Wine Trios Comparative Tasting

Wine Trios Comparative Tasting
The first trio tasting was such a success, we couldn’t resist doing another. The Trios format is a little different from our other tastings, as it is not a single theme but multiple ones. We have selected three closely related wines from five different wine regions to compare in small flights. It is fun, instructive and allows us to drink a lot of different but highly rated wines in a single evening. We begin in Champagne with three vintages of Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut from 2005, 2006, and 2007. For our Bordeaux flight we focused on the legendary 1982 vintage. And we went with three wines that were originally all part of the enormous 300-hectare Leoville estate. Soon after the French Revolution, the Leoville Barton parcel was sold, and in 1840, the remaining estate vineyards were divided into Poyferré and Las Cases. With the Burgundy flight, we loosened things up a little. The wines are all from the highly regarded 1999 vintage and come from three different appellations in the Côte d’Or. From Gevrey Chambertin, Jadot’s lovely Charmes-Chambertin. From Vougeot, we have one of the top producers, the Clos Vougeot of Hudelot-Noëllat. Nuits-St-Georges does not boast a Grand Cru, so the Chevillon Les Vaucrains might be considered a step down, but it isn’t.
It is consistently an overachiever, and this particular wine may be the finest they have ever made. One of Napa’s most storied names, Joseph Phelps has been around since the early seventies. Up until 1992, their three best wines were Backus, Insignia and Eisele. It is a rare treat to have the chance to taste all three, particularly when the vintage is as successful as the 1985. There have been few changes at Joh. Jos. Prüm over the years. Perennially one of Germany’s finest wines, Dr Katerina Prüm, the winemaker, may tweak things here and there according to the weather, but the formula remains pretty much the same. Beautifully crafted, sweet wines from some of Germany’s greatest vineyards, where remarkably 70% of the vines are ungrafted. We will be focusing on their best vineyard, Wehlener Sonnenuhr and the brilliant 2019 vintage, showing three wines, a Spätlese, an Auslese and the rare Auslese Goldkapsel.
- Taittinger Comtes de Champagne, Blanc de Blancs Brut 2005
- Taittinger Comtes de Champagne, Blanc de Blancs Brut 2006
- Taittinger Comtes de Champagne, Blanc de Blancs Brut 2007
- Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru 1999
- Domaine Robert Chevillon, Nuits-St-Georges 1er Cru Les Vaucrains 1999
- Louis Jadot Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru 1999
- Château Léoville-Las Cases 1982
- Château Léoville-Poyferré 1982
- Château Léoville Barton 1982
- Joseph Phelps Vineyards, Insignia 1985
- Joseph Phelps Vineyards, Backus Vineyard 1985
- Joseph Phelps Vineyards, Eisele Vineyard 1985
- Joh. Jos. Prüm, Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spätlese 2019
- Joh. Jos. Prüm, Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese 2019
- Joh. Jos. Prüm, Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Goldkapsel 2019