The first organized wine tastings that Avi Davidowitz, from the Kosher Wine Unfiltered blog, and I went to, during our last trip to Paris, in November 2021 was with IDS. IDS is officially called Les Vins IDS and IDS, stands for International Distribution Service. On a lovely Monday morning, Avi and I jumped in an Uber and made our way to go see Ben Uzan at IDS’s offices.

I have written about IDS in the past, and in 2018 they started working with a new Burgundy producer called Domaine Aegerter. I have written about the previous vintages in these posts.

The Tasting

As stated, Avi and I made our way to the offices, and there laid out on the table were nine Domaine Aegerter wines from the 2020 vintage, along with one bottle of 2020 Chateau du Bosquay, Bordeaux Superieur, a perennial QPR WINNER for France. Sadly, with the economics of French kosher wine, it would not be worth importing it to the USA, but that is a discussion for another post.

In 2018 there were no Premier Cru from Domaine Aegerter, in 2019 there was one Premier Cru and a Grand Cru! In 2020, they made 4 Premier Cru, but no Grand Cru, as there was simply not enough fruit to go around. The 2020 vintage report for Burgundy was not as sad as previous vintages, or 20201, which was a disaster. There were few stories of frost destroying vine buds, except for in Chablis, but even that was not horrible. Overall, 2020 was a hot and dry season in Burgundy. There were some losses from the high heat but overall, it looked to be another successful vintage.

Nine wines from Burgundy is quite an impressive lineup, add in that they are from the same vintage, and wow, that is a lot of labels for one year. There is one Meursault and 8 red Burgundies, really impressive.

Throughout the tasting, I could not help but sense that the red wines felt overly acidic, like VA. VA (Volatile Acidity) is a common aspect of wines. It is defined as a flaw but many find it adds to the wine’s acidic profile. As stated in the Wine Spectator:

In small measures—most wines have less than 400 mg/L of acetic acid; the human threshold for detecting it is about 600 to 900 mg/L—volatile acidity imparts a racy, balsamic edge to a wine. It’s also likely to be present anytime you see “high-toned” fruit flavors in a tasting note. It can offer a tangy edge that works well with dishes that could use a little oomph, say pasta with red sauces. It stretches the flavors, and some vintners encourage a touch of VA to do just that. (WS, 2017)

Overall, the wines showed differently than in previous vintages, which is of course common. They were richly floral, again common for Burgundy. The clear winner of the tasting was the incredible Meursault, which showed very differently than the 2019 Jean-Philippe Marchand Meursault. The 2019 Jean-Philippe Marchand Meursault is riper and shows more of the oak influence while the 2020 Domaine Aegerter Meursault is more refined, at this time, and shows more mineral and control, overall. Just lovely!

We also tasted the 2018 Chateau Trianon, a wine I tasted with Ari Cohen in June, also at the IDS office, and the lovely 2020 Chateau Sainte Marguerite Cuvee Symphonie Blanc, Cotes de Provence. My notes for them are identical to what I wrote in June. IDS will be distributing the kosher Chateau Trianon wines in Europe. Until now, the kosher wines were only available from the winery. Now, they should have a better distribution within Europe, I hope, as they are lovely wines indeed.

My many thanks to Ben Uzan for setting up the meeting, sharing his wines with us, and for taking time out of his busy schedule to meet with us. The wine notes follow below – the explanation of my “scores” can be found here and the explanation for QPR scores can be found here:

