This tasting was run two days in a row with a very similar line up at Edgar’s house, comparing Burgundy vs. famous Pinot Noir around the World to see where the quality stands outside of the Côte d’Or. We organized the line-up by Burgundy appellation and put the non-Burg Pinots into these flights as we saw fit. Outside of Burgundy, Felton Road confirmed its status as one the the best non-Burg Pinot Noir. A new commer from Neuchatel/Switzerland, Domaine St.Sebaste is also a name to look out for. It has performed well in several blind tastings in the past.
Tasting Notes
Flight 1 – Cote de Beaune Reds
2014 Domaine Cornu Corton Le Rognet et Corton, 93 Points
Lovely structure wrapping ripe red fruit, very good balance, lots of red fruit, some meaty elements as well, masculine. A touch tannic on the finish, young. Very good freshness.
2014 Domaine Heitz-Lochardet Pommard 1er Cru Les Rugiens, 93 Points
Nose of whole cluster, clear greenness that you have to like. Some Co2, as well that dissipated with time, very racy. I love the fresh aromatics here but the pyrazines are not for the faint hearted.
2015 Jean Stodden Spätburgunder Alte Reben, 93 Points
Discrete nose, light and pleasant, not overly deep with red and blue fruit, feels closed still. Tight palate with good mid mouth presence. A little oaky on the finish, that will need some more integration. Definitely one to lay alway still.
2019 Joseph Drouhin Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Mouches Rouge, 95 Points
Discrete nose, after swirling, beautiful aromas of sweet oak, red fruit, flowers. Very polished palate, caressing, a dream in the making, showed very well today and was the favorite of many.
2013 Domaine Cornu Corton Le Rognet et Corton, 93 Points
Very aromatic wine right off the bat, intense, more licorice, rhubarb, sour cherry intermixed with spices. Excellent length. Acidity may be a little too pronounced.
Flight 2 – 1er Crus mixed across appellations
2014 Domaine de L’Arlot Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Suchots, 93 Points
Ripe red fruit and also a bit of confiture, strawberry, feels youthful. Lots of density, gripping tannis still. Good aromatics and length. This has upside from here. 93-94
2012 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Combe aux Moines Vieille Vigne, 95 Points
Fourrier Combe aux Moines. Beautiful nose of red fruit, spices and sous-bois. Sublimely elegant palate, very grand wine in the red fruit spectrum. 95+
2013 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Combe aux Moines Vieille Vigne, 94 Points
Nose still closed, some sweet spices, ripe strawberry, a little cooked fruit, strawberry jam as well. Very austere. The 2014 a day before was miles ahead.
2019 Kistler Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast, 92 Points
Vanilla and oak, generous and sweet spices, sweet mouthfeel but attractive, more vanilla then the others. Modern, red cherries, lots of sweetness, but attractive overall.
2018 Rudolf Fürst Hundsrück Spätburgunder Großes Gewächs, 95 Points
Wonderful nose combining red and dark fruit with mint and pine. Very fragrant, very grand. Long finish. Top showing.
2018 Kistler Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast, 93 Points
Lots of Co2 on the nose that needed to dissipate. Explosive nose, very showy with strawberry bonbon and oak spice. Comes into place with air. New worldish, crowd pleasing but not vulgar, stays elegant.
Flight 3 – Morey St.Denis
2012 Lucien Le Moine Clos de la Roche, 95 Points
Expressive nose with dark fruit, goes deep into forest floor territory, soft tannins, ripe with sweet spices. Nice and very complete. 95+
2017 Rose & Arrow Pinot Noir Worden Hill, 93 Points
Rose & Arrow, Worden Hill Fantastic nose jumping from the glass, cranberries, strawberry, lots of baking and cinnamon, spice. Ripe and succulent palate. May be not the deepest wine tonight but so charming.
2016 Friedrich Becker Sankt Paul Spätburgunder Großes Gewächs, 87 Points
Earthy and dark. Very closed. The wine felt very rustic with drying tannins, not much elegant Pinot typicity
2014 Lucien Le Moine Clos St. Denis, Flawed
Dense and tannic. Some cooked strawberry jam, overripe notes on the nose, finishes a touch dry. May be not the best bottle. NR
2010 Georges Lignier et Fils Clos de la Roche, Flawed
Lots of acidity, lightly overripe touch, drying finish, not very pleasant, volatile acidity, austere. May be not the best bottle. NR
Flight 4 – Gevrey Chambertin, Clos Vougeot
2010 Domaine Trapet Chambertin, 93 Points
Chambertin Expressive nose of sweet spices, earthy elements. Lovely balance, tannins polished. Good but would need more complexity for a higher score. 93+
2014 Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Clos Vougeot, 94 Points
Had this wine twice in blind tastings this month. Today it was much more open than last time Stunning nose of red fruit and sweet spices, lovely oak management, bright acidity, very succulent. Modern but very good. Early drinking window.
