseph Drouhin Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru. Light golden. This wine opens with a focused bouquet of stony minerals and white fruits, matched by a clean open agility that impart a certain feminine lightness in spite of its generous presence. Very well-proportioned and balanced, gradually developing more of minerally undertones that speak of its Chassagne identity. Very classy and unassuming.
2013 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru, courtesy of Sir Bob. Light golden, exuding restrained white fruits with a sense of oiliness that belies its lovely verve and pervasive inner detail, supported by a subtle minerally spine. Very beautifully nuanced and balanced. Immaculately proportioned. Not your usual weighty Leflaive.
1996 Domaine d’Auvenay Meursault Les Narvaux, courtesy of Sir Bob. Heavy in colour. The bouquet is absolutely captivating in nutty characters, peaches, apricot and popcorn, rather distant at first but it builds up with growing intensity and momentum, underpinned by a ferrous trace. Very elegantly poised on the palate, distinctly autumnal with a predominance of grapefruit and aged pears, the acidity still in place throughout its linear length. Almost ethereal. Very hard to place, at this age. Fabulous!
2001 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru, courtesy of LF. Displaying a lovely golden lustre, this wine proffers a bouquet of complex orangey citrus with overtones of popcorn. A tad forward and creamy on the lithe medium-weight palate, deliciously rich and smooth, exuding plenty of élan with understated intensity, developing a glowing classy chalkiness that added focused precision to its flinty finish. This is probably Leflaive at its very best.
1985 Château Cheval Blanc, courtesy of Kieron. Displaying an autumnal brownish red, this wine exudes classic characters of a mature claret, positively glowing in capsicum, complex berries and layered currants laced with a medicinal sheen of pochai pills that are well replicated on the luxuriant fleshy palate, its glorious fruit still amazingly fresh and supple, seamlessly layered with a firm minerally line. Wonderfully vibrant, caught at its very best. You wouldn’t have guessed this is a 40-year-old bottle.
2016 Domaine Robert Groffier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Les Amoureuses, courtesy of Vic. Evolved crimson. Distinctly feminine in its deep rosy hues, most captivating. The suave medium-weight palate is imbued with striking acidity and generous layers of gloriously ripe fruit that carry great energy with a lithe pointed intensity.
2020 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Vosne-Romanée 1er Cuvée Duvault-Blochet, courtesy of Sir Bob from the restaurant list. Deep purple, proffering a cool exuberance of dark fruits and black currants on the nose and medium-full palate. Quietly vibrant with a predominance of raspberries that impart wonderful freshness on a cedary floor, structured with slightly sweetish tannins. Very well balanced with darkish inner detail. Drinking well.
1994 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru, courtesy of Sir Bob. Displaying an evolved crimson, this wine opens with a predominance of dark fruits, still astonishingly fresh, tinged with pochai amid leathery overtones. The medium palate is still fairly robust though the fruit is clearly receding, giving way to refined acidity that’s a tad prominent, missing in the charm and vibrancy that one may expect from this fine plot. Probably a function of its age and vintage.
2016 Domaine Rollin Corton-Charlemagne, 2006 Henri Bonneau Réserve des Célestins, 2010 Château Rayas
I had the privilege of attending the great SC’s annual ritual, his New Year Eve lunch at Omakase@Stevens on 31 December 2024, where Chef Kazuki Arimoto has taken over from Chef Kubota. Nevertheless, it is reassuring to note that the refined culinary art at this institution is still expertly executed with supreme confidence. As usual, the wines had been carefully curated by SC himself where it is all about balance and good taste to accompany the exquisite cuisine, avoiding any vulgar excesses. Many thanks, Sir, and good health to all in 2025.
1996 Champagne Dom Pérignon Rosé. Poured from magnum. Displaying a deep orangey hue, this wine is still amazingly fresh and youthful, exuding a gentle lift of grapefruit and pears with superb presence and uniform intensity, underpinned by subtle dryish yeasty undertones.
2016 Domaine Rollin Père et Fils Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru. Poured from magnum. Pale golden, opening with a refreshing lift of cool glacial tones that impart excellent clarity amid overtones of vanillin, burnt toast and crème on the medium palate with an undertow of mild salinity, becoming more sharply delineated over time with a poised regal elegance.
2006 Domaine Henri Bonneau et Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve des Célestins. Poured from magnum. Deep clear ruby with a tinge of crimson. Effusive in black currants, dark plums, cherries and sweet incense though far from hedonistic. Medium presence, displaying lithe agility with striking acidity within a slender profile that’s almost feminine, eventually settling with quiet intensity as it stretched out with glowing persistence.
