Domaine Leroy Tasting Dinner at Wine Watch 7pm

It's a naive domestic Burgundy without any breeding, but I think you'll be amused by its presumption.  James Thurber 1894 - 1961  Caption for cartoon in The New Yorker

[FIRSTNAME], I have been salivating about this event for the last month and at just under a week away I am really starting to get excited.  We have a warm up for you as far as Burgundy is concerned this weekend with Alex Gambal in the store this Saturday night and we still have a few seats open!  We will be showing all of Alex's 2007's along with a few surprises from my cellar.

Leroy Wine Tasting/Dinner at Wine Watch
Friday March 5th
7:00pm

Every Year Lalou Bize-Leroy releases some wines from her magnificent cellar in Auxey-Duresses going back three decades or more. In 2008 we bought some things from the 1998, 1988 and 1978 vintages and 1988 just happens to be the first release of the Domaine wines from Leroy. Before 1988 the wines of this producer were that of a true negociant, and one of the most respected in all of Burgundy. Today they are still one of the most respected and highly sought after wines from Burgundy and can be considered to be a relative value if you look at the release prices of 2006 vintage wines from producers like Domaine de la Romanee Conti and George Comptes de Vogue, their top wines are selling for between $1000- $5000 per bottle. The most expensive bottle on this Leroy offering is under $2000/btl and has been aged at the cellars of Leroy for 30 years before making its way to you! This dinner will be a spectacular display of mature burgundies from one of the best of the best. We will be sampling a total of 10 wines from Leroy paired to a five course tasting menu, the fee for this tasting is $375 + tax, there are only 16 seats available for reservations call 954-523-9463.

"In her wines, Lalou seeks a magnified delineation of flavors. Each wine offers a kaleidoscope of sensation, each of which is distinct from the other with no blurring or muddiness. Because of this, it is virtually impossible to mistake one vineyard for another in a Domaine Leroy wine. Lalou seeks a degree of purity, allied to extraordinary concentration, that is almost unmatched by any other producer." - Matt Kramer, LA Times 

"Her wines are exactly what they should be as expressions of the terroirs from which they come." - Robert Finigan

"I have said it so many times that it may seem redundant, but " let me repeat it- Lalou Bize-Leroy stands alone at the top of Burgundy’s quality hierarchy. Because she is a perfectionist, and because she has the courage to produce wines from low yield and bottle them naturally, without fining or filtration." - Robert Parker

Tasting Wines

Whites

1) 1998 Leroy Bourgogne Blanc
Price: $39         Sale $34.32      Case $398

Still with lots of ripe apple and lemon citrus fruit on the nose with notes of stone like mineral and lightly toasted oak spice. Very lively on the tongue with a good amount of zesty acidity a good mid palate of ripe fruit and nice spice notes through the finish. Finish 45+ VERY GOOD +

2) 1999 Leroy Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrieres
Price: $185       Sale $157
(2 bottles available)

3) 2004 Leroy Chassagne Montrachet Morgeot 1er Cru
Price: $146       Sale $124
(15 bottles available)

Reds

4) 2000 Leroy Volnay 1er Cru Santenots
Price: $257.75  Sale $219
(8 in Stock)

(87-90 Points) Almost black with beautifully defined fruit and excellent underlying material but this suffers from a lack of mid-palate density relative to the best in this range. The flavors are nicely complex and supple and offer lovely elegance and refinement. I very much like this. Burghound Issue 5 Tasted: Jan 01, 2002 Drink: 2004-10

5) 1986 Leroy Volnay Santenot 1er Cru
List $375          Sale $330
(1 in Stock)

(92 Points) The following wines are part of what Maison Leroy calls its Collection Series, most of which is being released on its 10th, 20th, 30th or 40th anniversary. All the wines have been stored in Leroy's cellars in Auxey-Duresses. Lalou Bize-Leroy

Tasting note: A complex and notably spicy sous bois-infused nose that is beautifully elegant and quite stylish that complements perfectly the round and almost fully resolved middle weight flavors that culminate in a delicious, velvety and sweet finish that is both powerful and long. This is a terrific '86 and one that is still full of vibrancy.  Tasted: Apr 01, 2006            Drink: now+  - Comments: Outstanding! Issue 22 Burghound

6) 1988 Domaine Leroy Clos Vougeot Grand Cru
Price: $1215     Sale $1033
(6 bottles available)

