March Sydney Offline: Burgundy vs. The World

[JamieBahrain]

Its on my bucket list to get to an offline in Adelaide sometime this year...beginning to get offline envy.

There was an effort to kick-start an ADL offline last year with bucket list wines. Since you only live once, not a bad theme, despite possibly offending the egalitarianism of the city of churches.

[catchnrelease]

Great night, the Lagavulin 16yr was a good way to cap off the night. Thanks to all involved.

Lots of great wines, my little list of favourites was:
2009 Leflaive & Associes Rully 1er Cru
2006 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin La Chateniere Premier Cru
2013 Domaine S.C. Guillard Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Corbeaux
2001 Dominique Laurent Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Clos Sorbes

Honourable mentions to all the Aussie Chardonnays (even though I still think the Mayer smelled/tasted more like riesling or sauv blanc), the 2010 Volnay and the Grand Cru Burgundies at the end of the night.

[mjs]

Wow Dave, hats off to you Sydneysiders...looks like you and the ladies and gents had a great evening.

Its on my bucket list to get to an offline in Adelaide sometime this year...beginning to get offline envy.

Looks like a really relaxed format.

Cheers
Craig.

Craig,

If you and maybe Ian (n4sir) can get one up, I will come over for it!!

cheers, Malcolm

[phillisc]

Egalitarianism??? Not sure where you are going there Jamie, but yes I have a pretty basic cellar...nothing on the old world scale in terms of variety or quantity. But could probably find something to suit.

I would be happy to have an offline with a lamb on a spit, drinking great wines out of Vegemite glasses

It was great meeting both Ian and Malcolm last year at a couple of events and Jamie when you have flown in we may have quorum. I am sure that there are Adelaide forumites that would come.

Something to think about

Cheers
Craig

[mjs]

Great night, the Lagavulin 16yr was a good way to cap off the night. Thanks to all involved.

Lots of great wines, my little list of favourites was:
2009 Leflaive & Associes Rully 1er Cru
2006 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin La Chateniere Premier Cru
2013 Domaine S.C. Guillard Gevrey Chambertin 1er Cru Les Corbeaux
2001 Dominique Laurent Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Clos Sorbes

Honourable mentions to all the Aussie Chardonnays (even though I still think the Mayer smelled/tasted more like riesling or sauv blanc) and the two Grand Cru Burgundies at the end of the night.

Kudos to catchnrelease and the rest of the Sydney guys and girls for what looks like an awesome night.

[Bobthebuilder]

Double post

[Bobthebuilder]

Another great night!
Food and service was very good, the room just perfect for offlines.
My first time taking notes so a bit dodgy and missed a couple of wines notes, but here goes;

Centennial Rose: I liked this, a bit simple but easy drinking, sweet but savoury too.
Fourny & Fils: the nose was a bit funky, which disappeared on the mid palate but seemed to reappear on the finish. Not my cup of tea but had me going back for more due to its peculiarity. Definitely interesting.
2011 Hospice de Beaune Mersault; sweet pot pouri nose, nice fruit and good acidity on the palate. Rather well balanced and drinking very nicely at 5yrs
Bouchard en Fils Mersault: very interesting nose, front and mid palate, but slightly strange finish. Vanilla bean & maple syrup on the palate, bit of funk on the finish, which I wonder if it might have disappeared with a bit more time to breathe.
2012 Coteaux: the honey on toast note Alex made was the palate to a tee with me. Th nose and the finish was had a lot of barnyard funk and it kind of detracted from what I liked about the palate.
2009 leflaive rully: lovely. Beautiful nose, great complexity, well balanced with a long finish. Really well structured wine for me.
2015 Mayer Chardonnay: most others were getting sav Blanc on the nose and frustratingly, I couldn't get it. I really liked it and it was all chard to me, nice ripe fruit, mouthfilling with a long finish. Well made wine.
2009 Jean Noel gagnard chassagne montrachet: my 3rd and last bottle of this and all three have been strikingly consistent. Cream, buttery, toasty, with a bit of spicy seasoning on the finish. seems to be sitting in a very good place at this point in time.
2010 Jean Noel gagnard chassagne Montrachet: wan drinking as well as the 2009, a lot of similarities in the flavour profile but they just seemed a bit all over the place and not harmonising like in the 2009. My thoughts were maybe this wine needs more time and pop and pour did it no justice considering. would really like to try this in another 5 or so years.
2012 ten minutes by tractor: no note on this, must have been overwhelmed by the veal sausage, which was brilliant. I do recall really enjoying it however, and found it a great food wine, or atleast it was with the veal sausage!
2008 hungerford hill chardonnay: really nice wine, had quite a few HH chards and always found them to be good VFM, consistent quality, and appear to cellar well around the 8-10 yr Mark. Never tried any of them older but feel they could live quite nicely to 15 years or more, maybe.
2012 Leftbridge: no notes again, but remember enjoying it and found it rather classy, elegant, and surprised it was only 4yrs old.
2006 Pierre yves Colin morey Saint Aubin: no notes again but clearly remember this as a beautiful wine with creamy, buttery, custard tart flavours and a really yummy finish.
2013 guillard gevery chambertin: medium bodied, bit sweet, bit spicy, well balanced, delightful
2013 Robert chellivon village: quite tannic, grippy on the teeth and gums. Wasn't going well with the food at the time so it's hard to describe or rate. Maybe it could have done with a good couple of hours of air in the decanter?
2013 Robert chellivon Bourgogne: no notes
2001 dominique Laurent morey St Denis: no notes but remember finding it a bit too earthy.
2002 Blain Gagnard 1er cru: surprised at how young it seemed and how much fruit was present, was getting a bit of earthy funkiness but nowhere near as much as others were. Quite a bit of acidity, maybe a little too much for me at this point in the night - the acidity stands out more for me straight after the main meal.
2001 Bass Phillips crown prince: didn't look so good in the glass, but I didn't mind it. Clearly past its best.
2010 Rouget Pere & Fils volnay 1er cru: love it, perfect after dinner wine for me, gorgeous slightly sweet perfumed nose, smooth on the palate, lovely lingering finish
2001 michelot chambolle musigny 1er cru: Turkish delight, gamey rare meat, freshly dug dark damp soil. Surprisingly, these all did actually taste nice! Very interesting wine.
2008 Henri de villamont volnay: no notes, recall it being a bit light bodied for my liking
2007 Clos de Vougeot guillon: Probably my WOTN. Nice fruit, good acidity, a little bit of spice and earthiness, everything nicely balanced. Long lingering finish.
2008 michel magnien charmes chambertin - quite a big wine, lots going on, interesting, would probably rather it before or during the meal however as I think by this stage the food was making the acid standout a bit for me, and palate fatigue was setting in, which leaves me feeling like a schooner of Sauternes. Lol
2009 chateau filhot Sauternes: beautiful, sweet but not too sweet, refreshing, perfect with the crepes, great wine to close the night on.