2010 Château Rayas Réservé. Poured from three bottles. Opaque brownish at the core, proffering a gentle savoury fragrance to complement the sublime acidity on the medium-full palate, exerting fleeting intensity of rosy hues and hawthorne from the seamless layers of glorious fruit throughout its superb length to its glowing minty finish. Outstanding.
Dec 2024: 2017 Drouhin-Laroze Clos de Bèze 2014 Philippe Chéron Gevrey Clos Varoilles 2017 Claire Naudin Clematis Vitalba
2020 Turkey Flat Shiraz. Tasted at home from 5-9 Dec 2024. Deep garnet, boasting ample swathes of plummy red fruits and currants with a sprinkling of cherries that conceal a subtle sheen of vanillin. Wonderfully lithe and agile in spite of the density of fruit that carried an undertow of stems, beautifully contoured with rounded tannins that add immeasurably to its overall elegance and sophistication. Held up very well throughout those five days.
2017 Claire Naudin Clematis Vitalba. Aired in bottle ahead of dinner at Shang Palace, 09 Dec 2024. Dull golden. Elusive bouquet of high-toned citrus and distant floral hues with a restrained lift. The medium-full palate is imbued with a distinct reductive salinity, highly agile with a delicate balance of lychees and Chinese medicinal notes that morphed together with seamless detail and layering, very correctly nuanced with overtones of glazed honeysuckle. Grows on you.
Champagne Roger Coulon Rosé de Saignée Brut NV, from the list of restaurant Riviera, 10 Dec 2024. Dark orangey hues. Predominance of grapefruit with dry refreshing intensity and subtle minerality, the fruit a little more forward and perfumed over time.
2019 Evening Land Seven Springs Pinot Noir. Aired in bottle ahead of dinner at Bedrock Bar & Grill, 16 Dec 2024. Purplish crimson. Brief swathes of delicious dark cherries and currants from the ample presence of darkish fruit structured with pliant supple tannins, shutting down quite quickly on the nose even as it gained further fruity intensity with a bit of savouriness along with a distinct salinity.
2019 Domaine de Montille Saint-Aubin 1er En Remilly. Aired in bottle ahead of dinner at Crab At Bay, 18 Dec 2024. Pale greenish, exuding distant fig and green fruits. Medium-full. Rather steely with a distinct reductive minerality enhanced by its dryish intensity, taking on a chalky shine after a couple of hours without relaxing its tight grip.
2014 Philippe Chéron (Domaine du Couvent) Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Clos des Varoilles monopole. Aired in bottle for three hours ahead of dinner at Otto Ristorante, 23 Dec 2024. Fairly deep in purple, proffering a delicious restraint of cherries and red fruits on the nose with a hint of balsamic elements. Medium-full, very evenly proportioned with sleek acidity although there is a certain attenuation of depth, leading to a mid-palate shine. Softened after another ninety minutes, becoming a little more velvety with delicate detailed tannins. Still youthful but beginning to turn the corner compared with a previous bottle last year. Bought over and produced by Prieuré Roch from 2020 onwards, costing five times more.
2021 M Chapoutier Crozes-Hermitage Blanc. Aired for two hours ahead of dinner at Liang Kee, 28 Dec 2024. Pale, opening with chiseled white tones matched by a clean minty lift on the zesty medium palate, the fruit set slightly backward in favour of inner clarity, finishing with a dash of salinity.
2017 Domaine Drouhin-Laroze Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru. Aired for three hours ahead of dinner at Imperial Treasure Great World, 30 Dec 2024. Purplish tint of pinot with a predominance of red plums and dark cherries on the nose. Medium-full, showing some restraint at first with overtones of haw though the fruit, acidity and smooth tannins are already well-integrated, imbued with a saline tension that imparted elegant verve. Fleshed out with richer tone over time, proffering a bit of sandy detail amid early complexity.
A simple theme of Grand Cru, all blinded, for my special day on 10 December 2024 at Riviera, One Fullerton, in its spacious private room. Many thanks to all for the wines and to restaurant owner Olivier Bendel for making it possible.
2010 Domaine Bouchard Père et Fils Meursault 1er Les Gouttes d’Or, courtesy of Kieron. Luminous., proffering distant pineapples from the lovely distilled white fruit underscored by subdued salinity, boasting cool clarity and refinement though without much inner detail. Modest finish.
2015 Domaine Henri Boillot Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru. Pale golden. Too cold initially, proffering a little musty pungency before easing up with delicate floral hues and cool clear citrus that exert an excellent even presence. Very well balanced. Quite lively with controlled intensity, the fruit just a little recessed in favour of a chalky clarity, maintaining an understated demeanour throughout its fine length.