(93 Points) Explosive, massive nose of earth, spice and essence of pinot. Leroy wines are famous for their intensity but this is at another level altogether, which when combined with the incredible power and richness creates a wine that makes a firm statement of excellence. For all its power and richness however, it's not especially complex and it comes across as delicious rather than profound. That said the wine positively revels in its power and richness. Burghound Issue 4, Tasted: Oct 01, 2001 Drink: 2003-9

7) 1978 Leroy Clos Vougeot Grand Cru
Price: $1620     Sale $1377
(12 bottles available)

(95 Points)  (from a recent Leroy cellar release). Heavy bricking but still with a ruby core. The icy Leroy cellar conditions definitely show as this is remarkably fresh and vibrant yet there is ample sous bois and secondary fruit in evidence that complements the nicely pure, complex and superbly rich medium full flavors that really stain the palate with extract on the still mildly austere but explosive finish. Like the '78 Mazis, this is not an elegant wine but the sheer depth and length are really something to behold. Note that initially there was a touch of funk but it quickly blew off.  Tasted: Apr 06, 2008 Drink: Now+  Burghound

8) 1966 Leroy Chapelle Chambertin Grand Cru
List $600          Sale $528
(4 in stock)

(93 Points) As one would reasonably expect, this is a good deal more elegant than the Clos Micot with still gorgeously pure aromas of earth, leather and underbrush but also perfumed secondary fruit notes that complements perfectly the powerful but refined flavors that are delicious, long and stylish. This is a classy effort where the flair that accompanies a naturally elegant grand cru like Chapelle is on display in abundance. This could be enjoyed and over the next 20 years. Tasted: Apr 01, 2006    Drink: now+  Issue 22 Burghound

Dinner Menu

Baltimore Style Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes offered with Lemon Tarragon Aioli

Chinatown Shrimp Shumai offered with Mushroom Flavored Soy

Salmon Tataki on Sliced Cucumber with Spicy Mustard and Furikake

Syrah BBQ Braised Pork Resting on Roasted Corn Griddle Cake adorned with Scallion Crème Fraiche

Braised Duck and Wild Mushroom Tartlets

Other Domaine Leroy Wines and Maison Leroy wines available

Some Notes on the 2006 Vintage from Burghound

"Lalou Bize-Leroy calls 2006 the "modern day equivalent of 1962. In fact, 2005 and 2006 are very much like 1961 and 1962. There are of course always differences but to the extent that any vintage can really be compared with another, those are reasonably good parallels. We had slightly better yields in 2006 than 2005, coming in at between 19 to 20 hl/ha. In 2005, not including the Bourgogne, we were barely at 15. I view the wines as being built on their fruit but that doesn't mean that they won't age gracefully, much as the '62s have. I have every confidence that the wines will go 20 to 30 years with no trouble and the best examples will easily surpass that. In terms of more recent comparisons, the '06s remind me a bit of the 1986s in their youth in the sense of being more fruit-driven but the '06s are more complete wines and should age better. The '06s also have remarkable transparency of the underlying terroir and offer everything a burgundy enthusiast will love." In contrast to several recent vintages where the wines were bottled very early, the '06s were bottled in December, which is essentially the same month that the '05s were bottled in 2006.

The Leroy '06s are, with one notable exception, striking wines by any measure and several of the 1ers are simply stupendous. And for those readers who sometimes find the Leroy wines to lack elegance because they are so concentrated, then the '06s should appeal more because they have impressive elegance and display more finesse than certain other, more concentrated, recent vintages. This is not to imply that the '06s are not dense wines because they are but my point is that there is a certain tenderness, even a delicacy to them that is not always apparent early on with some other vintages."  Burghound

