Frédéric, Laurent, Véronique and Philippe Drouhin of Maison Joseph Drouhin.
Cellar Notes: 2005 Burgundy, Part 3
Joseph Drouhin, Marquis d'Angerville, Lafarge, Ramonet, Raveneau
Bruce Sanderson
Posted: Tuesday, March 06, 2007
The quality of the 2005 vintage for red Burgundy is stupendous. It is simply the best young vintage I have tasted in my 17 years working in the wine business. In late January and early February, I visited more than 30 top domaines and négociants, tasting more than 500 wines. (While I was there, I chronicled my tastings in numerous blogs; I also wrote a preliminary report based on my visit last June.) I tasted the wines non-blind, in either the cellars or offices of the domaines and négociants. Although some wines were bottled, the majority were barrel samples and not finished wines.
Following are my cellar notes from a selection of domaines and négociants. These short profiles serve as an update on the latest happenings at each property along with a general assessment of their respective 2005 wines. In the following cellar notes, I have used a score range to indicate potential quality. Part 3 (of three) features Maison Joseph Drouhin, Domaine Marquis D'Angerville, Domaine Lafarge, Domaine Ramonet and Domaine Raveneau. Part 1 features Domaine Pierre Damoy, Domaine Dugat-Py, Domaine Armand Rousseau, Domaine Dujac, Domaine des Lambrays and Part 2 features Mommesin Clos de Tart, Domaine G. Roumier, Domaine Leroy and Domaine de la Romanée-Conti; for a complete vintage analysis, see the 2005 Burgundy Barrel Tasting.
Maison Joseph Drouhin
The Drouhin team made a brilliant range of wines in 2005. In the elegant Drouhin style, the wines possess purity across the board, with all the character of the vintage—ripe fruit, bright acidity, suave, mouthcoating tannins and balance.
The 2005s were bottled primarily in December, with the grands crus bottled mid-January. Only the Corton-Bressandes and Montrachet were still in barrel.
The flagship Beaune Clos des Mouches features very ripe cherry and raspberry flavors, with a hint of flowers, combining intensity and harmony. It ends with a long aftertaste of black currant (92-94). Its counterpart, Beaune Grèves, shows more structure, but also elegance, evoking cherry and licorice notes (89-91). A barrel sample of Corton-Bressandes shows deep aromas of red and black fruits, coffee and spice, with concentration and harmony (92-94).
Drouhin's Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru has richness, a silky texture and firm structure supporting cherry and licorice flavors (89-91). The Chambolle-Musigny Les Baudes is dense yet supple, with crunchy berry notes backed by mouthcoating tannins. The finish shows its potential (92-94).
The Grands Echézeaux has depth and structure setting the stage for the black cherry, plum and licorice flavors (92-94). The Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses shows all the finesse and silkiness of the cru, along with the range of floral, cherry, raspberry and mineral notes (95-100).
Drouhin's Musigny, made with 25 percent whole clusters, echoes the finesse of the Amoureuses, with berry, spice and mineral aromas and flavors wrapped in a silky texture (95-100). Finally, the Griotte-Chambertin possesses a core of sweet fruit, mainly wild cherry, with an elegant structure and licorice, spice and mineral emerging on the finish (95-100). It was fermented with 15 percent to 25 percent whole clusters.
"Overextracting was easy to do in 2005 because there were so much tannins," said Frédéric Drouhin, president and CEO of the firm. However, it appears that he and his team, including new enologist and technical director Jérôme Faure-Brac, interpreted the vintage well.
Among the whites, the vibrant, minerally Meursault-Perrières, reserved and monolithic Corton-Charlemagne and majestic, complex Montrachet Marquis de Laguiche, with citronella, honey and mineral flavors, stood out.
Domaine Marquis d'Angerville
Guillaume d'Angerville was very pleased with the quality of the 2005s at the domaine. "2005 is an exceptional vintage by every standard," he said. "Let's not forget the work we did in the vineyards, but once the grapes came in to the winery, the wines made themselves."
 |
|
| Renaud de Villette (left) and Guillaume d'Angerville |
The Volnay Fremiet boasts black currant and red and black cherry, with more density and backbone than the Premier Cru (89-91). D'Angerville noted that it's normally very open and fruity in style, but has more structure and concentration in 2005. Replanted in 1998 and 2001, the Volnay Caillerets is aromatically discreet, but explosive on the palate, offering cherry, floral and mineral flavors and a long finish (92-94).
From barrel, the Taillepieds is racy and intense, exhibiting cherry and mineral elements, but clearly less evolved (92-94). The Champans, always a more robust wine in the range, is less obvious, yet mouthfilling and opulent. Finally, the Clos des Ducs shows a spicy, peppery side, with a black currant note on a rich texture and suave tannins (92-94). It will be fascinating to observe these three as they develop in the bottle.
Domaine Lafarge
 |
|
| Frédéric (left) and Michel Lafarge |
"It's a great, great year, 2005," said the elder Lafarge. "It's like '96 or '02, but with more richness. It has beautiful fruit and harmony."
The Volnay, from 40-year-old vines, exudes floral, berry and cherry notes, fine complexity and refinement (89-91). The Vendanges Selectionées comes from a parcel of older vines in the center of the appellation. It's richer and more concentrated, but also firm and complex, with a silky texture (92-94).
