Tuesday, February 26, 2008

2005 Bourgogne - a Few Favorites

2005 in Burgundy is one of those vintages in which all wines can be great. You hear over and over again that very little sorting was necessary, the fruit was almost uniformly perfect. Grapes were harvested without a lot of rot or other damage, even from plots that qualify only for the regional designation of Bourgogne, Côte de Beaune Villages, or Côte de Nuits Villages. Yes, in 2005, some producers made humble regional wines that will knock your socks off. This means that even though prices are high, it's possible to spend about $25 and to enjoy a stunning bottle.

And it's not only the superstars. Their 2005 Bourgogne will run you more than $25 anyway. There are plenty of solid producers who made fantastic regional wine in 2005. The trick is determining which ones are to your taste. I suggest gathering some buddies and asking everyone to bring a bottle of 05 Bourgogne and have your own tasting - see what you like best. There are many that I have yet to taste at the $25 -30 price point (Truchot, Pillot, de Montille, Barthod, LaFarge, Roty, and so on). But here are three of my favorites so far:

2005 Lignier-Michelot Bourgogne - I last tasted this in September, but I've enjoyed several bottles over several dinners. These grapes are from 50 year old vines in Bon Bâtons, the plot in Chambolle-Musigny that gives forth a couple of solid Bourgognes (Barthod, Rion). Hits full stride after a half hour in the glass. Beautiful blood red color with aromas of cinnamon and maybe cloves to go along with the ripe and juicy cherries. Well balanced with good acidity and an earthy mineral core. Really impressive wine and will probably improve over the next year or two. It might be tough to find at this point, but it is certainly worth looking for.

2005 Domaine des Croix Bourgogne - I read about this one on Burgundy Report and bought a bottle based on that review. I went back for more - just fantastic wine and hard to believe that this is a humble Bourgogne. David Croix makes wine at the famous Maison Camille Giroud - far more expensive wine than that which bears his own name. And some of the grapes that go into Giroud wines are purchased from des Croix plots, but that's neither here nor there...This wine includes juice from Beaune 1er grapes that Croix declassified. It has broad aromas of red and dark fruits, lots of earth, dark flowers and a mineral core. Lovely medium bodied palate echoing the aromas with really persistent flavors on the finish, and a cool minty sensation. It should improve over the next three years or so too. I don't know what else to tell you about this wine - it's just such a great wine, and at about $25, absurd. This one should still be available. In New York, try TriBeCa Wine Merchants.

2005 Sylvie Esmonin Bourgogne - The most complex and mysterious of the three, and my overall favorite so far. I think that the grapes come from a plot called Sylvie in Gevrey-Chambertin, but I might be wrong. This one changed personalities back and forth in the glass, from fruity and concentrated to delicate with an herbal nuance, and back. And forth. Lots of extraction but also very nimble and light, a very dark purple color. Lovely nose of dried rosemary, dried flowers, sandalwood, and mineral and herb flecked earth. Layers of cool dark fruits on the palate and a definite mineral streak. This is broad and heady stuff for a humble regional wine, and it's just delicious. Worth searching for.

So? What about you? Any fabulous 2005 Bourgogne to recommend at under $30?

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

brooklyn guy-
here are a few of my under $30 bourgognes. (mostly drank with mcduff)
C'est tout rouge:
David Clarke Bourgogne Au Pelson
David Clarke Bourgogne En Bollery
Domaine Collotte Noble Souche
Domaine Chevillion-Chezeaux
Domaine Herestzyn (sp?)
Henri Germain Bourgogne
Patrice Rion Bourgogne
Xavier Monnot Maranges (not Bourgogne but under $30)

I'll have to revist one of 5 remaining Sylvie Esmonin, as I was not sure about this one. there were a handful that underwhelmed me, believe it or not.

Let us know when you want opinions/thoughts on the ones north of $30/ bottle.

Cheers, Bill L

Joe said...

From '05 I can recommend (and have written about):

- Drouhin Givry was pretty good,
- Potel Santenay (excellent)
- Potel Masion Dieu (pretty good)
- Mongeard-Mugneret Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits (needs some cellar time, but very interesting)

I can't find your suggestions yet, but will keep an eye out for them. Keep it coming!

Lyle Fass said...

