2001 wines at 20 years of age...

[Anthony Taylor]

As part of the Zoom Richard mentions a few of the local BWC contingent decided on a little last minute dot com sharing. We poured each wine into empty 250ml bottles around 16:30 and recapped. All were sipped between 20:15 and 23:15 (!) in ISOs.

We had a 2011 Brunello di Montalcino, Il Poggione which whilst off topic for this thread was intriguing. Was understated initially but the three tasters on the call all found a rich liquorice character to develop with a classic sour cherry note too. Did show its 14.5% but good gear.

A 2001 Le Dome was also a joy to sip through; although not my bottle I have one or two in the cellar from the same consortium. Initially very blue fruited with a almost new worldy mintiness this really opened up over the evening. In time a real graphite character coming through tanins fully resolved. Have not had many clarets with this amount of Cab Franc (c. 75%). Wonder what my 2003 will be like? Maybe share with some of you at a 20 years on dinner in a couple of years.

Finally a 2001 Vieux Télégraphe. Really enjoyed this too. Paler that the other two wines. Light on its feet with glorious savoury red fruits, some white pepper and just a nod to something a little kirsch like. Very VT. Something earthy too. Yum.

Miss tasting in the same room, open sided tent with air heaters and a scotch egg, ...

Neil, I have some of those Le Dome. The 2003 is fully evolved , even from magnum (I have one left but the one I had last year was all coffee dark fruit with zero tannin and very soft). If you have more than one of the 03s try one soon depending upon how mature you like your wines. Agree with the 01, a brilliant drop, the 04 is pretty good too.

 

[Colin Bradley]

Last night we drank Dom des Comtes Lafon Volnay Santenots-du-Milieu 2001. I remember someone on here once asking whether Lafon's reds ever reached a state of readiness to drink. Well, this certainly had but, while good enough, it wasn't the greatest red Burgundy experience. In the style of Lafon's reds, it was quite a dark colour for a Burg - deep garnet with quite a broad rim. The nose was complex and lovely. The palate was a bit unbalanced - a little hard and tannic, with insufficient fruit to make me think that further aging would correct the alignment. Quite a "big" wine for a Burg - again, typical of a Lafon red? Nice long finish, though. Enjoyable and good with our food but it didn't set the pulse racing.

 

[Claude Kolm]

Last night we drank Dom des Comtes Lafon Volnay Santenots-du-Milieu 2001. I remember someone on here once asking whether Lafon's reds ever reached a state of readiness to drink. Well, this certainly had but, while good enough, it wasn't the greatest red Burgundy experience. In the style of Lafon's reds, it was quite a dark colour for a Burg - deep garnet with quite a broad rim. The nose was complex and lovely. The palate was a bit unbalanced - a little hard and tannic, with insufficient fruit to make me think that further aging would correct the alignment. Quite a "big" wine for a Burg - again, typical of a Lafon red? Nice long finish, though. Enjoyable and good with our food but it didn't set the pulse racing.

There was disastrous hail in Volnay (and part of Meursault) in 2001, Colin, so I wouldn't consider this wine typical of the best of Lafon or Santenots. It sounds quite successful for the vintage.

 

[David Bennett]

Last night we drank Dom des Comtes Lafon Volnay Santenots-du-Milieu 2001. I remember someone on here once asking whether Lafon's reds ever reached a state of readiness to drink. Well, this certainly had but, while good enough, it wasn't the greatest red Burgundy experience. In the style of Lafon's reds, it was quite a dark colour for a Burg - deep garnet with quite a broad rim. The nose was complex and lovely. The palate was a bit unbalanced - a little hard and tannic, with insufficient fruit to make me think that further aging would correct the alignment. Quite a "big" wine for a Burg - again, typical of a Lafon red? Nice long finish, though. Enjoyable and good with our food but it didn't set the pulse racing.

Def worth leaving for a while. Sounds delightful and almost ready.

 

[Chiu Lin]

Last night we drank Dom des Comtes Lafon Volnay Santenots-du-Milieu 2001. I remember someone on here once asking whether Lafon's reds ever reached a state of readiness to drink. Well, this certainly had but, while good enough, it wasn't the greatest red Burgundy experience. In the style of Lafon's reds, it was quite a dark colour for a Burg - deep garnet with quite a broad rim. The nose was complex and lovely. The palate was a bit unbalanced - a little hard and tannic, with insufficient fruit to make me think that further aging would correct the alignment. Quite a "big" wine for a Burg - again, typical of a Lafon red? Nice long finish, though. Enjoyable and good with our food but it didn't set the pulse racing.

I have some ‘05 vintage, probably going to be ready by 2045 then....

 

[Phil David]

A recent 2001. Can anyone guess the wine? Sadly my butler's thief was not available at the time, which would probably have averted the peril of this disgraceful cork.

