Panel Tasting - Burgundy Clones

17 March 2007.

It was at a recent tasting of a mad range of wines at Oddbins, I came across a Californian Chardonnay from the Russian River Valley (2002) made by Ramey and costing a pretty penny, that a thought occurred; why would someone pay in the region of £30 for a Chardonnay from California when you can get a decent Meursault for the same price and get all the associated cachet to boot? But then, the Californian might just be a much superior wine, and at that price it had better be good, where the Meursault can coast on its reputation alone.

Only one way to find out. Pit three Chardonnays and three Pinots of similar price but from varying world regions against one another and see what happens.

So that's exactly what we did. It turned out a pretty impressive tasting, but you would expect that for a range of wines costing between £16 and £30. We scored them with the price range in mind (although all blind) and were pretty critical about some of them. When you pay that kind of money you expect nothing but a solid, well made wine with character. Even this tasting shows that money doesn't always talk. To get a decent choice of wines and vintages I decided to check out the Berry Brothers & Rudd (BBR) website and 4 of the wines were sourced there. The other two, both Hamilton Russell, are available at Peckham's Glasgow and some Oddbins stores.

Here are the wines in order of merit, Chardonnays first:

Meursault

Les Grands Charrons 2001
Appellation Meursault Controlee
Domaine Hubert Bouzeau-Gruere et Filles

BBR - £22.00

Frankly I had not expected the Meursault to do this good, especially at this price, but it showed classic leesy notes not unlike Champagne, a sweet buttery nose developing, with a little pineapple and good concentration. The palate had a good balance of acidity and body. It was still fresh with lemon zest but had a wonderful softness.

4 Stars (24/30)

Hamilton Russell
Chardonnay 2005
Hemel-en-Aarde Valley - Walker Bay
Hamilton Russell Vineyards

Peckham's - £15.99

A much younger example and also the least expensive of the lot this does not have the complexity of the Meursault (yet). Instead you get fairly intense fresh passion fruit, apples and pineapple on the nose. Slightly lower acidity than the Meursault makes it feel somewhat softer. Again an impressive balanced wine with a long finish, which is pretty good value as the cheapest of Chardonnays.

4 Stars (23.5/30)

Au Bon Climat

Chardonnay 2002
Sanford & Benedict Vineyard
Santa Ynez Valley-California
Jim Clendenen – Mind Behind
BBR - £18.95

I was decidedly unimpressed with the nose which although buttery also had a rubbery/smoky note and something vaguely floral. The palate is dry with medium acidity. Soft and creamy but no great shakes. Medium length over the hill and not worth the £19. I secretly had wanted this to be the Meursault, just to show it up, but credit where credit's due.

3 Stars (17/30) - I think we're being kind.......

Hamilton Russell
Pinot Noir 2004
Hemel-en-Aarde Valley - Walker Bay
Hamilton Russell Vineyards
£25.99 - Oddbins Fine Wine
 

Lovely ruby colour with some brick highlights starting to appear. A cherry pie nose with vanilla and some truffle undertones. A slight wet dog smell, trust me, much better than it sounds. The palate is dry, fairly full-bodied with delicious sweet cherry characters. Fine grained ripe tannin and the fairly high acidity make this a superbly balanced and structured wine. Top it off with a fantastic length and we have one impressive wine. Give it some time as it is still young, but very promising.

5 Stars (28/30)

Domaine Drouhin

Pinot Noir 2002
Cuvee Laurene
Oregon Estate Selection
Drouhin Family Estate

BBR - £29.50

Quite a deep ruby core with brick highlights. An intense cherry nose with hints of black truffle and some coffee, somehow seeming younger than the Hamilton Russell even though this is three years its senior. Dry, with a medium body. Sweet, ripe cherries with fairly high, ripe tannin. Delicious, but I feel this does need more time to really come into its own.

4 Stars (23/30)

Chambolle-Musigny
Les Athets 2002
Appellation Chambolle-Musigny Controlee
Domaine Jean Tardy et Fils
BBR - £29.50