). The tasting was ably conducted by Ariel Perez, a Chilean sommelier who was behind Brazil’s first biodynamic wine fair last year. At one point, one of the aforementioned writers declared that biodynamics in Burgundy is pure marketing, to which Perez diplomatically responded “I only agree with you 90%.”All wines were tasted blind, although we knew the dramatis personae, except for two ringers. We weren’t sure about the vintages, so I was on the lookout for acid-challenged 2003s. Like some do in Burgundy, we started with reds, then moved on to whites. The reds had some color variation to help our guesses, but the whites, from closely spaced years, all looked the same. Since we are not so familiar with Burgundy as to guess based on aroma, we had to rely on acidity to guess the vintages, and then make calculated guesses.
01) 2001 Domaine Pierre Morey/Maison Morey-Blanc Hospices de Beaune Corton Cuvée Dr. Peste Grand Cru
Muted fruit but heavy toast. Good acidity, so not 2003. Pleasant cherry, but not too complex. Probably Premier, possibly 2002 because still closed. Improved with air, and later with food.
02) 2002 Domaine Jacques Prieur Corton-Bressandes Grand Cru
Muted fruit, some bacon. Medium body, decent acidity, so not 2003. Also somewhat closed. Probably Premier, possibly 2002 because still closed.
03) 2004 Domaine Lamarche La Grand Rue Grand Cru Monopole
Very expressive nose of ripe cherry, sousbois and eucalyptus. Still quite tannic, with good acidity, so not 2003, probably a premier or grand cru from 2004. My favorite of the first flight (of four).
04) 2002 Ancien Pinot Noir Carneros
Muted nose but rich flavors and lacking acidity. Must be a 2003 premier. Very wrong, but how could I have known the ringer was from California? Flog me if you wish, but at least the answer was reasonable in terms of Burgundy.
05) 2004 Domaine Pierre Morey/Maison Morey-Blanc Aloxe-Corton Clos du Chapitre Premier Cru
Another muted nose, some sousbois, and that’s it. But the mouth feel was rich and expressive, though slightly marred by a bitter finish. Undecided between 2001 and 2004, probably Grand Cru.
06) 2000 Domaine Pierre Morey/Maison Morey-Blanc Hospices de Beaune Volnay Santenots Cuvée Jehan de Massol Premier Cru
Another muted fruit nose, with some spices. Good mouth feel, quite acidic, so not 2003, with a curious citric note. Must be a 2004 Premier.
07) 2001 Domaine Jacques Prieur Musigny Grand Cru
Now we’re talking! Lovely nose, beautiful cherry fruit, light mocha, and judicious oak. Lively mouth feel, excellent acid/sweet balance, elegant and silky. Must be 2000 or 2001, so could be the 2000 Volnay or the 2001 Corton or Musigny. My WOTN, so maybe it’s the Musigny.
08) 2003 Domaine Jacques Prieur Beaune Champs-Pimont Premier Cru
Vanilla nose. Creamy, fat, too sweet, needs acid. Yuck. Surely 2003.
09) 2002 Ancien Chardonnay Carneros
Muted fruit, mineral and vanilla crème brulée. Creamy, sweet, needs acid. Must be another 2003 (oops, but, again, how could I have known? Flog me, etc. etc.)
10) 2004 Domaine Pierre Morey/Maison Morey-Blanc Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
Lovely mineral nose, great acid/sweet balance, harmonious and a pleasure to drink. Must be 2004, and the Grand Cru (hooray).
11) 2003 Domaine Jacques Prieur Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru
Nose of oak, oak, and oak. Fruit is rich, but wine is fat. Another one that needs acid. Must be another 2003 Premier, or the ringer.
Before unveiling the wines, Ariel offered a bottle of 2002 Jacques Prieur Corton-Bressandes to anyone who guessed which one it was. Since I think of my 2002s Burgs as still closed, I whispered to Marcia that it had to be either no. 1 or 2. She picked no. 2, I picked no. 1 (for coverage), and everyone else picked higher numbers, so Marcia got it! We left with a bottle costing more than the registration fees, plus a copy of Nicolas Joly’s book as prize for being (incredibly) the only ones present who could name three biodynamics practitioners in Burgundy. Fun, fun, fun.