1975 Echezeaux

Weirdly, the 1975 Echézeaux Grand Cru showed much better than the 1975 Romanée-Conti a few weeks earlier. Good bottles and all that? Poured blind, it is noticeably bricked to the core, though clear. Dark red fruit mixed with undergrowth and raisin, although certainly attractive, is perhaps evidence of some chaptalization. After five minutes I pick up a note of Benylin (cough syrup). The palate is well defined with fine acidity, a slightly grainy texture and Earl Grey infusing the red fruit, leading to a very pure and silky finish. I was very surprised when its identity was revealed. Our host insisted that he had us taste it blind because he has always felt it was unfairly dismissed; well, point proven. Tasted at Oswalds in London.