WTN: Hospices de Beaune, Pommard 1916

My dear friend, teacher, and predecessor, Dr. Scott Baird, inherited a wine collection laid down by his father. I've had many exceptional experiences from his cellar over the years. And today we opened and drank a wine he had been saving for the 2016 holiday season, when we could be sure that the 2016 harvest was finished and the wines made: a Hospices de Beaune, from his father's birth year, 1916. He last drank one 20 years ago, after his father's death.

The Cuvee Dames de la Charite is blended from 1er Cru vineyards in Pommard, and is apparently is regarded as the best and most age worthy of the Pommard wines offered by the Hospices. It is interesting to note that the label has he AOC formula, given that the AOC for wines wasn't established until 1936. Perhaps Quancard held it until it deemed ready to drink, or maybe because of the war these bottles were forgotten in a cellar somewhere; hard to say. Remarkably, I found a wine shop in Germany offering the 1916 Cuvee Dames de la Charite 1916 but bottled by a different negotiant, and with a much better fill level. They have it listed for $520.

It was difficult to know what to expect, the condition of this bottle was very worrisome. I Audouzed it; the result far exceeded our expectations, and according to my friend, far outperformed the bottle opened 20 years earlier.

Hospices de Beaune, Cuvee Dames de la Charite, Pommard 1916
Opened 4 hours in advance for slow breathing. Fill 12cm below the cork; bulging cork that came out in pieces, but actually in respectable shape given its age. Medium tawny, just a touch of red left. Nose is somewhat oxidized but not horribly so, and with sweet red fruits, some meaty notes, and cloves; really rather nice overall, and does get fresher with air, with a whiff of mature fruitcake notes taking over from the oxidized notes. Much fresher on the palate, with some rather lovely, sweet cherry, black raspberry, a touch of meaty currants, and abundant juicy blueberry notes that linger onto a finish of nice spice notes (cloves, etc). Gains weight as it opens in the glass, becoming medium-full in body. Lovely, succulent texture with good presence, and lovely, juicy, astonishingly fresh fruit. Still very much tastes like a Cotes de Beaune, with its graceful, accentuated fruit. Even without making allowances for its condition, this is excellent, a truly lovely wine to drink. Simply put, an exquisite, once in a lifetime experience. 3.5 Stars for the wine; 5 Stars for the experience. [1/2/17]

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...an exquisite, once in a lifetime experience.

Unless your name is Scott Baird, or François Audouze!

Nice note. Sounds great.

...an exquisite, once in a lifetime experience.

Unless your name is Scott Baird, or François Audouze!

But note, Scott said the bottle from 20 years ago collapsed quickly, so even for him, a 100 year old wine that is still very much enjoyable is a rarity.

1916 was never considered a "great" vintage. In the 2002 edition of his "Vintage Wine" book, Michael Broadbent writes " Rare wartime vintage. Originally light and stylish but faded now". Your experience here goes to bear out the maxim that "there are no great wines, only great bottles".

It's moving to reflect on the conditions in which the wine was born. Hundreds of thousands of Frenchmen were being slaughtered and maimed at Verdun and a similar number of Britons on the Somme with only slightly less casualties on the German side. Let us hope that such carnage, or worse, never happens again. The British choice to sever ties with the European continent and the American choice of leader do not reassure .

It's moving to reflect on the conditions in which the wine was born. Hundreds of thousands of Frenchmen were being slaughtered and maimed at Verdun and a similar number of Britons on the Somme with only slightly less casualties on the German side. Let us hope that such carnage, or worse, never happens again. The British choice to sever ties with the European continent and the American choice of leader do not reassure .

Indeed, in my Facebook posted, I reflected a bit on the history. It is humbling to think of all the adversities this wine has survived, all the people it has outlived.

Thank you for the very interesting report on a century-old wine. My parents were born in 1911 and 1913 so in the same decade as Professor Baird's father.