A day at Brad England’s
If an event is measured by how bad you feel the next day, then I’m going to have a hard time toping this and while trying to help pick up and dry stemware the following morning, while sporadically breaking out into cold, nauseous sweats, I could only shudder at the thought of actually driving back to Boulder on the none too straight roads… Even though this drive ended up giving me a sore, raw throat for a good 3 days, I’d do it again in a second!
Not sure how I was lucky enough to get an invite to this shin dig but in attendance was the amazingly hospitable Brad England, Chris Palm, Burg manic himself Mitch Hirsch, Uncle Rico, Paul David, Tom W., Scott Manlin and the sole lady of the group, Ashley R. Simply an outstanding time with some top quality folks, outstanding food and some dandy wines!
While there were certain flights where I really tried to pay attention and take decent notes, most of the time it was more fun to kick back and just drink the stuff (which might explain the multi stop drive home) so take all notes, thoughts and scores with a grain of salt.
Lunch
Paul David and I drove up together early in the day and we sucked these wines down with Brad, Chris and Scott over some grade A steak sandwiches (from left over flannery ribeye I believe.) Going through three bottles of heat damaged 1962 Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Único would have left me in a comma but Brad didn’t bat an eye and quickly opened a spectacular Reserva. Merci beaucoup cher monsieur!
- 1962 Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Único - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
Earthy with forest floor, dried fruit and sour cherry notes that lead into a medium bodied palate. While certainly enjoyable, the palate seems washed out and loses fruit on the finish. Heat damaged but best of three bottles. (84 pts.) - N.V. Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Unico Reserva Especial Lot 004/98 - Spain, Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero
After three lackluster 62 unico’s.. *sniff*.. *sniff*, this was spectacular with sour black cherry, earth, hot asphalt and dried spice aromas on the big, rich nose. The palate is fantastic with killer fruit, medium body, serious structure and a balanced, long finish. (94 pts.)
Second Lunch
After lunch, we started running low on wine so the 1961 Château Lafon-Rochet was cracked. This had a mid to low shoulder fill and at first sip, I was inclined to say it was going to fall apart sooner rather than later… Amazingly though, this just continued to gain weight, complexity and length and was some seriously good juice.
- 1961 Château Lafon-Rochet - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
This improved in the glass and was still kicking after some substantial air time. The nose showed mature Cabernet notes of sweet fruit, spice, tobacco and forest floor and the palate was medium bodied with impressive texture, fruit and length. (89 pts.)
Beaucastel
Man, what a treat and getting to compare these two wines side by side was a lesson in the differences between the 1989 and 1990 vintage. The 1989 was just a perfect bottle and was clean, precise, pure, concentrated and simply firing on all cylinders. The 1990 was noticeably riper and I actually prefer the palate on this to the 89. Ripe, lush, soft and much more evolved than the 1989, both of these wines are stunning, unique Chateauneufs! The 1999 Cuvée du Vatican Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve Sixtine wasn’t in the same league but did improve with air and the oak notes that this cuvee shows in its youth were barely detectable.
- 1989 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Just an awesome bottle with the usual Beaucastel meat, earth and game notes backed up by ripe, clean dark fruit aromas. The palate is stunning and shows considerable structure and a precise, almost angular character. Much more structured and precise in the mouth than the 90, this has a long, beautiful finish. (97 pts.) - 1990 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Very ripe with earth sweet, fruit, lots of spice and slightly more funk and horse notes than the 89. The palate is borderline full bodied with ripe, lush and mouth filling fruit that carries into the long finish. This lacks the precision of the 89 and is more open knit but makes up for it with a spectacular, lush and rich texture. (96 pts.) - 1999 Cuvée du Vatican Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve Sixtine - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Very similar to previous bottles, this shows plum and cassis fruit mixed with plenty of ripe spiced meat, licorice, sandal wood and earth notes. It’s medium to full body, structured, well balanced and shows plenty of length on the finish. This improved in the glass and needs air time. (90 pts.)
Champagne
At this point, the whole gang had arrived and it was time to get serious. The champagnes were a good start and these two were very different in style. Whereas the 1989 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut La Grande Dame was full bore and slightly soft, the 1990 Henriot Champagne Cuvée des Enchanteleurs was riveting with stunning acidity, grip and precision.
- 1989 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut La Grande Dame - France, Champagne
A big, full bore, blockbuster champagne with rich, sweet fruit, toasted nut and crème brulee notes on the nose. Full bodied in the mouth, this lacks some verve but is balanced and possesses a long, creamy finish. (93 pts.) - 1990 Henriot Champagne Cuvée des Enchanteleurs Brut - France, Champagne
A stunning bottle, this shows lots of yeast and mineral notes on top of ripe orchard fruit aromas. The palate is awesome with impeccable balance, riveting acidity and a long, clean finish. (95 pts.)
White Burgundy
Mitch was kind enough to supply these and they went perfectly with the fantastic fresh prawns Scott provided. The 1996 Pierre Morey Bâtard-Montrachet showed lots of buttered popcorn and oak notes on the nose but had a huge, concentrated palate. If it wasn’t for the subtle mineral notes, there’s no way I’d guess the 2002 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos as a Chablis and it was just packed with ripe, seriously concentrated fruit.
- 1996 Pierre Morey Bâtard-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
While this started out almost monolithic on the nose, it gained complexity with air and showed rich buttered popcorn, oak and some seriously rich, awesome ripe fruit. The palate is spectacular and is full bodied, amazingly concentrated, precise, pure and long. (95 pts.) - 2002 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
Showing a surprising level of richness and ripe fruit, this is incredible stuff. Ripe fruit, serious minerals and a stunning palate. Precise, perfectly built and long. (95 pts.)
