WineLovers Discussion Group

As I continue through my never ending attempt to figure out Burgundy, today I bought a bottle of Vosne Romanee 00 J Grivot ($37 with PA tax) which I am planning on opening tomorrow night with dinner. Has anyone had this recently? Just curious to hear what some of you with more Burgundy experience have to say.

Hello Paulo,

Grivot is a very good maker and generally 2000 is a softer, user-friendly vintage - my guess is it should be drinking very well indeed. Please let us know how it goes.

David Lole wrote:Hello Paulo,

Grivot is a very good maker and generally 2000 is a softer, user-friendly vintage - my guess is it should be drinking very well indeed. Please let us know how it goes.

I certainly will, David. Thanks for your post!

Agree with David: though some 2000s were still closed a year back, everything I've had since has been lovely straight out of the bottle, a little less acidic than usual, abundantly fruity, rarely complex, but always a delight! Do report back. I want to find more 2000s for drinking now!

Paulo, If you run into a 2000 Laurent Vos. Rom. Les Beaux Monts grab it. A bit subtle and dainty, but rippling with a well balanced goodness and the unending finish that I think only Burgundy can provide. It seems that with good Burgundy putting it in the mouth and swallowing is just the beginning. It's what happens afterward that really makes the difference. Would be interesting to compare the Laurent to your Grivot.

PS: We usually just let the Burgundy breath in the bottle for about 30 minutes before drinking. From everything I've read decanting Burgs is an iffy proposition.

From everything I've read decanting Burgs is an iffy proposition.

I've read this many places but never noticed anything go wrong. I decant young and old Burgundies, red and white. What goes wrong?

Another good 2000 recco is Drouhin's Clos des Mouches Rouge. That's a superlative 1er Cru in Beaune, and rather cheaply priced for the quality.

Sam Platt wrote:Paulo, If you run into a 2000 Laurent Vos. Rom. Les Beaux Monts grab it. A bit subtle and dainty, but rippling with a well balanced goodness and the unending finish that I think only Burgundy can provide. It seems that with good Burgundy putting it in the mouth and swallowing is just the beginning. It's what happens afterward that really makes the difference. Would be interesting to compare the Laurent to your Grivot.

PS: We usually just let the Burgundy breath in the bottle for about 30 minutes before drinking. From everything I've read decanting Burgs is an iffy proposition.

Thanks for the info, Sam. So, you don't actually decant it, you just open your bottles? I guess if I had had better wine glasses it would have been easier and better to swirl my wine.

Otto wrote:Quote:
From everything I've read decanting Burgs is an iffy proposition.


I've read this many places but never noticed anything go wrong. I decant young and old Burgundies, red and white. What goes wrong?

Otto, I bought some wine made by Jacques Seysses a few years ago. After my purchase I sent an e-mail inquiry to him regarding the need to decant. He sent me a rather detailed response which in essence said that Burgundy is more delicate than other wines. Therefore only very young Burgundy should be decanted at all, and then only just before drinking to open the wine a bit. His concern is that the wine will be "muted" if it is exposed to very much air. He went on to say that a Burgundy greater than ten years in age should never be decanted, and should be allowed to open up in the glass. Mr. Seysses stresses appreciating the subtlety in Burgs and believes that exposure to air supresses it. He seemed to know what he was talking about, so I have followed his advice.

I do decant some white Burgs to let the acid blow off a bit.

Sam--I admit that a lot of burg lovers don't decant, but I think that is changing. A few points come to mind: first, a 2000 Burgundy (especially from Grivot) is still young. Secondly, wine enjoyed over dinner in America may be a different experience than in Europe. I suspect we spend quite a bit less time at the table. I've been decanting Burgs regularly for almost 3 years and I have not had a bad experience yet. In fact, the last glass is usually much better than the first.

I don't splash decant, it is a gentle pour into a small surface area decanter. I try and open any burgundy under 15 years (vintages can move this number around) 2 hours before dinner. I take a small pour and try to guage where the wine is. If it is in a good spot I'll recork. I then recheck every thirty minutes or so. If it not showing much or is still tight within an hour of dinner I'll do the decanting. 80% of the time I do decant; I rarely recork. Even with this air the last glass over an hour at dinner is often the best. I haven't had any fall off yet.

All I can say is give it a try, you might be pleasantly surprised. It worked very well for me last weekend, with a '99 Drouhin Gevrey-Chambertin:

I opened the Drouhin 90 minutes before dinner. First sip was pretty tight, when I checked back later it hadn't budged much so we gave it an hour in the decanter. Color was clear, bright ruby red all across the beam. Nose evolved slowly to settle in with red fruits with an earthy undertone. At the start of the meal the tannins had backed down and revealed some very evocative tastes of red fruit, orange and cranberry. As you'd expected that was pretty tart, in fact too tart. A little more time and the food helped. By the cheese course everything was balanced out, the wine was quite tasty, with medium heft and finish. Dawn found some spice notes that I missed. Good value for a village wine. Drinking well now with air; should be good for years.

Dan, My only real attempt at decanting a red Burg was a rather harsh '98 Fixin that we drank last year. Decanting didn't help, but that particular wine may have been beyond redemption. Most of the 1er Crus I have had seemed quite approachable and stable in the glass without decanting. The d' Angerville Volnay does seem to open up in the class quite a bit and I could see how it might benefit from some time in the decanter. I have always been scared to death of screwing up the handful of aged GC's that I have poured, so I tend to gulp them before they have a chance to fall apart, probably cheating myself out of full enjoyment in the process. I rarely drink any Burgs under six years of age, but I do have the 2001 Jadot version of the Gevrey-Chambertin that I am thinking about pouring this summer. On your advice I will pop it into the decanter before dinner to see how it evolves.

Great TN Paulo. The wine sounds very Vosne with the spicy nose you described. I've never tried a wine from Grivot. I will have to keep an eye out for them.

My small experience with Burgundy is the wines do seem to evolve over several hours, and I enjoy experiencing the changes. I guess if I was pouring only one glass from the bottle for 5-6 people I might decant, but if it is only my wife and myself I usually open the bottle an hour before drinking and pour out one glass when I first open the bottle.

Hope you are well,

Marc