2009 Maison Champy Burgundy

The 2009 vintage in both Burgundy and Bordeaux have gotten some great press lately and the Burgundies are in the process of being bottled and then shown to buyers throughout the world. I spent the better part of an afternoon in January tasting through the wines of Maison Champy at a very cool new(ish) restaurant in Soho called Lure. At the tasting was Pierre Meurgey the President of the Maison. He indicated to me that some of his wines are now Domaine...meaning his company owns the vineyards and that beginning next year it will indicate that on the label. For now I will indicate which wines are Domaine in my little notes below.

As with all the 2009 Burgundy, the whites are soft and ready, in general this is a Red Wine Vintage in Burgundy.

Prices are approximate

The Whites:

• Bourgogne Chardonnay - a touch chubby, ripe red apple notes, some waxy feel in the palate and a very vague sense of minerals - ~16
  
• Vire Clesse - fairly simple, the Bourgogne is as good, shows a touch of heat - ~17
  
• Saint Romain - decent minerals and citrus, rich palate very long finish, very pretty with some decent tannins - ~28
  
• Meursault - not typical of Meursault, soft and pretty but lacking in fruit and character, citrus tannins in finish and coating the teeth - ~52.50
  
• Meursault les Grands Charrons - this is a big for only $2.50 a bottle more than the above Meursault! Green and red apple notes and a hint of flint...long and mouthwatering, makes you want more - ~55
  
• Meursault Blagny 1er Cru - minerals first, then fruit aromas, sour patch citrus in the finish, showing more character right now than the les Cras - ~80
  
• Meursault les Cras 1er Cru - pretty closed right now but powerful in the palate with nice apple core and lemon/lime in the palate and finish - ~80
  
• Chassagne-Montrachet - decent power & fruits with a small touch of minerals/soil notes - ~50
  
• Puligny-Montrachet - a bit too gentle and elegant, lacking in character - ~50
  
• Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru - wow! rich but with a nice sensitivity and elegance, stone fruits, a touch of red apple and pear - ~128.75
  

Now for the Reds:
*note... some of the reds are barrel samples and will be bottled in late March or later and the cepage (blend) might change a touch.
I also tasted a few 2008 wines and was able to compare the 2008 Pommard vs the 2009 and took this picture to illustrated the difference:

• Bourgogne Rouge - ripe, good clean pinot fruit with a hint of spice, quite charming - ~19
• Domaine Chorey-les-Beaune - earthy dark berry notes with some forest floor, raspberry seed aromas with very good balance and length - ~27 (this is one of the stars of the tasting, & a very good value)
• Domaine Savigny-les-Beaune - similar to the chorey with brighter berry/cherry notes and a touch more earth, needs food and age to excel - ~28
• Domaine Savigny-les-Beaune aux Fourches - elegant and classy, cherry stone notes, big sticky tannins in palate and finish - a bit clunky - ~32.50
• Domaine Beaune Vieilles Vignes - closed at first very soft and gentle palate, velvet richness, complex and excellent combination of fruit and soil - ~28 (another star of the tasting and another great value)
  
• Domaine Pommard - fair, nice long spicy with deep berry finish, lacks character though, big palate, intense finish - needs more elegance - ~45
  
• Pernand-Vergelesses les Fichots 1er Cru - almost rhone in style, deep and spicy aromas, good grip and acidity helps tame this - ~?
  
• Domaine Volnay - I found this a bit clumsy for Volnay, lacks the typical finesse of Volnay, long and complex finish, might just need some time to evolve (also the blend might change a bit when bottled) - ~45
  
• Savigny-les-Beaune les Clous 1er Cru - good character fo the price better value than the Volnay or Pommard - ~45
  
• Beaune les Champs Pimont 1er Cru - far more interesting and elegant than the les Clous, clean, bright cherry notes, long with plenty of soil/terroir notes in finish - ~45
  
• Beaune aux Cras - cran/orange in a nice way, some pepper spice, airy palate, clean but kinda quick finish - ~47.50
  
• Pommard les Grands Epenots 1er Cru - bit boring, nice but...too tannic? - ~82.5
  
• Domaine Volnay les Taillepieds 1er Cru - pretty closed right now but showing lots of potential, very pretty palate, structured and finessed with big, long tannins - ~65
  
• Corton Grand Cru - kinda clumsy for Corton, but the price is pretty reasonable - ~76
  
• Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes - actually pretty good, rich but balanced with pepper spice, dark cherry and a bit of berry - big wine - ~50
  
• Chambolle-Musigny - boring - ~52.50
  
• Vosne-Romanee - so what - ~52.50
  
• Gevrey-Chambertin Lavaux Saint Jacques 1er Cru - big and full, fairly clumsy, dark and brooding...a touch too much oak - ~87.50
  
• Gevrey-Chambertin les Cazetiers 1er Cru - spice, dark cherry, some wet leaf and mineral notes, quite good pinot, very long...does very well in this line-up - ~87.50
  
• Vosne-Romanee les Suchots 1er Cru - good fruit with a touch of oak, decent but... - ~100
  
• Echezaux Grand Cru - pretty boring aromas, but lush velvety palate, the nose must be closed right now, should be interesting to see how this evolves and if the winemaker blends in wines that add a bit of brighter aromas - ~162.50
  
• Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru - kinda thin, not much in nose either, great example of an appellation being overpriced and over hyped - ~170
  
• Charmes Chambertin Grand Cru - better than above by still a touch short, rich and dark berry/cherry with spice - ~162.50
  
• Mazis Chambertin Grand Cru - this was a touch maderized, showed a bit of oxygen abuse, great palate though (found out from Pierre that the wine was shipped here from barrel that needed to be topped off, but they didn't as that would have made the wine taste too sulfured) - ~170