Gabriel Billard "Milliane"
Bart Marsannay "Les Saint Jacques"
Rapet Bourgogne "En Bully"
Rapet Pernand Vergelesses
Rapet Savigny-Les-Beaune
Lignier-Michelot (totally agree)
Lafouge Auxey-Duresses 1er Cru "La Chapelle"

Anonymous said...

Very unsure about the Sylvie Esmonin—have had it twice, having bought several on the recommendation of a certain wine shop but...I keep going back to it but it seems quite atypical, even peculiar to me, very fruity and extracted to a degree I'm not sure I like. Anybody else not like it?
My favorite so far definitely the Nudant Haute Cotes-de-Nuits—wonderfully pure and dark.

Anonymous said...

my one go round with s esmonin's bourgogne left me scratching my head also. i too found it more extracted than i expected.

peter said...

I was supposed to be in Beaune for a week right now staying with David Croix- life intervened- but I'm hoping to get a case or two of his 05s sent over.

Otherwise, I'm glad you posted this; all these suggestions are motivating me to go shopping.

Brooklynguy said...

hi bill l. - thanks for the list. i've seen Domaine Chevillion-Chezeaux
Domaine Herestzyn in one store, but not the others. i wonder if you know who imports them - maybe we don't get them here. oh, well the rion i've seen too. thanks for the recommendations, and say hi to DmcD for me. i get the feeling that i might be the only weirdo who likes the esmonin wine.

hey joe! good to see you. are they all under $30? the mongeard too? thanks for the list.

hiya lyle, welcome back. i have never tasted a wine by rapet. clearly i will have to do something about that. i love the lafouge wine you mentioned too. really interesting list -thanks.

hi anon (i feel like i know you from your writing - who are you?) i could be the only one who loves it. it's the only 2005 esmonin wine that was completely de-stemmed. if you mean atypical compared to their other wines, that could be the reason. where so i find the nudant? thanks for your comments. and to you and bill l - if you want to sell me a bottle or 2 of the esmonin, i'm buying.

hey peter - that sucks. i'm sure you will create another opportunity. how do you know him? you can buy his wines in nyc, by the way.

Anonymous said...

xavier monnot is imported by robert kacher. this was a new producer for me, and i liked the wine quite a bit.
d clarke and collotte are both weygandt imports. small production and probably tough to track down. maybe our paths will cross some day and you , me , and mcduff can sample them.......

i just got my first bottles of '05 truchot-martin. one of my favorite producers, sadly this is the last vintage for these wines. the bourgognes were always south of $30/bottle, but this year they jumped to $35. i imagine the village/gc/pc stuff will be appropriately priced also.oh well.

peter said...

His GF is a dear friend. I made them a 7-course dinner a while back and he brought a 1976 Giroud Gevrey-Chamb. Yeah, I know they're available, but I'm trying to get her to send some to me directly...

Anonymous said...

So my shopping list just got bigger :o)
Thanks for the notes.
Sylvie is unlikely to be the name of a plot. In France first names are given to bottlings but not to plots or lieu-dits. The location could yet be called 'sylv'-something since this word root is used in many French words to mean forest. (It comes from Latin.)

Anonymous said...

Hi Brooklynguy—sorry to post anonymously—don't comment that often and was in a hurry—I don't think we know each other but I enjoy reading your blog—CSW had the Nudant, but I think it's long gone. If I can't face the rest of my Sylvies, I'll let you know! Destemmed—that make sense. I kept wondering if it was even Pinot...found it just too forceful and one-dimensional.

Brooklynguy said...

felicien - you're right. i just remembered lye fass telling me that it is made from the same plot as Roty's Presonniers, called Presonniers maybe?

no prob michael. missed out on the nudant then. hard to decide which of these to try because even though they're under $30, it's still $30...twice the amount i tend to pay for everyday drinking wines.

Anonymous said...

At least there's the consolation that the 2005s in the $20–30 range are so good, considering how high prices are for anything at the village level and above. But you're right, that's a lot for everyday drinking—for me it's pretty much limited to weekend bottles, and I'd be embarrassed to admit what I'm drinking on weeknights to keep this up!

Joe said...

Ok, sorry, the Potel was C$30.75. I kinda thought you low-tax folk would get it for a better price. The Mongeard was C$27.25 (one of my Christmas Day Burgundies)