2014 Domaine Guy Amiot et Fils Le Montrachet Grand Cru, courtesy of LF. Lovely golden luminosity. Quite generously proportioned, already developing a certain maturity in its glowing chalkiness imbued with some layered complexity. Beautifully rounded with overtones of cool icing, exuding a gentle regal elegance with a tinge of salinity.
2006 Domaine Dujac Clos de la Roche Grand Cru, courtesy of Kieron. Evolved crimson, proffering an attractive bouquet of orangey fruit with red plums from the deep expanse of fruit already imbued with very lovely tertiary characters. Superbly balanced and integral, structured with slick acidity and exciting tannins that impart tingling intensity though it is still somewhat understated on the whole, finishing with lasting persistence amid a tinge of medicinal powder.
2009 Domaine Méo-Camuzet Clos De Vougeot Près Le Cellier Grand Cru, courtesy of Vic. Classic pinot tint. Only medium weight, though the full ripe darkish fruit here exerts a certain warm exuberance with a focused intensity, underpinned by a ferric earthiness (consistent with its location [photo above] right next to the Château de Vougeot) that lent a touch of austerity and terse tension within its layers. Impeccably balanced.
2005 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands Échézeaux Grand Cru, courtesy of Sir Bob. Some age is evident from its classic pinot tint, proffering dark plums, mulberries and cedar with minty overtones. The medium-full palate shows a slightly assertive intensity of earthy minerals, casting a certain austerity to its darkish masculine proportions enhanced by an undertow of stems towards its modest finish.
1993 Domaine Armand Rousseau Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru, courtesy of LF. Displaying an evolved crimson, this wine boasts subtle layers of mature red fruits imbued with a warm ripeness that exude fleshy freshness and focus, seamlessly integral with soft tannins and understated ferrous minerals.
An evening with Thibault Liger-Belair & Jean-Michel Chartron
If you have walked around the slopes of Puligny-Montrachet, you would have noticed certain walled-off parcels (Clos de la Pucelle, Clos du Cailleret, Clos des Chevaliers) with arched entrances that spell Jean Chartron. Established in 1859, the domaine used to own the above parcels wholly before having to dispose parts of Cailleret and Chevalier in order to fund inheritance taxes, leaving only the walled sections of Pucelle and Chevaliers still intact as monopoles. It is surprising that a lot of so-called connoisseurs are unfamiliar with this domaine, for I have noted that Jean Chartron is actually well-represented in restaurant lists throughout Burgundy. The wines are superbly crafted with great purity and expression without the lofty price tags that are seemingly fashionable nowadays.
On the other hand, Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair was formed only as recently as 2001 when Thibault took over from his father Vincent at the age of 26, though the vines have been family-owned since the 18th century when its winemaking was a conjoint effort between Claude Marey and Comte Liger-Belair. Although the domaine is based at Nuits-Saint-Georges, its substantial holdings in Vosne-Romanée are the envy of many. Entirely organic without being tied down by biodynamic dogma, Thibault is very precise in his judicious usage of oak, sulphur (very low levels) and stems, adjusting according to the unique quality of each vintage, resulting in wines that are consistently fresh, vibrant and full, still retaining its roots in terroir and tradition without veering into avant-garde.
For this private event at the three Michelin-starred Les Amis, Singapore, on 25 November 2024, both vignerons have generously supplied their wines in magnums (with the exception of the TLB Richebourg), which added further dimension. Particularly as well, Thibault had brought his Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Petits Monts to share around, a wine that he makes only for private consumption (not for sale at all) in view of its very tiny production. That is truly a real privilege. A huge merci beaucoup, gentlemen, for going the distance in everything that you do.
2014 Domaine Jean Chartron Puligny-Montrachet 1er Clos du Cailleret. Poured from magnum. Displaying a golden luminosity, this wine opens with an exuberant chalky depth within a waxy sheen, matched by a highly elegant medium palate of subtle tropical fruits that tease with fleeting intensity, exuding regal refinement and clean precision underscored by sublime acidity, finishing with lengthy persistence. Still barely evolved. Excellent.
2014 Domaine Jean Chartron Puligny-Montrachet 1er Clos de la Pucelle monopole. Poured from magnum. Equally luminous. The bouquet shows a certain restraint of nutmeg and distant floral hues with a sense of oiliness before catching you off-guard with an explosive bloom of glorious white fruits tempered with sublime acidity, sustained by a glowing intensity of chalky white tones that add cohesive tension to the delicate balance. Very impeccably proportioned with a lasting finish. This is easily Grand Cru by any standard.
2014 Domaine Jean Chartron Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru Clos des Chevaliers monopole. Poured from magnum. Surprisingly restrained in site of its lovely luminosity, proffering just a hint of salinity before developing an eventual sharp lift of glorious white fruits with a focused intensity and chalky clarity tinged with capsicum, beautifully rounded with a restrained velvety tension. Very impeccably proportioned, stretching out with a placid regal elegance as it fleshed out with lively acidity. Outstanding.