[catchnrelease]

BTW full detailed wine list (for anyone interested in looking up specifics or for future reference) in order was:

Sparkling
2008 Veuve Fourny et Fils Monts de Vertus Brut Millesime Premier Cru
NV Centennial Vineyards Sparkling Rose

Whites
Flight 1
2011 Cuvee Jehan Humblot Hospices De Beaune Meursault-Porusots Premier Cru
2007 Domaine Bouchard Pere et Fils Meursaut Genevrieres Premier Cru
2012 L. Metairie Coteaux Bourguignons Chardonnay

Flight 2
2009 Leflaive et Associes Rully 1er Cru
2015 Mayer Yarra Valley Chardonnay

Flight 3
2009 Domaine Jean Noel Gagnard Chassagne-Montrachet Clos de la Maltroye Premier Cru
2010 Domaine Jean Noel Gagnard Chassagne-Montrachet Clos de la Maltroye Premier Cru
2012 Ten Minutes by Tractor Estate Chardonnay

Flight 4
2008 Hungerford Hill 'Epic' Chardonnay
2012 Lethbridge Chardonnay
2006 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin La Chateniere Premier Cru

Reds
Flight 5
2013 Domaine S.C. Guillard Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Corbeaux
2013 Domaine Robert Chevillon Bourgogne
2013 Domaine Robert Chevillon Nuits-Saint-Georges 'Vielles Vignes'

Flight 6
2001 Dominique Laurent Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Clos Sorbes
2002 Domaine Blain-Gagnard Volnay-Chanlin Premier Cru
2001 Bass Phillip Crown Prince Pinot Noir

Flight 7
2010 Domaine Rougeot Pere et Fils Volnay Santenots Premier Cru
2010 Domaine Lignier-Michelot Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru Cuvee Jules
2008 Henri de Villamont Volnay

Flight 8
2007 Jean-Michel Guillon et Fils Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru
2008 Domaine Michel Magnien Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru

Sweet
2009 Chateau Filhot Sauternes

[TiggerK]

My brief thoughts.... (thanks for typing out all the wines Alex!)

Sparkling
2008 Veuve Fourny Blanc de Blancs Brut Vertus Premier Cru‎ - Loved it, vibrant and clean with some subtle fruit power.
NV Centennial Vineyards Sparkling Rose - Bit flabby after the crisp champers, but better than the label looks!

Whites
Flight 1
2011 Cuvee Jehan Humblot Hospices De Beaune Meursault-Porusots Premier Cru - Bit too heavy on the oak, otherwise good.
2007 Domaine Bouchard Pere et Fils Meursaut Genevrieres Premier Cru - Slightly premoxed, some buttered popcorn, not too bad though.
2012 L. Metairie Coteaux Bourguignons Chardonnay - viscous, dense texture, lemon curd, lanolin, almost rhone-ish. OK, bit simple.