2017 Bass Phillip Pinot Noir Estate, 93 Points
Very fruity nose with lots of Co2. Good sweetness, spices, lots of aroma, bright acidity, a little superficial, but charming.
2019 J.C. Kuntzer et Fils Pinot Noir Clos de la Perrière Domaine Saint-Sébaste, 94 Points
Soft succulent, oak, sweetness, generous, very nice. Bright acidity, good mid mouth fill. Modern but good, very complete and very popular tonight. This is a producer to watch.
2020 J.C. Kuntzer et Fils Pinot Noir Clos de la Perrière Domaine Saint-Sébaste, 95 Points
Generous, ripe fruit, much more dark fruit than the Tatasciore next to it. Reductive, top showing with freshness and density, some CO2 and flintiness. Very good. This is a producer to watch.
2019 Domaine de la Rochette (Jacques Tatasciore) Pinot Noir Les Virgas, 93 Points
Fresh, red fruit, long, some CO2, light palate, linear and precise, subtle struture. Delineated, good, but not with Grand Cru concentration. Good but the St.Sebaste next to it had the edge.
Flight 5 – Vosne Romanee / Echezeaux
2014 Gros Frère et Sœur Echezeaux, 94 Points
Gros Frere Soeur Echezeaux Nose of cola, cherry notes, very succulent but so charming, how not to dislike this, very light, so nice. 94+
2013 Domaine Coquard Loison-Fleurot Grands-Echezeaux, 93 Points
Darker, deeper than the Gros F&S next to it. Quite dense, beautiful. A little flat on the finish, tame, good but not great.
2018 Bell Hill Pinot Noir, 93 Points
Very smoky (apparently this comes from the volcanic soil), so precise, laser sharp, flinty, extreme reduction flintiness, like in a white Burg, but great, but some people were put off by the prominent reduction. A lot of non-Pinot drinkers struggled with this, I loved it
2016 Gantenbein Pinot Noir, 92 Points
Oaky, stale smoke, red and dark fruit, a but rustic from the smoke, not a good showing. Had better samples of this.
2020 Gantenbein Pinot Noir, 94 Points
Very good showing, complete, complex. Very young. A little too smoky still from the oak but that will surely integrate.
Flight 6 – Chambolle Musigny
2014 Domaine Drouhin-Laroze Musigny, 90 Points
Dense, deep, dark fruit, not singing yet, holds potential, ripe, a touch of confiture, closed, austere.
2010 Hubert Lignier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Chabiots, 96 Points
Wow, really fragrant and intense nose here with the best Vosne spices that Burgundy can offer. Sous bois, leather, cinnamon. Elegant palate. A ballerina. My personal WOTN.
2013 Domaine de la Vougeraie Bonnes Mares, 95 Points
Really top as well. Super fragrant, has it all, spice, red fruit, succulent palate. Modern, with. Good dose of oak, but so caressing.
2016 Felton Road Pinot Noir Block 5, 95 Points
Precise, reduction, top aromas, violets, red fruit, mint, a bit of reduction as well. Then orange peel, citron even, very fresh 95+., The group’s WOTN of the tasting, Kudos to team Felton Road from New Zealand.
2015 Felton Road Pinot Noir Block 3, 95 Points
Like the Block 5, a top showing, complete with red fruit, fresh, racy with violets and red fruit, sweet spices. Wonderful. Felton Road showed its mettle again.
2013 Domaine Drouhin-Laroze Musigny, 93 Points
Decanted for 2h. Dark fruit, and after a decant it showed some overripe notes. Still rustic. In need for more time.
2011 Hubert Lignier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Chabiots, 95 Points
Like the 2010 the day before this is ultra fragrant, with red fruit, bready notes, farmyard. Simply wonderful.
Winners of the Non-Burg catgegory (+ Fürst Hundsrück, no photo)
Author: Christian Raubach, WSET III, FWS, WSG Champagne Master
27. May 2024