2006 Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Petits Monts. Poured from magnum. Deep purplish core with some crimson, effusive in ripe raspberries and mulberries with a dash of mint. Early secondary characters are evident of the full velvety palate, laced with lively acidity amid traces of pochai pills that lend a hint of rusticity, turning brighter over time with restrained vigour. From a miniscule 0.1 ha, this wine is declared only in selected vintages (nine so far); even then, only one barrel is produced. Better still, the Les Petits Monts of Thibault Liger-Bélair is NOT FOR SALE, only for the family’s own consumption.
2009 Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Petits Monts. Poured from magnum. Deep purple with a crimson rim. The bouquet here is fresher, a little more exuberant in ripe raspberries and dark currants with a spicy dash. The medium-full palate is sharper as well, superbly delineated with focused precision and definition. Absolutely delicious. Irresistible!
2005 Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair Richebourg Grand Cru. Deep crimson. Open with a lovely expanse of dark fruits and currants, delivering tremendous depth and abundance on the big vibrant palate, structured with rounded dryish tannins that oozed a bit of sweetness. Highly integral but still tight and unyielding. Vinified using whole bunches since that year.
2010 Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair Richebourg Grand Cru. Evolved pinot tint. Compared with the 2005, the 2010 is surprisingly lean and understated, much lighter and fleet-footed in its sleek acidity and fine delineation though there is no lack of focus and balance. Highly integral but a little short.
Champagne Henriot Brut Souverain, courtesy of Vincent and Jimmy Leung at Imperial Treasure Great World, 04 Nov 2024. Pale. Lifted nose of clear citrus in soft focus, matched by excellent concentration of fruit and distant minerally elements that exert reductive tightness with fine clarity, though a little short.
2015 Hospices de Beaune Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru Cuvée Madeline Collignon, courtesy of Dennis at Imperial Treasure Great World, 04 Nov 2024. Good colour, proffering a burnished tone from the excellent concentration of red fruits and cherries undergoing early secondary development, structured with sweet rounded tannins.
2016 Domaine Faiveley Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Les Saint-Georges, courtesy of Sir Bob at Imperial Treasure Great World, 04 Nov 2024. Bright crimson. Already into its secondary development characters with a sweet undertow beneath its rich velvety textures, yielding lovely definition within its chiseled structure.
Champagne La Closerie Les Béguines Extra Brut NV, courtesy of Wong Gang at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Light golden. Fairly effusive in yeast, preserved plums and medicinal overtones. Medium-full. Fleshed out with further notes of olives haw and orange peel with a sweetish undertow.
2017 Hospices de Beaune Meursault-Charmes 1er Cuvée de Bahèzre de Lanlay at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Poured from magnum. Luminous, taking its time to proffer overtones of cool icing amid ripe citrus, fig and honeysuckle with subtle complexity. The medium-full palate is beautifully nuanced with a rounded velvetiness, seamlessly integrated with excellent detail, eventually settling down with glacial elegance and regal sophistication. Yet to develop secondary characters, but this is so irresistible.
2008 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Les Vergers, courtesy of Gary at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Pale golden, exuding gentle white floral hues amidst capsicum and spicy white pepper. Medium-weight, imbued an oily density and slick acidity that impart fair intensity. Impeccably balanced and proportioned, settling down with the classic glowing white tones of Chassagne that stretched with lengthy persistence. Still astonishingly youthful.
2018 Esprit Leflaive Puilly-Fuissé, courtesy of Isabel at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. The inaugural vintage of this wine displays a relative pallor and understated concentration that bely the controlled intensity of fruit, producing lifted white tones with fine detail against a deeper vein of subdued minerals. Became wonderfully slick as it morphed together with lovely length and restrained elegance.
2013 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Clos des Bouchères monopole, courtesy of Andrew at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Luminous golden. Highly aromatic in complex citrus, brioche and honeysuckle. Medium-weight. Open with supple intensity from its sleek tangy acidity tinged with saline minerals. Beautifully integrated with great precision, turning even more minerally over time.
2015 Domaine Coffinet-Duvernay Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru, courtesy of Edmund at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Pale golden. Weighty bouquet of cider and freshly roasted cashews. Much more developed on the medium-full palate than expected where there was a distinct autumnal note, turning more racy over time, developing chromatic tones with a bit of pebbly shine from the saline minerals, underscored by sublime acidity. Moderate finish.
2014 Domaine François Lamarche Grands-Échezeaux Grand Cru, courtesy of Morgan at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Deep crimson. Effusive in bright rosy hues from the generous body of red fruits undergoing early secondary development, framed by dryish tannins that offer good definition, displaying refined balance. Modest finish.
