Ahhhhhh, the official tasting of the 2006 vintage from the Domaine des Hospices de Beaune. The timid should stay away because this tasting involves 41 different cuvees of reds and whites of the recently fermented vintage. You leave with stained fingers and black teeth, and a palate that is crying for water! It's tough work but somebody's gotta do it.
Lines can be long but the ambiance is party-like. We entered the new cuverie, next to the hospital just north of Beaune, and start the process by going through the reds. As for operations, this assembly line of tasters and pourers goes very smoothly. I'm a hero for the little guy so I try to pick out all that is good in what comes first; the lesser reds. The Savigny's, Monthelie's Auxey-Duresses, and the Pernard-Vergelesses. In general, these are highly aromatic with more present tannins than what comes later. Lighter red wines for more casual consumption. Next come the Beaune's, first the villages then the 1er Crus. More spicy here, richer and longer than what preceded. The 1er crus have better integrated tannic structure and become less-spittable. Of note was the 1er Cru Beaune-Greves, cuvee Pierre Floquet, and the Beaune 1er Cru, cuvee Guigone de Salins.
The Volnays, Pommards, and Grand-Cru's follow and by the look of my notes, which started with descriptions now only contain stars or smiley faces. Spitting was becoming more difficult. A perennial favorite, Pommard 1er cru, cuvee Dames de la Charite, was a stunner. As for the Grand Crus, Dr Peste (Corton) was our favorite.
Then come the whites. Thankfully, because in a way they are the thirst quencher you need after all the reds. A homogeneous high quality was evident in these 2006's. The numerous Meursault cuvees were equally good to the grand crus (Corton Charlemagne) and it was very difficult for any of us to discern differences between any of them. Some were still undergoing malolactic fermentation, but other than that (major) difference, distinct cuvee personalities were hard to pick out. Good news for the quality conscious but perhaps less so for those who pay equal value to "terroir". It will be interesting to see how the "professional" critics judge the vintage....
The tasting takes place Friday and Saturday before the auction, which begins at 2:30 on Sunday. I've experienced
the auction a few times but never considered bidding on a barrel because of, the cost obvioulsly, but also because of the the logistics surrounding said barrel once I take ownership. You must find a negotiant willing to raise and bottle the wine for you and that's not so obvious...
This year I was invited to bid with aconsortium of buyers in the non-profit "Les Amis des Vin des Hospices de Beaune". This association has a relationship with a prominent negotiant in Beaune who raises the barrels they win at the auction. From the tasting the buzz around town was that the reds would go or similar prices as the '05 but that a 20% increase was expected for the whites. With this in mind we chose to bid on a barrel of white, with the hopes of gettiing some Mersault 1er Cru. A 20% premium over the '05 meant we had to select a bid of 56 euros/bottle (tax incl.). That would be or max, but we hoped to get a deal. We placed the bid but left before the results. On Monday we learned that the whites sold at 60% above what the '05 vintage earned and that our barrel of Meursault 1er cru went for 60 euros/bottle. Ouch! What's 4 euros you say? Not much but we were hoping to get a barrel for closer to 45 euros a bottle. No such luck this year. France's wealthiest hospital would have to do without our contribution. I think they'll survive.
