Musigny from De Vogüé, 2005 - 1969
The Vogüé domaine is one of the very few estates – not just in Burgundy but in the whole of France - to have survived in the same hands since the middle ages. It is currently owned by the Comtesse de Caussans and her sister Marie, grandaughters of Comte Georges de Vogüé who died in 1987. The 12.5 hectare domaine includes 2.7 ha. of Bonnes-Mares and land in Les Amoureuses, but, most importantly 7.12 ha., or 70 percent, of Le Musigny. Since the late 1980s the domaine has been run by a triumvirate: Francois Millet in the cellar, Jean-Luc Pepin in the office and Eric Bourgogne in the vineyard.
I presented the following range of wines to clients of Acker, Merrall in New York at the end of March 2009.
2005
Very good colour. Rich, firm, closed-in, concentrated nose. This has now begun to shut in. Full body. Gently oaky. Lots of intense, profound fruit. Vigorous. Very good grip. A big wine, but splendidly put together. Very good tannins. Lots and lots of class. Rather adolescent at present, but a very, very long, lovely finish nevertheless. Very fine indeed. From 2020.
2004
Good colour. Fragrant, ripe, medium weight nose. No great depth or dimension. But charming and already accessible. Medium body. Not a lot of tannin. Lacks a bit of vigour and succulence. I find it a bit one-dimensional and disappointing. Yet balanced and enjoyable. But for a top grand cru, even in this vintage, it lacks a bit. Better than the 2000 but less good than the 2001. Now-2016.
2003
Very concentrated, deep colour. Rich, ripe, but slightly monolithic on the nose. A certain inflexibility, but not too 'southern'. Exotic aand seductive on the palate. Really very rich indeed. Full body. Some tannin. But the tannins not exaggerated. Surprisingly good acidity underneath. Beginning to soften up and open out. Not classic but very fine all the same. From 2013.
2002
Fine, full, immature colour. Quite a high level of volatile acidity in this bottle (and there was no back up). Medium-full body. Rich and balanced. Excellent grip. Very, very lovely fruit. Not as full bodied as 2003 or 2005 ut marvelously poised and elegant. Very, very long. Excellent quality. Form 2015.
2001
Medium-full colour. Still youthful. Ripe, open, straightforward, accessible, plump nose. Balanced and attractive. Medium to medium-full body. Abundant. Just about ready. Very lovely Musigny fragrance. Harmonious. A point. Unexpectedly fine. An example of how good some 2001s can be in the Côte de Nuits in 2001. Now-2020.
2000
Medium colour. Hints of maturity. Not quite the weight on the nose of the 2001, but lovely fruit. Now mature. Fresh and enjoyable and charming. Medium body. Rather looser-knit than the 2001 by quite a way, and a little disappointing as a result. It's a bit one-dimensional at the end. Now-2015.
1999
Fine full colour. Still youthful. Rich, fullish, abundant nose. Still not yet ready, but not too backward and certainly not hard. Fullish body on the palate. Still some tannin. Even still a little adolescent. It doesn't quite sing today. Very good grip. Yet a zing and an intensity is missing. Curious. From 2013.
1998
Fullish colour. Still youthful. The nose is a little reticant, yet there is fine fresh, concentrated fruit here. Medium-full body. Very lovely, vibrant, succulent fruit on the palate.Fragrant and very stylish. Long, consistent and very lovely. Excellent for the vintage and now just about ready. Now-2025.
1997
Fuller colour than the 1998 but now just about mature. Plump, slightly cooked nose and palate. Decent grip. Ripe and fat, even sweet. Fresh at the end. Very fine for the vintage. Longer and fresher than most. But nevertheless a lack of real class. Now-2014.
1996
Full colour. Still youthful and bigger than the 1998. Reticent nose, but very classy. But on the palate a little lean, a little astringent. I much prefer the 1998. This is more structured, but less succulent and less harmonious. Give it another year to see what happens. 2010-2018.
1995
Fullish colour. Just about mature. Slightly smoky nose. Fat, rich and succulent. Not a bit unduly tannic. Fullish body. A little tannin still to resolve. Very good grip and lots of energy. Ripe and vigorous. Not exactly very rich, but very classy and very long on the palate. A lovely wine, especially with food. Just about ready. Now-2020.
1994
Quite a full, fresh colour for a 1994 in 2009. Mature but not unduly so. Ripe nose. Good weight. Good depth. Good class. Good fruit. This is plump and fruity and surprisingly fresh and enjoyable. Will still keep well. Now-2014.
1993
Full, rich colour. Still very youthful-looking. Still very young on the nose for a 16 year old wine, and even a little tight. High quality concentrated fruit on the palate. Harmonious and profound in a slightly austere sort of way. More concentrated and more volume than the 1995. More depth too. Marvelously vigorous follow-through. Excellent. Only just ready. Will last for ages. Now-2030.
1992
Medium to medium-full colour. Still vigorous. Soft, plump, ripe nose. Similar attack. The fruit is beginning to lose its succulence on the palate. But there is still good weight, grip and vigour. Still enjoyable. But drink soon.
1991
Surprisingly good colour. Good, weighty, rich, balanced nose. Lots of depth. Really very fine. Probably the finest really mature wine of the series (not counting the 1969). Fullish body. Fresh, harmonious and full of fruit. Long, complex and classy. Now-2021.
1990
Full, firm nose. Still firm and monolithic on the nose. Seems a little over-extracted. But not too much so. Just a little rigid. Very full body. Excellent grip. It loosened up, to its advantage, in the glass. Lots and lots of very concentated wine here. More to it in its monolithic way than the 1993. But very fine? Great? Leave it another five years and we'll see.
The 1990 Vogüé Musigny is a controversial wine, especially in the USA. I have mis-guessed it on more than one occasion, even taking it for one of Guigal's La-Las about a decade ago. Yet bottles on this side of the Pond do not seem to be as rigid. I still prefer the 1993 but am much more comfortable with the bottles of 1990 I have in my own cellar.
Could it have been that the US stock, at some point in its journey from Chambolle onwards, was subject to temperature abuse?
Many thanks to Mark O'Connell for this vin de nuit:
1969
Fullish, fully mature colour. But absolutely no sign of age. Delicious nose: fragrant, complex, poised and still very much alive. Very lovely, naturally sweet fruit. Long and one-dimensional. Still very fresh. Very fine indeed. Plenty of life ahead of it.