2006 Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Suchots, courtesy of Gary at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Good colour. Generously endowed in red fruits and cherries, imparting glorious lift with a bright supple intensity, layered with a deeper darker vein of currants. Highly integral. Excellent terroir character.
1998 Château Musar, courtesy of Isabel at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Clearly mature in appearance, exuding a powerful plummy glow from the abundant medium-full palate. Remarkably fresh and rounded with lively acidity, its tannins having melted to yield savoury sweetish tones. Reminds me of Tertre Roteboeuf.
2010 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Mazoyères Grand Cru, courtesy of Edmund at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Some age is evident from its bright crimson, proffering red fruits, raspberries and haw with a perfumed lift. Softly contoured with velvety textures, imbued with ferrous elements.
2019 Occidental Running Fence Vineyard Cuvée Catherine, courtesy of Hiok at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Deep crimson. Forward nose of delicious red fruits. Equally full on the palate, cushioned by a certain velvetiness, boasting great purity of fruit within a frame of soft sweetish tannins. Highly integral but short.
2004 Château Cheval Blanc, courtesy of Iqbal at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Deep crimson. This wine proffers a fairly deep bouquet of red capsicum with a hint of nail varnish. Already well into its secondary development, its ample fruit open with inviting supple intensity, the cabernet franc coming into play with overtones of haw, imparting subtle tension of the fullish palate. Yet to reach peak maturity but this is shaping up very well.
2010 Cloudburst Chardonnay, courtesy of Wong Gang at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Light golden. This Margaret River white opens with great sophistication on the nose, so very correctly nuanced with a lovely lift of capsicum and nutmeg. Equally sublime on the fullish palate, imbued with sleek acidity and a certain oiliness that impart a hint of earthy diesel, impeccably integrated with elegant complexity as it finished with lengthy persistence. Highly burgundian. Outstanding.
2013 Domaine Jean-Marc Millot Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru Grand Marpetui, courtesy of Morgan at Otto Ristorante, 07 Nov 2024. Classic pinot tint. Delicious. Softly focused and integral, boasting elegant intensity of red fruits laced with ferrous elements, yielding fine definition and linearity.
2017 Domaine Bruno Clair Chambolle-Musigny Les Véroilles, aired in bottle for couple of hours ahead of dinner at Asia Grand, 19 Nov 2024. Aromatic profusion of red fruits and cherries, lighting up the medium-full palate with classic Chambolle character. Quite fleshy and rounded, displaying excellent ripeness and freshness with understated intensity. Lovely.
2019 Champagne C.H. Piconnet Brut Nature at Les Amis, 25 Nov 2024. Pale golden, exuding brilliant crisp citrus and traces of flint that burst through a mild yeasty sheen, boasting great balance and clarity with further notes of summer hay and floral tones, taking on an even greater flinty intensity. Drinking very well.
2015 Domaine Henri Boillot Meursault 1er Les Genevrières at Otto Ristorante, 26 Nov 2024. Displaying a golden luminosity, this wine was more developed than expected at nine years, opening with an oxidative restraint of honeyed toast, straw and glazed icing. Medium-full and fairly lithe, layered with oily density and slick acidity that gave way to a concentrated chalky shine.
2020 Domaine Yvon Clerget Volnay 1er Clos du Verseuil monopole, courtesy of Vic at Otto Ristorante, 26 Nov 2024. Bright purple. Utterly seductive in its lush expanse of ripe raspberries, very gently oaked with a hint of sweet vanillin, matched by sexy tannins that flatter with seamless supple intensity almost to the point of voluptuousness. Distinctly feminine, and irresistibly delicious.
2018 Domaine Bernard Moreau et Fils Chassagne Montrachet 1er Clos Saint-Jean Blanc, courtesy of Sanjay at Otto Ristorante, 26 Nov 2024. Pale. Rather cool and placid at first, displaying light grassy elements with understated intensity, the fruit set a little backward, proffering a little more inner detail over time though its overall restraint remained.
2016 Domaine Faiveley Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru, courtesy of Vic at Otto Ristorante, 26 Nov 2024. Classic pinot tint. Rather unusual note of rhizomes and capsicum on the nose. Medium-full. Open and fleshy with a predominance of red fruits and haw, structured with supple tannins that exert delicious juicy succulence with lovely purity.
2002 Domaine Armand Rousseau Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru, courtesy of MH at Otto Ristorante, 26 Nov 2024. Classic pinot tint, proffering delicious red fruits caught at peak maturity where the supple freshness is infused with understated feminine intensity, imparting lovely purity with an undertow of limestone and other subtle minerally elements. Highly elegant, not flashy at all.
