a walk through gevrey chambertin

to be fair, it was sunday afternoon and not everyone was open. jill was recovering from open skies, and i needed to take some pictures. 2 gigs of photos later i have some great shots and did some even better tastings. as i write this we are working on a phillippe leclerc 1998 chambolle musigny "les babillaires." this was one of the numerous wines i had when i visted them; they appeared to be in the middle of a private tasting but accommodated me, particularly after i pointed out this would be my fourth tasting with them. the result was an over the top grouping of wines which i absolutely would recommend and only wish i could put a case of each in my cellar.

i am including photos of the soil and the status of the grapes for the folks who care.

this began with 2007 chambolle musigny les babillaires. nice young wine which i think will mature wonderfully. our second visit to gc was that year. the second wine was the one i am drinking now, chambolle musigny les babillaires 1998. this is a wonderful and delicate ruby wine with a nose of red cherries, a taste of ripe cherry and a hint of pepper, and a perfectly balanced finish. this is a great wine which i think shows the gentle and subtle nature of the aoc.

this was followed by 2007 gevrey chambertin "en champs." this is a nice wine and i would drink it starting in a couple of years. it opens the "flood gates" relative to the finishing wines.

the next to last wine was the 1er cru la combeaux moines. this was a big wine and still quite young. it will be wonderful in about a decade; i wish i could take a couple of cases home. we tasted this vineyard in 2007 and 2008 during our visits, as well as some older offerings. it is a well made and special wine.

the wine i bought to pack and take home was 2003 1er cru les cazetiers. although monsieur said it was ready to drink now, i found its beginings excellent but the tannins were still a bit strong for me. this bottle will get about 5 years in the cellar and then i think it will be perfect.

i find this stop to be a wonderful pause before we move south. tomorrow's agenda has some white options (not all chard's) and a progression from syrah based reds to what i think is the ultimate rose wine from tavel. stay tuned.