WTN: Brocard Les Clos '06 + Produttori del Barbaresco '04

Oysters for starter; a chunk of beef, braised in herbs and red wine for main; and a Finnish Gruyère-imitation for dessert with these two wines was a nice way of spending the traditional students' celebration of the eve of Mayday!

• 2006 Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru (4/30/2008)
  13%; 30,40€; screwed. This smells of lemon curd and sea shells - a very pure but very ripe, essence of Chardonnay. Full bodied, not as steely I hope Chablis to be, but it is refreshing and lively due to its citrussy acidity. The aftertaste is quite fat. I enjoyed this very much but I do think this more a good, unoaked Chardonnay than a good Chablis.
• 2004 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco (4/30/2008)
  14%; 22€. Tar and red apples, cherry. Ripe, much soft tannins, bright, long aftertaste - delightful for the price.

Posted from CellarTracker

Thanks for the notes. I've had limited experience with both these maker's, Otto.

I managed to pick up a few cases of PdB's very impressive Riserva's from 1997 - Pajè and Pora - both almost accessible, although both need time to be at their best with the Paje the more open of the two. If 1997 was a typical year for PdB, this co-operative is a source well worth seeking out.

Jean-Marc Brocard can produce the goods but, for me, has delivered an alarming degree of variabilty - e.g. in late 2004, the '92 1er "Montee de Tonnerre" was most excellent (91), holding well, albeit as your note attests, not necessarily classical Chablis, however, a 1998 Fourchame 1er was over-developed and looking tired early in 2005 (80) and then, a few weeks later, a "Vaudesir" Grand Cru 1998 was Outstanding (92), although "a point". Another bottle of the 1998 Vaudesir opened some months later was oxidised to the hilt! Then, the final straw - Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis 1er Cru "Fourchame" 1998 - An abysmal, abortion of a wine and I brought it. Quite oxidised and obviously faulty. (59 points) after thinking about it for 2 nanoseconds this morning. Have not bought a bottle from this Domaine since.

[list][*]2006 Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru (4/30/2008)
13%; 30,40€; screwed. This smells of lemon curd and sea shells - a very pure but very ripe, essence of Chardonnay. Full bodied, not as steely I hope Chablis to be, but it is refreshing and lively due to its citrussy acidity. The aftertaste is quite fat. I enjoyed this very much but I do think this more a good, unoaked Chardonnay than a good Chablis.

Otto, with the understanding that '06 produced no shortage of fat white wines, how much experience have you had with drinking GC Chablis young? Unlike PC and village-level Chablis, GCs tend to start life on the fat side and ease into their eventual character only after a decade or so of bottle age. Of course, with PremOx now such a worry, you'd have to be a very confident/foolish soul to let any Chablis age that long before tasting it...

Mark Lipton

Otto,
thanks for the notes. I haven't gotten the '04 Barbaresco yet (I did try and like the Langhe Nebbiolo, a good value), but you have spurred me to get some. As noted here before, I think Produttori del Barbaresco is neck andneck with Domaine Wachau as best co-op in world.

Jean-Marc Brocard can produce the goods but, for me, has delivered an alarming degree of variabilty - e.g. in late 2004, the '92 1er "Montee de Tonnerre" was most excellent (91), holding well, albeit as your note attests, not necessarily classical Chablis, however, a 1998 Fourchame 1er was over-developed and looking tired early in 2005 (80) and then, a few weeks later, a "Vaudesir" Grand Cru 1998 was Outstanding (92), although "a point". Another bottle of the 1998 Vaudesir opened some months later was oxidised to the hilt! Then, the final straw - Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis 1er Cru "Fourchame" 1998 - An abysmal, abortion of a wine and I brought it. Quite oxidised and obviously faulty. (59 points) after thinking about it for 2 nanoseconds this morning. Have not bought a bottle from this Domaine since.

I think you could claim an alarming degree of variability for most white Burgundies '96-'02. The whole PremOx disaster is much discussed but little understood. You don't hear as much about '98 as '95, '96, or '99, but I think because less people put them down for aging. Brocard seems about average in reports:
http://oxidised-burgs.wikispaces.com/Br ... +Jean-Marc
Sauzet and Colin-Deleger are maybe the worse, Leflaive one of few who seem immune.
Lots of theories about causes, but until I see a real resolution, I'm not buying white Burgundies with eye to aging. Have a couple of '93s (before the plague), one ''98 left (BdMartray CC), one '99 (Ramonet Vergers). Latter 2 I will open with extreme trepidation. For newer vintages I've been buying only Bourgognes (Matrot and Pernot) and "lesser" 1ers from St Aubin (Clair) and Chablis (Brocard!) that I can get for under $25 and not feel guilty drinking young.

Otto, with the understanding that '06 produced no shortage of fat white wines, how much experience have you had with drinking GC Chablis young? Unlike PC and village-level Chablis, GCs tend to start life on the fat side and ease into their eventual character only after a decade or so of bottle age.

Thanks Mark! We don't have many GCs available here - only Fèvre and Brocard IIRC - so I have very little experiences of them at any age at all. But I find Fèvre's style throughout the range rather soft and easy for Chablis (but still very nice now that they have cut back on oak). I'll have to try some Brocard lower levels now.

2006 Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos 13%; 30,40€; screwed.

Screwcap? On Grand Crus? Is this practice spreading?

2006 Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos 13%; 30,40€; screwed.

Screwcap? On Grand Crus? Is this practice spreading?

Hopefully!

[David M. Bueker]

Given how many bad corks I have seen on Brocard I sure hope so.