Aux Thorey Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Pinot Noir

The 2022 red Burgundies were divine from barrel, just absurdly promising, all perfume and shape and perfectly judged pleasure. Then they arrived in bottle and went through that horrible awkward phase, total puberty mustache energy, all elbows and uncertainty, like the wines had temporarily forgotten where their limbs were. And now? My God. The hedonism is completely out of control. This 2022 Pierre Brisset Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Aux Thorey is a 9.9 and the only reason it is not a 10 is because it is still heading upward. The pleasure is already enormous, but you can feel more authority, more integration, more depth still on the way. So much energy on day 2. Dense and chewy. Awesome.

I’m starting to get a little nervous about 2019 red Burgundy. The vintage was so dazzling young that people, understandably, got seduced. It reminded me of 2005 in that way, huge early authority, massive promise, the kind of wines that make you think you are looking at immortality. But now I’m seeing the same thing I eventually saw there: a slightly roasty evolution and a pace of maturation that feels faster than I’m comfortable with. This 2019 Pierre Brisset Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Aux Thorey is still gorgeous, a 9.7 wine, but it also reinforces the point. If I had real depth in 2019s, I would not be waiting around for some imaginary perfect plateau. I’d start drinking. This really got younger and more dense overnight and is drinking way better. 9.7 to 9.8.

Will be a 10 tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Nose is a 10. Unreal. Blackberry flower. Bee pollen. Sweet limestone. Purple fruits. That’s the best nose on any NSG ever. Wow. Just magic. Almost an 11. Sweet cherries are just insane. The palate is just insane. Painful minerality but gentle and so intense. Wow. So balanced and pure. The tannins are NSG but clear and ripe. Violets starting to peek out. Opulent mid palate and follows with almost a granitic energy. Almost Red Rieslingesque. Mid season cherry, darker red cherry, complex and mineral. Yes this is a 10. Yowza. After 7 hours this hasn’t lost a thing and is gaining in sweetness, tannin and elegance. Unreal.

On day 2 this wine is a problem. It’s the closest I have had to La Tache that isn’t La Tache. It’s actually even more elegant. And the spice on the nose is just next level. Beyond. Honeyed. So complex you cannot believe it. It’s the most insane thing. It’s just so high quality and pleasurable. Layered fruit. Layered spice. Waves. All so detailed and perfumed. This a benchmark for me. This is also giving Leroy with the aromatic depth. The palate is just exquisitely weightless and sweet but never vulgar. It’s opulent and sweet but whispering. The whispering only Burgundy can do. It’s got the finest tannins. So fresh and deep. Will age 20 years. Just a masterpiece. Totally blown away.

Really good acid. melty, the finish. Subtle with really great energy, big fruit, lithe, sapid, great wine finish. It never ends.

This was young and went through many phases of open and closed with no rhyme or reason. This was surly at times and superbly expressive, gritty NSG’ey and also sweet and floral. But also closed shut a few times. It is all there but hold off 3-4 years.

This was one of those rare nights where I had zero obligations…so I decided it might be fun to grab one of the relative newcomers to my cellar and head down to Mertz, sit at the bar, and share with the staff. Upon arrival, I was met immediately by the incomparable Matt Brown who asked if I would like to sit next to Dan Morgan. “Morgan Ranch Dan Morgan? Uhhh…yuh!” I duly handed my bottle to Matt and he kindly introduced me to Dan. After exchanging some pleasantries, I sat down and suggested we open the Brisset and see what it’s about. Dan was game so we proceeded to enjoy the evening, covering a range of topics from travel to the state of our education system and much more. It should go without saying that we each enjoyed a couple of steaks from his ranch too. I mean, obviously.

Initially, we popped and poured a single glass. It was beautiful, particularly on the nose, but seemed a touch reticent on the palate so we elected to splash decant. We enjoyed this bottle over the course of several hours where it really started to thrill after getting a nice bit of air. The wine pours a deep ruby color with a deep but transparent core; medium viscosity, with very light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with gorgeous, even unctuous, notes of ripe red (and some black) fruits: strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, Bing cherry, red flowers, licorice, warm spices, and minerals. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+. Wow…such a youthful beauty…and it’s already giving me some sugar. The quality is obvious, almost startling. Drink now with patience but better after 2032 and through 2052+. Thanks for the assist @Lyle Fass

P.S. I should provide the Morgan Ranch backstory. Located in Burwell, Nebraska, the Morgan Family were one of the very first producers of Japanese Wagyu cattle outside of Japan; Dan brought the first herd from Japan back in 1993. They are, to my knowledge, the only Wagyu producer that exports back into Japan.

Very nice young burgundy. Leans Vosne. Very pure fruit. Excited to see how my other bottles develop

PS had this 4 years ago

Am decanting 1 hour. Needs 4

Nose: intense florals. A bit savory. Elegant. Gorgeous.

Palate: early season cherry. Hints of licorice a bit savory.

Better in 2-4 years.

Fass selections