Meursault 'Desiree'..... La Turque.....

6/2003. Bought in England Aug-01 for $150.
Comtes Lafon [together with Coche-Dury] is by far the most celebrated producer of Meursault. His wines are always deep, concentrated, perfectly crafted and extremely expensive...
This 'Desiree' is a humble named-vineyard Village wine! Not many Village wines, be they red or white, command such a price. But then not every Village wine is a Lafon.
COLOR: Full, deep looking, golden yellow.
NOSE: Immense nose of depth and complexity. Aromas of white fruit like apples and pears, engulfed by minerals and lightly toasted almonds. Oak is apparent but it enhances rather than overshadow the other aromatic elements.
TASTE: Multidimensional and mouthfilling on the palate. I would never have guessed this is a Village wine! Creamy and buttery, this wine can really be chewed on. Multi-flavored with superb winyness and complexity. A wonderful pleasure to sip.
LENGTH: Really long and reverberating aftertaste.
TEXTURE & BALANCE: Medium-full bodied wine of perfect balance and proportions. Highly enjoyable now, but will even become even better in a few years when all elements are totally integrated.
OVERALL: Superb. A well-crafted wine, way above its pedigree. A beautiful expression of the Meursault terroir.
MARK: 18.5/20.aaaaaaaaBUY MORE? Yes.

6/2003. Bought at auction, Mar-00 for $370.
Decided to splurge and open a bottle of one of the fabled Guigal single-vineyards.
After initially being scorned at, 1991 has transpired to be a great vintage in the northern Rhone.
COLOR: Very dark violet-red, no clearing around the rim. Tons of sediment.
NOSE: Big nose of huge dimensions. Black fruit and raw red meat, spices and chocolate. In-your-face nose that is yet to open up completely but is already very impressive.
TASTE: Mouthfilling and immensely concentrated on the palate. Rich with dark fruit flavors and plenty of winyness. But impressive and awe-inspiring as this wine is, it lacks the complexity I would expect from such an expensive bottle.
LENGTH: Very long if a touch tannic aftertaste.
TEXTURE & BALANCE: A well-endowed blockbuster wine. Big, full, concentrated and rich. But don't look for subtlety, complexity or delicacy here. This [as most other Guigal bottles I've had] is a WYSIWYG [What You See Is What You Get] wine!
OVERALL: Outstanding! No doubt this is a great wine. But, for me at least, it is impressive more than it is 'singing'...
MARK: 19/20.aaaaaaaaBUY MORE? No.

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Copyright 1996-2003.
Jacob "Yak" Shaya.