2012 Guado Al Tasso, courtesy of CHS at Otto Ristorante, 26 Nov 2024. Very deep purple. Forward bouquet of delicious dark currants and black berries still tinged with vanillin, matched by a full presence of glorious fruit infused with black tea leaves and dry medicinal notes, structured with pliant supple tannins.
2016 Domaine Thibert et Fils Puilly-Vinzelles Les Longeays. Aired in bottle for three hours ahead of dinner at Liang Kee, 30 Nov 2024. Pale. Excellent presence of white fruits and clear citrus supported by a tinge of austere minerally elements. Slightly racy in its focused tangy intensity and fresh but understated acidity, developing a lovely floral bloom over time with a hint of pineapples. Great value.
Rescuing your bottle from cork taint
You bring a prized bottle to the restaurant only to discover substantial cork taint after popping it. Is there any way out of such despair and embarrassment? Fear not, advised the old lady serving us tea at Imperial Treasure Great World, Singapore, when a bottle of 2000 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny 1er Les Amoureuses was found to be affected. She poured the entire bottle into a wide-based decanter, then immersed a square-foot of clear plastic cling wrap into the wine and swirled gently for several minutes, after which she removed the cling wrap using a pair of chopsticks. And, voila, the Les Amoureuses was back to its effusive perfumed self without any tell-tale sign of its previous maladie. It seems the molecules of 2,4,6-trichloroanisole (TCA) would cling conveniently onto the plastic wrap, ridding the wine of itself. First reported in 2007, it is surprising that few wine afficionados are aware of this little trick. But don’t overdo it, warned the highly knowledgeable old lady: no more than ten minutes.
For a change, we drank whites from the Côte-de-Nuits and reds from the Côte-de-Beaune at Imperial Treasure Great World on 04 November 2024, paired with its new menu of grilled meat and seafood. It proved to be a most insightful theme, for there is so much to enjoy outside of the usual favourite communes. Volnay and Pommard are likely to see explosive growth as vinophiles, finding themselves priced out of the Côte-de-Nuits, rediscover absolute gems just south of Beaune. Many thanks, gentlemen!
1995 Domaine Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru, courtesy of Sir Bob. Orangey in colour, proffering distinct autumnal tones of grapefruit and orange peel. Still quite fleshy and lively, very smoothly integrated with fine linearity though it’s somewhat one-dimensional, lacking true terroir identity.
1996 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Bourgogne Blanc, courtesy of KG. Luminous, exuding restrained floral hues. The medium palate is wonderfully delicate and fleet-footed, imbued with distilled tones of complex citrus and haw, blossoming with lovely weight and presence before settling down with disarming charm, still underscored by sublime acidity, yielding superb definition and layering. Outstanding! From a 0.66 ha of chardonnay planted within Musigny Grand Cru. Not declared (bottled simply as Bourgogne Blanc) from 1994 to 2014 when old vines were uprooted and new ones planted.
2018 Domaine Joseph Drouhin Beaune Clos des Mouches 1er Blanc, courtesy of Victor. Pale. Resolutely shut on the nose though the medium-weight palate is softly contoured with a rounded velvety mouthfeel, imparting a slight sweetness amidst its sleek acidity and understated intensity, finishing with a minerally dash.
2015 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er La Perrière. Pale, proffering distant white tones leading to an attractive medium-full supple presence, exuding floral hues and cool glacial tones with delicate elegance. Fleshed out well, tapering to an understated finish. Difficult to place, for this is, of course, not chardonnay.
2017 Domaine de la Vougeraie Vougeot 1er Le Clos Blanc de Vougeot, courtesy of LF. Light golden hue, exuding a distant chalky lift with a dash of crème. Medium-full. Wonderfully taut with crisp acidity and precision, yielding lovely definition with a hint of pineapples. Has real class and pedigree.
1976 Domaine Robert Ampeau Père et Fils Volnay Santenots 1er, courtesy of Vic. Distinctly mature, opening with a suggestion of taint that, thankfully, dissipated to reveal a profusion of rose petals amid sweet autumnal tones. Still astonishingly fresh, exerting lovely supple intensity. Impeccably balanced and integral, elegantly poised.
1993 Domaine Robert Ampeau Père et Fils Volnay Santenots 1er, courtesy of LF. Mature crimson, boasting ample presence of red fruits and rose petals on the nose and fullish palate that exert supple intensity with a bit of reductive earthiness that do not distract from the velvety freshness and gorgeous acidity. Unbelievably good.
2005 Domaine Louis Jadot Beaune 1er Clos des Ursules, courtesy of Kieron. Deeper tint of pinot. Cherries, earth and dark plums dominate with medium-full presence, softly contoured and integral. Still wonderfully fresh and youthful, dressed in silky smooth tannins. Delicious though a little short.