Northern Rhones
Talk about starting the evening off with a bang, this was one of the best flight of wines I’ve ever had the privilege to drink through. The 1988 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque just doesn’t get any better and the nose on the thing is seriously captivating. Big, expressive, rich, unique… Absolutely loved it. While others like the 1989 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage, I’m convinced the bottle was flawed. The 1990 Domaine de Vallouit Hermitage Les Greffières was stunning but eclipsed by the amazingly pure, ripe and borderline perfect 1990 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle. Very young and almost jammy, this was amazingly clean, concentrated and had a monster finish.
- 1988 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie
The nose couldn’t get any better and is dark, dense and just packed with earthy dark fruit, meat, smoke and bacon notes. There’s subtle graphite and integrated wood notes lurking in the background and I could smell this wine all night. The palate is full bodied with perfect balance, silky texture, considerable structure and a fantastic, long finish. Thank you Brad for opening this! (99 pts.) - 1989 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage
While this was OK on the palate, I’m convinced this wasn’t a sound bottle and displayed funky, medicinal and chlorine aromas. NR (flawed) - 1990 Domaine de Vallouit Hermitage Les Greffières - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage
Absolutely stunning and held up to some stiff company. The nose is very spice driven with boatloads of sage and thyme aromas being supported by ripe cassis, meat and subtle bacon aromas. The palate is full bodied with a soft, lush texture and a long finish. Outstanding stuff. (95 pts.) - 1990 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage
Phenomenal stuff that is incredibly youthful with clean, rock star syrah fruit. Cassis and dark fruit notes come jumping out of the glass of this thing and they’re mixed with vanilla, oak and meaty notes that are to die for. Full bodied on the palate, this almost possesses a modern character given the ripeness, purity and lushness but you’re not getting a complaint from me. Still a baby! (98 pts.) - 2000 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie
Very young and almost jammy, this shows lots of classy oak and vanilla that haven’t integrated with the earthy, cassis slanted fruit. Medium to full bodied, this is balanced, rich and long. (94 pts.) - 2000 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie Château d’Ampuis - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie
Young, jammy and upfront, this shows big fruit, smoke and cassis notes with a medium to full bodied palate, lush, easy drinking texture and a clean, long finish. (93 pts.)
Burgundy
The burgundy flight consisted of a number of outstanding wines. Unfortunately, my notebook got borrowed by Ashley and I only took notes on the La Tache. Other wines included a 2004 Vogue Musigny, 1990 Rossignol Trapet Chambertin VV, 1990 Prieur Volnay 1er Cru Champans and a 1997 Rene Lecler Griotte Chambertin GC. I didn’t think there was a dog anywhere in the group. The 2004 Domaine Leroy Vosne-Romanée wasn’t opened until later but had some screaming aromatics.
- 2004 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru
A beautiful young burg that shows rich, cherry laced fruit mixed with gobs of exotic spice notes. For such a young wine, the palate is surprisingly open and is perfectly balanced and almost seamless. The finish is long and shows plenty of grip and structure. (93 pts.) - 2004 Domaine Leroy Vosne-Romanée - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée
Excellent with a big, exuberant nose of exotic spice, cherries and underbrush aromas, medium body and a long finish. Amazingly open and drinking great.
Chateaunuefs
I think I was completely drunk at this point (even though I had started spitting) but I sucked it up and drank every drop of a killer 1989 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée and a personal favorite, the 2001 Domaine de la Mordorée Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de la Reine des Bois. Both absolutely outstanding and about as good as it gets. The 1990 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Laurence seemed much more evolved than the 89 Réservée and should be drunk up.
- 1989 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Yeah baby, I loved this wine. Not showing a hint of its age, this boast a massive nose of garrigue, meat, spice and dark pegau fruit aromas. Stunning on the palate as well as the nose, it’s full bodied with impeccable balance, awesome structure, killer texture and a long finish. I’m a fan. (97 pts.) - 1990 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Laurence - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Showing quite a bit more evolved and lacking the precision of the 89 Reservee, this is still beautiful stuff and shows plum and cassis aromas mixed with spice, meat and leathery notes. Full bodied, lush and with incredibly rich fruit, this has a long, enjoyable finish. I would drink these sooner rather than later. (94 pts.) - 1989 Château de la Gardine Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
This certainly got lost in the background but was excellent with clean dark fruit and spice notes sitting on top of a medium bodied, rich palate. (90 pts.) - 2001 Domaine de la Mordorée Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de la Reine des Bois - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Another outstanding showing of this wine, I decanted it for 3 hours early on the day of the tasting before pouring it back into the bottle. The nose has the typical Mordoree modern slant but this also possesses stunning southern rhone typicity with fantastic aromas of garrigue, licorice, minerals and even dried flowers. Full bodied with a thick, juicy texture, this is amazingly structured and tannic but boy does it have enough fruit to handle it and the finish is a rock star as well. (99+ pts.)
Dessert
And we concluded with so many dessert wines it was hard to even contemplate tasting through them all. I picked one and went with it. The following were also on tap: 1941 Moreira Colheita Port, 1968 D’Oliveira Bual Madeira and a rocking 1985 Grahams Port!
- 1922 AO - SM (Anibal D’Oliveira Sao Martinho) Madeira Bual - Portugal, Madeira
Fantastic.
Not much else to say and there’s certainly no way I can repay the hospitality shown (but if given the chance, I’ll sure try!) Thanks to all and especially to Brad for allowing me to hang out at his amazing place and drink so many killer wines!
Salut,
Jeb