Flight 2
2009 Leflaive et Associes Rully 1er Cru - Nicely balanced, pretty mouthfeel, maybe a touch light on depth or character, but good wine.
2015 Mayer Yarra Valley Chardonnay - No Savvy notes for me, pure unforced, unadulterated chardonnay, light and floaty, yum.

Flight 3
2009 Domaine Jean Noel Gagnard Chassagne-Montrachet Clos de la Maltroye Premier Cru - Liked this, bigger style but oak not poking out.
2010 Domaine Jean Noel Gagnard Chassagne-Montrachet Clos de la Maltroye Premier Cru - thought this was a little bit corked, i.e TCA.
2012 Ten Minutes by Tractor Estate Chardonnay - A good aussie chard, held up well against the 09 1er.

Flight 4
2008 Hungerford Hill 'Epic' Chardonnay - Again, a good wine, well made, good balance. Travelling nicely, no hurry to drink.
2012 Lethbridge Chardonnay - Same note as the Hungerford! Always like their wines.
2006 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin La Chateniere Premier Cru - a bit odd for me, went strangely pongy (rubber?) after some air time.

Reds
Flight 5
2013 Domaine S.C. Guillard Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Corbeaux - new world-ish, plenty of fruit, more grip would be ideal but nice wine.
2013 Domaine Robert Chevillon Nuits-Saint-Georges 'Vielles Vignes' (mine) - Ticks a few boxes, but just OK and for around $110 you want more. Maybe more time needed. Would buy and keep some if it were half the price.
2013 Domaine Robert Chevillon Bourgogne (mine) - Very light and simple. Yeah it's super-entry level, but still around $60! Fine if it were $25, but at $60 I'd be in Oz, NZ or Beaujolais instead.

(I had higher expectations of the two Chevillon's, for a renowned (and $$$$) producer who apparently 'did very well in 2013', these showed poorly. Would be interested to try their 1er Cru stuff from 2013, just not willing to pay for it!)

Flight 6
2001 Dominique Laurent Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Clos Sorbes - Yay, some aged Burg. Really liked this, good mix of rich cherry fruit and some softer aged character. Wouldn't keep for too much longer though, maybe 5 more years?
2002 Domaine Blain-Gagnard Volnay-Chanlin Premier Cru - Yay again, I really like 2002 Burgundy, still youthful yet perfumed and just starting to develop some tertiary notes. My Runner Up WOTN.
2001 Bass Phillip Crown Prince Pinot Noir - Cloudy, with plenty of stalky/celery/rhubarb notes. I didn't hate it, but a few tastes was enough.

Flight 7 - Was too busy eating and talking to be specific on these three. A bit upset about that as I recall they were all pretty good.
2010 Domaine Rougeot Pere et Fils Volnay Santenots Premier Cru - I recall some nice tannins.
2010 Domaine Lignier-Michelot Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru Cuvee Jules - This was very good overall.
2008 Henri de Villamont Volnay - I do like many of the 2008's I've tried, a mixed, but possibly underrated vintage.

Flight 8
2007 Jean-Michel Guillon et Fils Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru - Dark, earthy, lots of fine tannins. A touch closed but long and powerful.
2008 Domaine Michel Magnien Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru - My WOTN, and another good 2008! Just ticked all the boxes (except for age) and was the one I wanted more time with most of all.

Sweet
2009 Chateau Filhot Sauternes (mine) - Happy with this, great value too.


Great night as always, wasn't worried about being spaced out along the tables as with all the reflective surfaces, you couldn't have heard anyone at the other end of the table anyway. Nice friendly service, food was just OK but having the space to ourselves (and our own bar area) was awesome.

Cheers
Tim

[catchnrelease]

For anyone looking to do offlines in the future at La Boheme, make sure to ask for the table adjacent to the bar upstairs. Comes with a mini fridge for keeping whites, sink for emptying spittoons, decent glassware available (similar-ish shape to Zalto Universals) and handy place to open/keep bottles. The staff were also great at letting us do our thing and trusted us with the use of the bar.

I thought my pate and pork knuckle was pretty good, but it appeared the quality of food was variable across dishes.

[Polymer]

Highlights for me:
Fourny BdB - Really great way to start the night..Great line of acidity - Great mouthfeel...just what I'm looking for out of a BdB

Hospice Meursault Poruzots - Oak was there but the fruit carried it. Great acidity which when Meursaults have it, makes me love them so much.

Magnien Charmes Chambertin - I think Charmes Chambertin is vastly underrated. Power but finesse...great overall texture...light on the palate but good ripeness, good acidity...silky tannins (maybe too silky)...Wouldn't mind a bit more funk or earthiness but I really liked this..WOTN for me.

[dave vino]

Noticed la Boheme is closed until further notice. Hope it is not another restaurant going down.

[Bobthebuilder]

It did concern me every time we have been there the lack of patronage in the rest of the restaurant
really hope they don't go down, but I'm thinking it's highly unlikely they haven't