Very old Burgundies on auction in September

Finding old Burgundies of high quality and with a good and well documented provenance is getting increasingly difficult.

There are however still some large cellars in Beaune – and now you have the chance to buy some very old wines from the deep and mighty cellars of Bouchard Pere et Fils.

Photos from Christies Catalogue

The auction will take place in Hong Kong on September 3^rd 2016 – and will include wines from 73 different vintages – going back to 1846.

The mighty Bouchard Cellar

Bouchard Pere et Fils has one of the largest cellars in Beaune – located in the walls of Chateau de Beaune – the headquarters of the Henriot owned Bouchard Pere et Fils.

For this special event Bouchard have found a unique collection of old bottles .. including Beaune Greves Vigne d’Enfant Jesus 1865 & 1892, Beaune Clos de la Mousse 1864, Volnay Caillerets 1889, Volnay Santenots 1870 & 1865, Chambertin 1865 and Clos Vougeot 1865.

The oldest wine on auction is Meursault-Charmes 1846 … and even Montrachet is represented by some very old bottles: 1890, 1885, 1870, 1865 & 1864.

All bottles are in impeccable state – being regularly recorked over the years. The full list of wines can be found in the catalogue.

Some recent of Bouchard Pere et Fils notes

A few of the wines were served at a dinner at Bouchard Pere et Fils in November 2015 … and they showed very well on that occation.

Bouchard Pere et Fils, Volnay Cailleret 1971

The Volnay Cailleret Ancienne Cuvée Carnot 1971 from Bouchard Pere et Fils is still showing very fine form. In the bouquet – starting out a bit closed with notes of iron .. but quickly unfolds with lovely mature red fruit and sous-bois … and after some time offering notes of orange peel and roasted coffee. On the palate quite generous, lovely core of juicy pomegranate fruit. It’s balanced pure and fresh and quite typical for the vintage. A perfectly mature 71 – charming, delicate and delightful.

(Drink Now) – Fine+ – (93p) – Tasted 14/11/2015 at Bouchard Pere et Fils

Bouchard Pere et Fils, Volnay Cailleret 1959

The Volnay Cailleret Ancienne Cuvée Carnot 1959 from Bouchard Pere et Fils is a perfectly matured and classic 1959. Showing beautifully and is a more weighty and vinous wine that the more delicate and precise 1971 served at the same dinner at Bouchard Pere et Fils. The bouquet offer classic mature notes … red fruits, sous-bois, truffle, hint of orange … complex, lovely depth and richness. On the palate rich and very generous for this level, offering a broard shouldered version of the terroir. It’s vinous with plenty of volume. It’s long, complex and balanced but perhaps lacking the ultimate definition due to the vinous character of the vintage. It’s nervertheless a gorgeous mature Burgundy .. a treat.

(Drink Now) – Very Fine – (93p) – Tasted 14/11/2015 – at Bourchard Pere et Fils

The Bouchard Pere et Fils – the labels

The bottles on the Christies auction are labeled with labels corresponding the labels used originally in the different old vintages. The photo below show the labels that Bouchard Pere et Fils has used over the decades.

Photos from Christies Catalogue

While the auction offer plenty of old bottles there are still quite a selection left the the Bouchard Pere et Fils cellars … cheers!

Photo from the cellar of Bouchard – November 2015