2011 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Les Mitans, courtesy of Kieron. Bright crimson, imbued with abundant red fruits entering early phase of maturity. Wonderfully fresh and supple, laced with fine acidity that evoke understated masculinity.
2005 Domaine Bouchard Père et Fils Beaune Grèves 1er Vigne de L’Enfant Jésus, courtesy of KG. Mature crimson. Effusive in rosy hues, plums and haw from the concentrated ripe fruit entirely shorn of excesses, producing focused intensity with refined precision.
2017 Domaine Bernard Moreau et Fils Chassagne-Montrachet 1er La Cardeuse. Crimson. Superb complex of beguiling red fruits that teased with supple understated intensity, superbly integrated with sublime acidity. Thoroughly delicious.
October 2024: 2012 Moulin Saint-Georges, 2010 Chasse-Spleen, 2019 Colgin IX Estate, 2004 La Conseillante
2010 Château Chasse-Spleen. Popped and poured over dinner at Imperial Treasure Great World, 03 Oct 2024. Deep purple. Some early secondary development on the nose where plummy characters and mahogany dominate. Medium weight, imbued with a slick oily density of predominant red fruits that exude cool elegance. Very beautifully proportioned and balanced, highly supple with understated intensity throughout its delicious length, culminating in a lifted glow. Excellent. Probably the best value claret ever.
2012 Château Moulin Saint-Georges. Double-decanted for an hour ahead of dinner at Bedrock Bar & Grill, 14 Oct 2024. Deep garnet. Moderate bouquet of red plums, violets, blueberries and mahogany. Beautifully supple with rounded warmth, its detailed earthy tannins imparting a distinct gravelly mouthfeel at first, giving way to some degree of plush velvetiness after some time, displaying fine linearity with moderate depth. Good balance and proportion, wonderfully lithe and agile as it finished with a dash of sweetness. Quite indeed the poor man’s Ausone.
2016 Domaine Thibert Père et Fils Pouilly-Fuissé Les Ménétrières. Popped and poured over dinner at home, 20 Oct 2024. Pale yellowish. Delicate glow of clear citrus, distant green fruits and floral hues. Somewhat minerally at first with some mid-palate glare, giving way to a moderate teasing intensity of tropical fruits as it warmed to the correct temperature though it never quite gelled with the minerally spine, accentuated further by its attenuated depth.
Champagne Delamotte Brut NV, tasted at Vintage warehouse, 24 Oct 2024. Pale greenish. Effusive in fig and green fruits. Good presence, displaying fine clarity of clear citrus and lemon bitters with overtones of icing. Not too dry.
2021 Domaine Grand Veneur Alain Jaume Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Fontaine, tasted at Vintage warehouse, 24 Oct 2024. Pale greenish. Good lift of floral hues and summer hay. Medium-bodied. Well-structured with fine clarity and understated intensity.
2019 Château de Chamirey Mercurey 1er En Sazenay, tasted at Vintage warehouse, 24 Oct 2024. Classic pinot tint. Warm ripeness of abundant raspberries and cherries, boasting supple refined intensity and good balance.
2017 Valentin Zusslin Les Kammerlas, tasted at Vintage warehouse, 24 Oct 2024. Powerful nose of kerosene leading to a sleek medium-full palate of nutmeg, spices and green capsicum, displaying fine inner detail and balance.
2020 Racines Sta Rita Hills Pinot Noir, tasted at Vintage warehouse, 24 Oct 2024. Californian pinot noir that is a collaboration between Étienne de Montille and Brian Sieve of Burgundy and Rodolphe Péters of Champagne. Good colour, exuding a very lovely rosy fragrance to match the cool fleshy ripeness, elegantly dressed in refined tannins. Very correctly nuanced with great understatement.
2019 Colgin Cellars IX Estate Syrah, tasted at Vintage warehouse, 24 Oct 2024. Deep garnet. Restrained bouquet of red fruits leading to a fleshy presence of dark plums and black truffles on the fullish palate, boasting fine tension and sleek acidity. A case of controlled hedonism.
2004 Château La Conseillante. Poured from magnum at Yang Ming Seafood (Ubi), 24 Oct 2024. Deep garnet, proffering plums, mahogany and raspberries with an initial restraint. Medium-full. Became rounder and more velvety over time, fleshing out with layers of delicious dark fruits and currants before its tannins turned a little earthy and austere. Needs plenty of time.
2019 Senses Charles Heitz Vineyard Chardonnay, courtesy of Carey at Yang Ming Seafood (Ubi), 24 Oct 2024. Pale. Rather delicate. Medium weight, boasting a refined inner detail of tropical fruit amid overtones of icing, tapering with fine linearity to a modest finish.
