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WTN: Coche Zind Clair Ducru Branaire Tart Lagune Grahams

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WTN: Coche Zind Clair Ducru Branaire Tart Lagune Grahams

by Bill Spohn » Sat Dec 08, 2018 4:32 pm

Notes from a blind tasting lunch. The December lunch usually lures out some special wines and this was no exception.

2014 Coche-Dury Bourgogne-Aligoté – ripe citrus nose with significant oak, good acidity in a lean flinty framework. Best Aligote I have tasted!

2001 Zind-Humbrecht Riesling Brand – now showing some colour, this wine had a wonderful nose of pear and almonds, juicy acidity in the mouth, finishing long and quite dry. Really excellent Riesling!

2009 Domaine Bruno Clair Marsannay Les Grasses Têtes – good fruit nose with some barnyard and spice, in the mouth tasty but a tad low on acidity. Decent, drink up if you have it, BTW, I am advised that the vineyard should not be translated as ‘Fat Heads” so I checked Clair’s website: “The origin of the name Grasses-Têtes is not well defined. This terroir, located in the middle of hillside, is composed of a very clay soil (fat land) mixed with large limestone banks (large heads).”

1979 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou – faithfully cellared by me for thirty odd years and this traitorous wine was corked! Damn – should have been good. So I pulled out my back-up, also from St. Julien.

1975 Château Branaire – I have drunk almost a case of this, one of my favourite 1975s, starting many years ago as it became progressively less hard. It is now just past peak but still offers a lot of enjoyment. It was a wpure garnet colour to the rim, and had an excellent cigar box and plum nose with faint spice hints, It was balanced and elegant and has retained sufficient fruit on palate to make it a pleasure to drink even at the age of over 40 years.

2004 Clos de Tart – undoubtedly Mommessin’s best Burgundy. Medium colour with an interesting nose that included mint, spice, some dill and a little tobacco smoke. In the mouth, it was medium bodied, showed resolved tannins and dark fruit with berry motes and was long and elegant. Great showing from a difficult vintage.

1988 Ch. La Lagune – typical claret nose, fairly dark colour, still, and some good fruit and cedar and cassis notes in the nose, as well as some ripeness, which you don’t always see in this classically structured vintage ( I like the 88s while most prefer the fatter 1990s). Excellent length and now at peak.

2000 Vergelegen – this was before they started calling this flagship wine “V”. Dark wine with a minty dark fruit nose that had us thinking of California or Oz. Plum and chocolate on palate and a lengthy minty smooth finish. Very good.

1977 Grahams Port – and no I do not call it Porto, because my bottles are not labeled that way, although I have seen Porto on some, which are perhaps later releases. Medium colour showing maturity, and a pruny sort of nose with some spicy raspberry elements, the usual Graham’s sweetness levels but well balanced and very decent length
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Re: WTN: Coche Zind Clair Ducru Branaire Tart Lagune Graham

by Jenise » Mon Dec 10, 2018 3:35 pm

Great lunch! Re the aligote, ditto. Best ever. I had hoped I'd bought two bottles of it, but sad to report that one was an orphan. Fortunately, though, I *DO* have another Clos du Tart to look forward to.

Agree with the rest of your notes all the way down the line. So surprised by Les's '88 Lagune--I've had a few very good 88's (I owned a complete set of the 88 First Growths, for instance) and this was about as good as any. Big surprise. Btw, I recall Les bringing a number of other Lagunes, '86 twice I believe. Is this a favorite property for him?

And sorry for getting bitchy about the order. I had slept very poorly the night before and my patience was on an inexcusably short leash.
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov
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Re: WTN: Coche Zind Clair Ducru Branaire Tart Lagune Graham

by Bill Spohn » Mon Dec 10, 2018 3:42 pm

We have always received La Lagune in this market and it has always been a best buy (I still have some 1982 that is cruising happily).

I like the vintage - a classical style that took awhile to come around but I still hold about 3 1/2 cases of mixed 88s (only a couple of first growths) that I plan to enjoy over the next few years.

Agree you wine should have gone before that interloper that just snuck his wine in - but we got him! :mrgreen:
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Re: WTN: Coche Zind Clair Ducru Branaire Tart Lagune Graham

by Jenise » Mon Dec 10, 2018 4:00 pm

Actually, as you know I'm not a stickler for order, and I think wines served with regard for the normal progression generally make the tasting even more blind. I just wanted to taste the Tart with that truffled egg/salmon dish. :)
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov
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Re: WTN: Coche Zind Clair Ducru Branaire Tart Lagune Graham

by ChaimShraga » Tue Dec 11, 2018 2:05 pm

Which Aligotes do you think come in second place? Personally, I think the Benoit Ente Aligote is stunning, almost premier Cru class. And I have to praise Leroy, of course. Never tasted the Coche-Dory.
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Re: WTN: Coche Zind Clair Ducru Branaire Tart Lagune Graham

by Jenise » Tue Dec 11, 2018 6:45 pm

Chaim, a White 2006 Domaine Ponsot Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Clos des Monts Luisants Vieilles Vignes was exquisite a few years ago. And while in Burgundy I tasted one from Alex Gambal that I adored, though both were a different, more exuberant style than this Coche-Dury. I might add that everyone was so sure they were drinking chardonnay (and Meursault) that grape didn't even come into question--I had to crowbar it into the discussion. But we sure don't see many over here.
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov

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