By contrast, here's the near perfect cork from a very tasty 2001 Talenti Brunello, which confounded my sense that modest Brunello is best a little younger than 20.

 

[Andrew Stevenson]

Good wine that, Andrew. I have some myself. It’s a shame that Rolly-Gassmann’s top wines don’t seem to be available in the UK these days. (I imagine that that bottle might have come from TWS?)

It’s interesting to note that this 20-year old example is one of your younger R-G rieslings. They do age brilliantly.

Correct. Yes, it was part of a TWS mixed case of Alsace rieslings back in 2009. I bought 3 and put them in storage, getting the last 2 6-packs from TWS last April/May.

I am running low on Rolly-Gassmann. Wish I could get some more ordered for drinking when I retire.

 

[Claude Kolm]

A recent 2001. Can anyone guess the wine?

This would be consistent with many/most corks used for German wines of that era.

 

[Colin Bradley]

Correct. Yes, it was part of a TWS mixed case of Alsace rieslings back in 2009. I bought 3 and put them in storage, getting the last 2 6-packs from TWS last April/May.

I am running low on Rolly-Gassmann. Wish I could get some more ordered for drinking when I retire.

We had the 1990 Riesling Pflaenzerreben a couple of months ago and it was magnificent. A Silberberg Riesling 2000 a few weeks ago was pretty good too. Like you, I’d buy some more if I could. I’m running low on the top rieslings now. They may not be grands crus but they’re up there with the best in my view - and so attractive with that bit of RS.

 

[Tom Cannavan]

Nicolas Potel, Beaune Premier Cru Les Grèves 2001
Burgundy, France, Dry Red, Cork, 13.0% abv
90/100. Les Grèves is named for its gravel soils over a limestone base, and is a favourite premier cru of mine. This, from very old vines, is drinking beautifully 20 years on. The colour is pale and transluscent, but vivid with no browing. Aromatically it is all sweet and pulpy red fruits, some elegant floral notes but also a sweet earthiness to add another layer. In the mouth the sweetness of fruit surprises: cherry and summer pudding fruits, though is there a little stalky bitterness in the background? Fairly light-bodied, it is fairly simple in the final analysis, fresh acidity and soft tannins, though that twist of bitterness gives tension on the finish. I am not certain this particular bottle would benefit from much more cellaring, and the fruit is in a very nice place right now.

 

[christopher prain]

A recent 2001. Can anyone guess the wine? Sadly my butler's thief was not available at the time, which would probably have averted the peril of this disgraceful cork.

By contrast, here's the near perfect cork from a very tasty 2001 Talenti Brunello, which confounded my sense that modest Brunello is best a little younger than 20.


View attachment 17315

I’ll play the man - N Rhone red....

 

[Tom Cannavan]

With food (rareish roast beef) I'd add a point to the Potel score as the sense of slight bitterness disappeared.

 

[Colin Bradley]

Vieux Telegraphe CduP 2001 was a bit disappointing tonight. To my palate, it was a little past its best. Upon decanting it, it had the most extraordinary sediment I've ever seen - lots of very big, very thin flakes of solid material. It was a relatively pale garnet colour, quite translucent with a broad rim. The nose was red-fruited but with that dull, slightly balsamic undertone that I sometimes find in old CduP. This carried through onto the palate. I've usually found VT well capable of aging for 20 years so it came as a surprise that this was a little faded. It was OK to drink with food, though (a nice dish from yesterday's Times of shoulder-of-lamb casserole, with lots of aromatic flavouring such as herbs, anchovies and green olives, all braised in white wine and chopped tomatoes). Contrary to some recent posts on here, I think I prefer my CduP, except for Beaucastel, on the young side (and I ought to qualify this by saying that my experience of Rayas and Bonneau is very limited).

 

[Richard Zambuni]

Vieux Telegraphe CduP 2001 was a bit disappointing tonight.

Thanks for the note Colin. I think there's some variability with bottles of VT 2001, but it did get better with age in my experience - it was a right old mess early on. I prefer the 1999 to 2001 too. And VT can go the distance in good vintages - a 1983 last year was a superb wine, one to confound all CdP doubters, and the 1995 also very good indeed still although obviously fully mature. I have enjoyed younger CdP sometimes when it's more grenache driven, but the examples with heavier Mourvèdre and/or syrah components seem to need a fair bit of time in bottle to show at their best.

 

[Colin Bradley]

Thanks, Richard. Out of curiosity I rather moved away from the accepted classic CduP's (VT, Clos des Papes etc) in the mid-noughties, in order to explore some of the "new kids on the block" (Barroche, St Prefert etc), so most of the bottles I have that are approaching maturity are of that ilk. I've enjoyed the ones I've opened so far. VT hasn't usually let me down, though - and I took the opportunity to pick up some white VT in TWS' recent offer.

 

[Phil David]

This would be consistent with many/most corks used for German wines of that era.