2018 Domaine Rapet Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Sous Frétille. Aired in bottle for almost three hours prior to dinner at Crab At Bay, 28 Oct 2024. This wine opens with an oily density of chiseled chromatic white tones imbued with an incisive high-toned acidity amid overtones of longans. Doesn’t quite plumb the depths, developing a prominence of stony minerals over time with emerging lemon bitters that impart some degree of austerity at its modest finish.
2016 Château de Chamirey Mercurey 1er La Mission. Aired in bottle ahead of dinner at GEMMA, 30 Oct 2024. Displaying luminous hues, this monopole opens with aromatic white tones that suggest some early chalky maturity, displaying lively acidity with good inner stuffing and detail of icing and caramel. It blossomed over time with regal intensity, underscored by a distant tow of nutmeg and crystalline minerals. Excellent but still half a step behind the illustrious 2014 and 2017.
An evening of Chambolle on 08 October 2024 at Imperial Treasure Great World while the whites all turned out to be Puligny. All tasted blind.
2006 Champagne Dom Pérignon P2, courtesy of CJ. Pale greenish. Distant green fruits and fig on the nose, matching beautifully the intense fresh citrus layered with mint and creamy overtones, structured with supple crystalline clarity and fine precision. Developed an even drier intensity over time, tinged with a splash of austere minerals.
2017 Champagne Leclerc Briant Abyss, courtesy of LF. This is a most unusual champagne, deliberately aged in seawater at a depth of 60 metres where the water pressure is believed to shape the bubbles more evenly. Indeed, there were barnacles stuck to the bottle. If anything at all, this wine does really open with an attractive gentle yeastiness, rounded with a suggestion of lovely depth although it doesn’t quite deliver on that promise, displaying instead a focused intensity of supple white tones structured with superb precision, finishing with a hint of malt at finish.
2020 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet. Pale luminosity, exuding glacial tones and cool icing that went well with its smooth sleek oily density. Fleshed out with lovely weight and a layered chalkiness with overtones of nutmeg, stretching out with glowing intensity.
2004 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Les Pucelles, courtesy of Sir Bob. Luminous gold, opening with a distinct note of mature chalkiness on the nose. The medium palate is, surprisingly, lithe with light textures where the fruit is clearly receding, giving way to a dominant acidity that exert fleeting presence.
2010 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru, courtesy of Kieron. Luminous gold, opening with certain restraint, proffering a hint of diesel. Much more inviting on the medium-full palate, open with sleek integration, highly supple and cohesive, imparting fine precision and tensile presence with an undertow of nutmeg and rye. Finished well. Still youthful, but its breed and sophistication are palpable.
2009 Domaine Jean Grivot Chambolle-Musigny La Combe d’Orveax, courtesy of LF. Displaying a brownish opaque crimson, this village (not to be confused with its premier cru counterpart some distance away) proffers a lovely lift of red fruits tinged with malt and a hint of stems. Beautifully focused with a distilled intensity and fine linearity throughout its supple length. Delicious. Goes to show what a really good producer can do.
2011 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Chambolle-Musigny 1er La Combe d’Orveau. Opaque crimson. Rather restrained on the nose though the fullish palate is amply lit with a subtle depth of bright red fruits on a bed of svelte sweet tannins, beautifully integrated and balanced, imbued with refined verve and understated intensity. Modest finish. Part of this premier cru has been absorbed by Les Petits Musigny Grand Cru.
2000 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny 1er Les Amoureuses, courtesy of CJ. Displaying a bright crimson, this wine was distinctly tainted. After immersing a piece of cellophane in the glass for about ten minutes, the cork taint was gone, revealing a feminine rosy fragrance with overtones of tangerines and haw. Still reasonably fresh and fleshy, imbued with layers of maturing fruit though it lacks the additional dimension of a really memorable Amoureuses. Perhaps another bottle in better condition may well be different.
2013 Olivier Bernstein Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru, courtesy of Sir Bob. Good colour. Cherries, strawberries and red fruits dominate on the nose, exuding elegant fragrance. The medium palate is seamlessly integrated, brightly lit with youthful character amid overtones of haw, imbued with understated tension.
2011 Domaine Robert Groffier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Les Amoureuses, courtesy of KG. Opaque crimson, evoking characters of early maturity that belie the generous concentration of red fruits that impart focused intensity on the evenly proportioned palate, just into its secondary development where its distilled essence is beginning to emerge with greater inner definition. Superb!
2001 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Grand Cru, courtesy of Kieron. Opaque crimson. Opening with lifted rosy hues that leapt out of the glass, this wine is wonderfully lush and opulent in its layered depth and supple intensity, the richness adding further dimension to its inherent authority, stamping the palate with aristocratic pedigree. Outstanding.
Ric's Wine Journal 