The Beaune Grèves, from 80-year-old vines, is round and rich, with great finesse and length (92-94). The Volnay Mitans reveals purity and floral, cherry and mineral flavors (92-94). The Volnay Clos du Château des Ducs renders a silky impression, more regal than the Mitans and more mineral than floral in taste (92-94).
Full of mineral character and finesse, the Volnay Les Caillerets also features berry and floral notes that linger beautifully (92-94). The Volnay Clos des Chênes is very pure, with fine depth in aromas and flavors. It's a notch above the previous two (92-94). From neighboring Pommard, the Les Pézerolles is more solid and dense, with cherry, earth and iron notes (92-94).
Domaine Ramonet
Noel Ramonet prefers his 2005 whites to the those of the 2004 vintage. "The difference between '04 and '05 is that '05 is finer. I think '04 is a bit more massive," he said. However, the mid-July hail in Chassagne-Montrachet reduced the yield here by about 30 percent. The average yield for the domaine was 2 tons per acre.
Unfortunately, the grands crus had just been racked and assembled for bottling this month, so they were not tasted. Some of the 2005s were bottled after the 2006 harvest last year; the others were bottled at the end of January.
The Chassagne-Montrachet is a ripe white, yet with refined aromas, offering honey, citrus and floral scents. The ripeness shows on the palate, but there's structure and length (89-91). I like the St.-Aubin Les Charmois, a generous, lemon-flavored version (89-91). The Puligny-Montrachet is intense and more tightly wound, with hazelnut and lemon notes (89-91).
From Chassagne, Ramonet's Morgeot is a broad-shouldered style, rich and powerful, showing honey and anise flavors (92-94). The Boudriotte is also big, but more structured than the Morgeot, with more tension (92-94). The Vergers is elegant, with hazelnut, citrus and mineral elements that build nicely to a long finish (89-91).
The Les Caillerets is riper, with exotic flowers, spice and mineral notes (92-94), while Les Grandes Ruchottes displays a lemony freshness, vibrant structure and honey and piecrust flavors (92-94). The Puligny-Montrachet Champs-Canet is precise and focused, a more linear wine than its neighbors in Chassagne, with fine balance and harmony (92-94).
Ramonet had bottled two reds, which were showing well. The Chassagne-Montrachet revealed raspberry and licorice flavors on a round profile (85-88). The Morgeot is full of pure cherry flavors, slightly candied yet rich and round (89-91).
Domaine Raveneau
Brothers Bernard and Jean-Marie Raveneau produce a range of stellar Chablis from their 20-acre domaine. The wines are highly sought by collectors and the best chance of getting your hands on a bottle is in one of the local restaurants.
"2005 is a great vintage in Chablis, one of the best in the last several years," said Bernard. "There's balance and harmony between the fruit, acid and mineral."
Botrytis developed at the end of August and one of the keys to success for Raveneau in 2005 was harvesting early, before too much botrytis spread.
Fans of Chablis no doubt will be debating the attributes of 2005 with its predecessor, 2004, for years to come. Bernard prefers his 2005s. "I prefer 2005 to 2004. '04 is very classic and it will come around in time, but it didn't have the best weather," he said.
The following wines were tasted from barrel, both pièce (228 liters) and the traditional Chablisienne feuillette (132 liters). They will be bottled next month.
The Forêt is the fruitiest of the range, clean and round, with good concentration (89-91). The Monts Mains shows more richness and energy, with the characteristic mineral note (89-91). The Vaillons is a step up in intensity, with a coating of flesh wrapped around a core of lemon and stone (92-94). Butteaux exhibits a chalky intensity, with green fruits, apple and mineral flavors (92-94).
The Montée de Tonnerre, from 50-year-old vines, is shy on the nose, but explodes on the palate with a chalky minerality backed by ample flesh (92-94). Moving to the grands crus, the Blanchots offers another dimension, tasting of honey, green plum, very supple and harmonious (92-94). Plenty of spice and richness signal the Valmur, whose honey and almond notes dominate the mineral today (92-94). The Les Clos is powerful and rich, with fine structure, but the least expressive of the top wines in the cellar. Its potential shows on the long, mineral-tinged finish (95-100).
Currently on Wine Spectator Online:
- Tasting Highlights: Vacqueyras
Outstanding reds and excellent values from an oft-overlooked appellation of the Southern Rhône - Perrin & Fils Buys Domaine des Tourelles in Gigondas
Beaucastel's owners up their stake in France's Southern Rhône appellation by purchasing a historic estate - Pennsylvania Struggles to Comply With Direct Shipping Laws
Proposed legislation would make direct shipment of wine from out-of-state wineries unfeasible; bill's sponsor plans substantial amendments - Chef Talk: Arnaud Berthelier
This French chef knows a thing or two about German and Alsatian wines, and is not afraid to pair them with his cuisine in Atlanta - Unfiltered: Erin Brokovich's Cause Célèbre Could Be Aided by Wine
Plus, a $900 bunch of grapes, a wine haven for music lovers, a trippy tasting room, European wine diplomacy and Champagne bottles on a diet
Advertisement
