The Tasting Panel magazine

STEVEN SPURRIER'S LETTER FROM LONDON Burgundies T Very Old PHOTO: DECANTER he invitation read: "I've got a lot of old Burgundies and don't know whether they are still drinkable, so can you come to dinner and we will see." This was from Roy Richards, partner in Richards Walford, one of the key importers and wholesalers of wine in the U.K., dealing only in the best family- owned estates, where wines are still hand- made in a manner that pleases the owner. I first met Roy when he was a student of wine, food and life in Paris in the early 1970s, followed his career as a restaurateur in his local Lincolnshire, where the depth and quality of the wine list matched his plain, but great, cuisine, and have tasted regularly the Richards Walford wines, many of them ending up in my own cellar, since he and Mark Walford formed the company in 1982. They have the best list of Burgundy domaines in the U.K., and since three years ago Roy himself spends half the year at his splendid townhouse, purchased from Roland Remoissenet, one of Beaune's most provocative négociants, which lies just on the boulevards of the town. There were ten of us for dinner, the most illustrious guest being Jasper Morris, MW, who too spends half his life in Burgundy, in the little village of Bouilland, and whose recent book Inside Burgundy (published by Berry Bros. & Rudd) is a treasure trove of the region's history and the nearest you will get to a private conversation with the people who produce it. The aperitif was a magnum of 1985 Le Mesnil, 100% Grand Cru Chardonnay, still fresh and creamy with ten years in front of it. Then, with Roy's subtle fish stew, came the whites: Tollot-Béaut 1970 Corton- Charlemagne, amontillado-coloured, rather like a dry Barsac but still vigourous; Louis Jadot 1934 Meursault-Genevrières, bright amber, nutty and very concentrated with almost searing acidity but the fruit still dominates; Louis Jadot 1973 Montrachet, pale amber-gold, rich and almost sweet after the Meursault with balancing acidity, very good 26 / the tasting panel / january/february 2012 indeed; finally, Marquis de Laguiche 1929 Montrachet took our breath away: vibrant amber, marvellous orange blossom bouquet, terrific vigour, rich with an exotic freshness— truly great. The reds, with a perfectly (under) cooked roast rib of beef (Roy has kept the same butcher for 30 years) began with the oldest: Négociant in Mercurey 1906 Romanée-Saint- Vivant, pale watery red but a taffeta/roses bouquet, still fragrantly present; then (I told you they were old) Château de la Tour 1919 Clos de Vougeot, still firm red, sweetness of fruit dominating the acidity, youthful, pure and memorable; Louis Latour 1923 Corton-Grancey, mid-red, slightly browning, warm nose and earthy fruit, great richness and length from another fine vintage; the Dufouleur Frères 1926 Nuits-Saint-Georges was dismissed by Roy as "too Moroccan," and indeed it was rather coarse and sweet, but set us up for one of the stars of the evening: Jules Régnier 1934 Latricières-Chambertin, still deep red, vibrant richness and smoothness, an impressively beautiful wine; Louis Latour 1934 Aloxe-Corton Clos de la Vigne aux Saints (this vineyard being later elevated to Grand Cru), described as having a nose of creamed peaches, was still sweet, exotic with lifted spice; Grivelet 1937 Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru showed hardly any age with a very true, slightly earthy concentration, a great wine; from the same vintage came Clerget-Buffet 1937 Pommard-Rugiens, clear mid-red, hardly any age, very Pommard with terrific structure and purity, perhaps the most precise wine of the evening. Finally, served blind, was a fabulous Henri Jayer 1978 Échezeaux, which the group thought was 1993 at the oldest. There was one bottle to go, a vintage port, of which we were asked to guess the year, Roy saying it had not moved from his cellar for 30 years. I guessed 1977 and was 50 years out, it being Sandeman 1927, with 1935 one of the two great vintages from that time. Some of us met up for lunch in the local town the following day for Chianti and pizzas.

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