White

2006 Leroy Bourgogne Blanc
Price: $51.75    Sale $45.54      Case $528

2006 Leroy Bourgogne Blanc Aligote
Price: $57.25    Sale $50.38      Case $584

2006 Leroy Chassagne Montrachet Les Embrazes
Price: $153       Sale $130
(12 bottles available)

2006 Leroy Meursault Perrieres 
Price: $145       Sale $123.25
(24 bottles available)

2006 Leroy Puligny Montrachet Les Charmes
Price: $122.50  Sale $104.25
(24 bottles available)

2004 Leroy Puligny Montrachet Premier Cru
Price: $122.50  Sale $104.25
(6 bottles available)

2002 Leroy Montagny Blanc Premier Cru
Price: $73.25    Sale $64.46
(1 bottles available)

Red

2006 Leroy Volnay 1er Cru Santenots Du Milieu
Price: $718.50  Sale $610.75
(2 bottles available)

(93 Points) As one would expect, this offers another step up in aromatic depth and elegance, in particular refinement of the ripe, airy and impressively layered spicy red and black pinot fruit nose that displays hints of wood and earth that can also be found on the rich, full, sweet and seriously intense flavors underpinned by strong detail, minerality and excellent energy. This is at once suave yet beautifully precise while the sneaky long finish does a slow but sure build to an explosive finale.
Tasted: Apr 01, 2008 Drink: 2018+ Burghound Issue 30

2006 Leroy Chambolle Musigny les Charmes
Price: $718.50  Sale $610
(6 bottles available)

(94 Points) A strikingly elegant wild red berry fruit and cassis nose that exhibits lovely rose petal and violet notes that are classic Chambolle in character and style slide gracefully into the detailed, fresh, intense and very pure flavors that seamlessly finish with fantastic length. However, rather than exploding on the finale, this seems more focused and controlled, indeed almost Zen-like in its sense of harmony. Truly a distinguished effort. Tasted: Apr 01, 2008 Drink: 2018+  Burghound Issue 30

2006 Leroy Pommard Les Vignots
Price: $450       Sale $382.50
(2 bottles available)

(89 Points) An extract of dark berry fruit nose that is notably pure introduces rich and impressively constructed medium plus-bodied flavors that possess a sappy and textured mouth feel on the balanced and solidly persistent finish. This will be approachable young but should age well on its equilibrium. Tasted: Apr 01, 2008         Drink: 2014+

2005 Leroy Nuits St.Georges Aux Allots
Price: $386       Sale $328
(1 bottles available)

(89-92 Points)  A background note of well toasted oak frames very ripe and almost completely black pinot fruit aromas introduces rich and sweet flavors that are beautifully concentrated and the underlying depth is striking on the suave, mouth coating and powerful finish. There is real verve here and it adds to the wine's personality.  Tasted: Jan 01, 2007           Drink: 2013+ Burghound  Issue 25

2005 Leroy Pommard Les Vignots
Price: $416.25  Sale $354
(10 bottles available)

(88-91 Points) A spicy black fruit nose inflected with earth and a subtle animale note that continues onto the sweet, punchy and concentrated flavors that possess ample dry extract on the rich and unusually mineral-infused finish that delivers impressive length at this level. I like the balance and the tannins are relatively refined.  Tasted: Jan 01, 2007 Drink: 2013+  Burghound Issue 25

2005 Leroy Pommard Premier Cru 
Price: $237       Sale $201.45
(30 bottles available)

2005 Leroy Volnay
Price: $141.25  Sale $120
(24 bottles available)

2004 Leroy Nuits St Georges
Price: $225       Sale $191.25
(22 bottles available)

(93 Points) Surprisingly, given the vineyards blended into the respective cuvées, this is actually more elegant than the Bourgogne with a floral and wonderfully spicy aromatic profile and delicious, sweet, textured and intense medium full flavors that are powerful, muscular and powerful, all wrapped in a strikingly long finish. This is a 'wow' wine.
Tasted: Apr 01, 2006  Drink: 2013+ Comments: Don't miss! Outstanding Burghound Issue 22

2000 Leroy Cotes De Beaune Village
Price: $98.50    Sale $83.72     
(13 bottles available)

1999 Leroy Pommard Premier Cru 
Price: $490       Sale $416.50
(4 bottles available)

1978 Leroy Mazis Chambertin 
Price: $2160     Sale $1836
(12 bottles available)

(94 Points)  (from a recent Leroy cellar release). Bricking but still with a ruby core. An intensely sauvage element dominates the sous bois-infused nose that precedes the relatively fresh, intense, rich and sweet full-bodied flavors that finish with serious power and length. This is not an elegant wine but it's very Mazis and in exceptional condition as it should continue at this plateau for years to come. Moreover, the complexity here is flat out superb and the only nit that holds this back from the next level is a subtle trace of finishing warmth but otherwise, this is a truly great example of the vineyard.  Burghound Tasted: Apr 06, 2008   Drink: Now