You're not wrong on that count, but if you look more carefully you'll see the tell-tale stain on a couple of the pieces...

I’ll play the man - N Rhone red....

Playing the perecentages! Not NR but if you're familiar with it, a serial offender for both poor corks and off bottles. I've probably given it away now.

 

[Mark Palmer]

You're not wrong on that count, but if you look more carefully you'll see the tell-tale stain on a couple of the pieces...


Playing the perecentages! Not NR but if you're familiar with it, a serial offender for both poor corks and off bottles. I've probably given it away now.

Bucerchiale?

 

[Mark Carrington]

You're not wrong on that count, but if you look more carefully you'll see the tell-tale stain on a couple of the pieces...


Playing the perecentages! Not NR but if you're familiar with it, a serial offender for both poor corks and off bottles. I've probably given it away now.

Pétrus?

 

[Jim Agar]

Couple of sumptuous Rhônes this weekend. Clos Des Papes, as expected, pretty much perfect CNDP for me and it has been since first tasted at a La Vigneronne tasting 15 years ago. The big surprise was last night’s Saint-Joseph Le Berceau from Gripa. I wouldn’t normally keep St-Jo 20 years and I’d drunk the other 11 before their 15th Birthday: big mistake! This was sensational, still very much at its peak with cedar wood notes layered on to cool dark fruits(12.5%) and a granitic core. Savoury, velvety and very fine indeed.

 

[Tom Cannavan]

Couple of sumptuous Rhônes this weekend. Clos Des Papes, as expected, pretty much perfect CNDP for me and it has been since first tasted at a La Vigneronne tasting 15 years ago. The big surprise was last night’s Saint-Joseph Le Berceau from Gripa. I wouldn’t normally keep St-Jo 20 years and I’d drunk the other 11 before its 15th Birthday: big mistake! This was sensational, still very much at its peak with cedar wood notes layered on to cool dark fruits(12.5%) and a granitic core. Savoury, velvety and very fine indeed.

I have some 1998 Clos de Papes that I must get round to opening soon. I think I bought the white too that year (away from my cellar at the moment so cannot check).

 

[Ben Coffman]

I have one bottle of that 2001 Potel Beaune Greves Tom, so thanks for that note.

Cross-posed from the weekend drinking thread:

2001 Chateau Musar - Lebanon, Bekaa Valley (04/02/2021)
Pale with distinct orange rim. Not much going on to start, maybe a touch of cranberry and a slightly spicy finish. Then decanted as a moderate amount of sediment. After about 2 hours, this was really waking up. Very much in the Rhone mould this reminded me of a lighter style of Chateauneuf. Not the baked earth but lovely red tone with a smidgeon of VA after a while that added rather than detracted. Not especially deep but very decent. (91 pts.)

 

[Tom Cannavan]

I have one bottle of that 2001 Potel Beaune Greves Tom, so thanks for that note.

I'll be interested in your findings Ben as that slightly bitter note that detracted, set against really very sweet fruit, is what cast a small doubt in my mind. I am certain the wine was not corked, which is why the bitter note had me thinking of stems. I am sure I bought two of these myself, so may well have another at home in my cellar.

 

[Mark Palmer]

I have some 1998 Clos de Papes that I must get round to opening soon. I think I bought the white too that year (away from my cellar at the moment so cannot check).

Be interested to see how you get on with that one Tom. Turned out to be the most disappointing Clos des Papes in a number of years.

 

[Ian Hampsted]

Chateau Musar 2001

Purchased from Waitrose Holloway Road in 2021 for £28.

I decanted this at 5pm and liked the light hue and pencil lead notes. Later, double decanted this wine has a dispiriting, spirity, overly sweet attack, which is also sweaty, salty and porty; or like a typically discombobulated southern Rhone Like Gourt De Mautens, but the Musar has better acidity. It is a bit of a culture shock, taking you out of your comfort zone, so stay focused, stay objective.

It does soften you up with rotten tomatoes, compost, nail varnish, Black Magic chocolate box and rusty nails, but unfortunately it is pretty agricultural and angular on the palate. It has a decent albeit warm finish - but is it really only 13.5% abv? If I had several of these I would wait at least a few years before trying another, and it is by no means unpleasant... but it is not really in my wheelhouse.

I have had a mixed relationship with the Musar over the years, the most enlightening and enthralling experience being with some generous forumites at a Crouch End, North London, offline probably 7-8 years ago, where we drank examples back from the 1970s, and the whites particularly left a happy impression. But I won’t be rushing back to N7 to stock up on this 2001 Musar red.

 

[Jason Michelle]

Posted from the weekend thread:-
Leoville Poyferre 2001. Third bottle from a case and this is showing really well. As previous bottles this is very structured, precise and elegant. Cassis on the nose.... pencil shavings and tobacco dominate the palate.