A Leroy Evening

The Leroy Wines Line-Up

8 Dec 2012: We all arrived at this dinner with a lot of expectations, understandably.  We were going to appreciate the wines by Leroy from the vintages of 1961 and 1962, as well as a few recent vintage whites from Domaine d'Auvenay.  All the older vintage bottles were recent releases from the cellars at the domaine and they were the original negoce wines that predated the purchase of vineyards which would give rise to Domaine Leroy.  We had 16 wines altogether, sneaking in a 1962 Château d'Yquem to end the evening.  With pen and paper at hand, we were ready to go!
2007 Bourgogne Aligoté, Domaine d'Auvenay: Pale lemon colour. The nose reveals evident oak, with nuances of spice, vanilla and smoke, but it does not detract from the pure citrus fruit, floral and almond notes. A nicely rounded mouthfeel, quite chewy, balanced by lively acidity. Finishes long.  A very fine example of Aligoté and one made to last a while.  Drink now and over next 8 - 10+ years?  17/20
2004 Auxey-Duresses Les Clous, Domaine d'Auvenay: A more elegant nose here, quite subtle, with notes of floral and almond. Some minerality present in the linear structure, still showing good energy and tension.  A less substantial mouthfeel.  Spicy finish.  15.5/20

2001 Meursault Narvaux, Domaine d'Auvenay: Medium gold hue. Oxidation seems to have started its course in this bottle.  Ripe pear, honey, toffee, toasted almond and nutmeg.  Medium-full body, marked by lowish acidity.  Drink now.  15/20

1961 Beaune 1er Cru Les Teurons, Maison Leroy: A rather mature bouquet of plum, black cherry,  leather , smoke and soya sauce.  Light body, good acidity and silky texture.  Finishes short.  Probably better 10 years ago. 15.5/20

1961 Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos des Argillières, Maison Leroy: Medium-pale garnet.  A mature Burgundian nose that evokes game, leather, spices, underscored by sweet raspberry fruit.  Silky tannin and still fresh acidity.  Long finish.  A very attractive wine in a rustic style, with those hallmark sauvage notes. At peak. Drink now. 17.5/20

1962 Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cazetières, Maison Leroy: A well-structured wine given its age, showing lively acidity and fine silky tannin. Alluring aromas of leather, sous-bois, with ripe sweet red fruit still abundant.  Long finish. Drink now and over next 4 - 5 years.  17.5/20

1961 Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cazetières, Maison Leroy: Here the nose has more farmyard, mushroom and earthy notes, with coffee and leather.  Astringent finish.  Less acidity than the 1962.  More austere. Drink now and over next 3- 4 years. 16.5/20

1961 Clos de Vougeot, Maison Leroy: A very fine bouquet of the soils of Burgundy!  Leather, sous-bois, mushroom, game, earthy, with nuances of strawberry and cloves.  Perhaps not showing the most powerful structure, but there was a nicely rounded mouthfeel, with a good level of acidity, but probably drinking at peak now.  17.5/20

1961 Corton, Maison Leroy: A harmonious assembly of silky tannin, firm acidity and fresh fruit aromas nuanced with spices and leather. A very elegantly matured Corton.  Just a little astringent at the finish. Drink now and over next 6 - 8+ years.  18/20

1961 Grands Echézeaux, Maison Leroy: Drop-dead gorgeous aromatics.  Pure ripe fruit of plum and raspberry, layered with coffee, leather and tobacco.  A beautifully balanced wine, with plenty of finesse and complexity, the finish that lingers.  19/20

1962 Romanée Saint Vivant, Maison Leroy: Perhaps a touch on the over-ripe side, with notes of stewed fruit, spice and herb. Velvety ripe tannin, with firm acidity, sufficiently complex but not in a very elegant style.  Finish a little short.  Disappointing. 17/20

1962 Richebourg, Maison Leroy: Beautiful perfume of dried rose petals, leather, plum, sous-bois and tea leaves. Very fine structure of lively acidity and silky tannin that has so well integrated. There is incredible harmony and balance here, a wine that showcases the best signature of Burgundy wines, finesse, elegance, complexity and harmony.  Simply sensational, leaving you with an ethereal sense of perfection. Drinking at peak now and over next 8 - 10+ years. 19.5/20

1962 La Romanée, Maison Leroy: Less effusive on the nose, but slowly the intense bouquet shows notes of coffee, chocolate, nuts, autumn leaves and nutmeg. A more solid and intellectual wine, a little taciturn at the moment, will need more time to coax the best out. Drink over next 10 - 15+ years. 19.5/20

1961 Chambertin, Maison Leroy: A more muscular style of wine, more austere.  Sauvage, animal, leather notes, with underbrush and stones, with just a hint of raspberry.  Not so generous on the mouthfeel, lowish acidity. A heftily structured and well-balanced wine that will drink well for 8 - 10+ years. 18/20

1961 Musigny, Maison Leroy: Almost unctuous on the palate, quite opulent and rich in style. Just a hint of madeirisation.  Notes of stewed fruit, chocolate, fruitcake, nutty and coffee. Lacking in that stylish elegance that one would expect from a Musigny. 18/20

1962 Château d'Yquem: Deep amber hue. Botritised notes of marmalade, orange peel, with honey, hazelnuts and apricot. Not a rich Yquem, quite elegant, medium bodied, stll balanced with plenty of acidity, but already showing a drying finish.  Needs drinking!  18/20

The Really Serious Wines!

As for the food, we were totally spoilt once again by our most generous host and the duo of great chefs (Chef Xavier Gutierrez from Arzak and Chef Daniel Negreira from DN-Innovación).  The chefs very cleverly created a number of mushroom-based creations to go with the mature burgundies......the creative highlights for me were the Portobello Pizza and the 'Chicken' which almost tasted like a vegetarian version of 'sausage' meat made with mushroom, then formed into the shape of chicken, before roasting!  The best part was the table service - the 'chicken' was carved in front of us!

'Portobello Pizza'



 All the meat and poultry dishes were fabulously flavourful and very well-proportioned.  The plum chicken was absolutely juicy, tender and perfectly seasoned with just the right amount of plum sauce, not to interfere with the wine.  Coating the lamb with toasted chopped cashew nuts was simply brilliant.

'Duck Cous-Cous'

The duck breast with mint cous-cous went beautifully with the Richebourg.  The rich Musigny paired beautifully with the Kobe cheekbone.  The pigeon was so tender and juicy and was accompanied by burnt fig.  Well, I think I did run out of steam when dessert came....

What a sensational evening!  50 and 51 year old wines, whether at Premier Cru or Grand Cru level, most of which still performing so well, and showing such consistent quality, amazing balance and beautiful harmony.  Here we have experienced the timeless quality of Burgundy wines!  In a word, incredible!