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The 1985 Musigny Grand Cru is a vintage that I have been lucky enough to drink before, and this bottle is almost identical; indeed, it is highly likely that it originated from the same case. Since the wine has been decanted for a few hours, the bouquet is more immediate than the previous bottle, featuring ethereal, airy red fruit, spellbinding delineation and incredible focus, all wrapped up with almost Les Amoureuses–like precocity. The palate is perfectly balanced with ineffably fine tannins. The fruit is not powerful but intense, revealing hints of red cherry and crushed strawberry, every atom suffused by minerals. This bottle actually showed a little more stalky character than the last and is also a tad more ferrous toward the finish. Yet it remains a magnificent wine even if, dare I say, the 1985 Bonnes-Mares might be just as good or better (at least in magnum). Tasted in November 2018 at the Roumier Musigny dinner at Épure in Hong Kong.
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Neal Martin
Neal Martin
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I have to thank my friend in Hong Kong for generously opening such a rarity as the 1985 Musigny Grand Cru from Domaines Georges Roumier. In retrospect, it is different from both the 1985 Bonnes-Mares and 1985 Les Amoureuses. Firstly it is deeper in colour. The bouquet is distant at first and then opens with gorgeous dark berry fruit, bay leaf and woodland scents that crescendo as each minute passes. The palate is defined by fine tannins so typical of this Grand Cru, rich yet paradoxically finessed with those hints of sandalwood and jasmine tea complementing the majestic finish. Quite profound. Tasted at a private lunch in Hong Kong.
The 1985 Musigny Grand Cru from Domaine Georges Roumier is a fabled wine, one that is extraordinarily rare given that little more than a barrel is produced. As usual, I had to be a little skeptical about its provenance, but just feeling the bottle in my hand and tasting the wine itself left me in no doubt that it was genuine. Now just over three decades in age, it still has a fairly deep core with noticeable bricking on the rim. The aromatics felt a little aloof for the first 10-15 minutes, perhaps deeming whether I was worthy of the privilege? Then it magically blossomed in the glass with dark berries, damp undergrowth, fern and bay leaf. Each swirl of the glass seemed to reveal another facet. The palate was exquisitely balanced with filigree tannin, conveying the richness of the 1985 vintage yet with almost ineffable finesse and precision. Certainly a mercurial Musigny, the fruit darkened towards the finish with hints of Chinese tea and sandalwood emerging with time, yet never compromising the "Pinot" of this majestic wine. I am unlikely to ever taste this Musigny again; then again, once is an absolute honor. Tasted September 2016.
About the producer
Based in Chambolle-Musigny, the domaine was established by Georges Roumier in 1924. The domaine started to bottle their own wines in 1945.