2020 Domaine Aegerter Meursault, Meursault – Score: 94 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose on this wine is pure funk, almonds, walnuts, peach, nectarines, orange blossom, honeysuckle, rich floral notes, straw, mineral, spice, and rich oolong tea. The mouth on this full-bodied wine is bombastic, wow, unique, special, just wow! The screaming acid, hay, straw, jasmine, white flower, with yellow plum, green apple, Asian pear, with rich saline, mineral, smoke, straw, and rich flint, WOW! The mouth is dense, oily, structured, and just lovely! The finish is long, green, hay, earth, smoke, lemongrass, with a plushness, oily, sweet oak, intense cloves, and rich green notes, wow! Drink from 2025 until 2032. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Chateau Tour du Bosquay, Bordeaux Superieur – Score: 91 (QPR: WINNER (France))
The nose on this wine is floral, with nice green notes, foliage, ripe plum, iron, raspberry gastrique, tart cherry, and lovely spices. The mouth on this medium-bodied wine is nice, very floral, like the nose, green notes, good fruit structure, lovely acid, nice mouth-coating tannin, plum, raspberry, and dark cherry, with dried rosehip, and a focus and attack of acidity that pumps up the wine impressively. The finish is long, green, crazy acid, rich saline, graphite, more tart and juicy fruit, foliage, and forest floor. Nice! Drink until 2027. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Domaine Aegerter Bourgogne Hautes-Cotes de Nuits, Hautes-Cotes de Nuits, Bourgogne – Score: 89 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose on this wine is lovely, green, perfectly varietally true, with sweet plum, cedar, dark cherry, rich roasted herbs, rosehip, rose petals, lovely smoke, roasted animal, and lovely foliage, nice!! The mouth on this medium-bodied wine has a bit of VA, with some sweet-vinegar notes, but it calms with time, followed by tart raspberry, plum, green notes, rich saline, hints of strawberry, lovely dried currants, dried rose petal, and lovely tilled earth. The finish is long, green, intensely tart, with more floral notes, loam, smoke, roasted animal, sweet tobacco, and espresso. Nice! Drink until 2031. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Domaine Aegerter Volnay, Volnay – Score: 92 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose on this wine is tart, cranberry, raspberry, dark cherry, rich rose petals, lovely iron, metal, loam, and roasted animal. The mouth on this medium-bodied wine is ripe, tart, very much in line with the weight of Volnay, less lithe than the Bourgogne, but well-balanced, with rich saline, dark cherry, plum, dark raspberry, ripe red berry, tart cranberry, hints of tart pomegranate, lovely mouth-drying tannin, awesome fruit structure, and acidic to its core. The finish is long, with menthol, green tobacco, sweet cedar, nice tannin, lovely espresso, and nice dirt, foliage, and well-balanced. Nice!!! Drink by 2032. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Domaine Aegerter Beaune Premier Cru, Belissand, Beaune Premier Cru – Score: 90 (QPR: GOOD)
The nose on this wine is riper than the previous wines – even the Beaune, with sweet pomegranate, dark plum, brooding fruit, sweet tea, iron fillings, sweet cedar, dark roasted meat, smoke, dark roasted herbs, brooding fruit, a bit too much for me, at this time. The mouth on this full-bodied wine is dense, ripe, layered, extracted, richly concentrated, dense with dark raspberry, candied plum, dark tart strawberry, ripe pomegranate, with dense notes of milk chocolate, with intense acidity that helps calm the fruit, more of the lovely floral notes, rose petals, and rich complexity. The finish is long, ripe, dense, with great acidity, floral notes, milk chocolate, mouth-draping tannin, sweet cedar, and dense fruit that is balanced by the high acidity levels. Nice. Drink from 2025 until 2034. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Domaine Aegerter Pommard, Pommard – Score: 89 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose on this wine smells like what we want, with notes of petals, white flowers, rose, tart fruit, tart cherry, raspberry, plum, and loam, with earth, and lovely minerality. The mouth on this medium-plus bodied wine throws me again with a bit of VA, showing strawberry, raspberry, dark cherry, throwing me, but it also shows a sweeter side of balsamic vinegar, with lovely mouth-draping tannin, all on point, with rich saline, smoke, roasted animal, and lovely floral notes. The finish is long, with more VA, intense acidity, and coffee beans. Drink until 2032. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Domaine Aegerter Aloxe-Corton Premier Cru – Les Petites Lolieres, Aloxe-Corton Premier Cru – Score: 90 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose on this wine is nice, with dark cherry, rose petals, dark and brooding fruit, rich smoke, dark plum, dark cherry, cranberry, and rich loam. The mouth on this full-bodied wine again has some VA, with ripe fruit, dark plum, dense cranberry, pomegranate, brooding fruit, dense, concentrated, with extraction, saline, mineral, slate, and nice green notes in the background. The finish is long, dense, ripe, with more balance than some of the others, with milk chocolate, sweet cedar, tart fruit, and lingering pencil filings. Nice! Drink until 2034. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Domaine Aegerter Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru, Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru – Score: 90 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose on this wine is ripe, slightly more balanced, with intense floral notes, rosehip, white flowers, ripe fruit, dark cherry, ripe plum, thyme, mint, licorice, and lovely smoke. The mouth on this full-bodied wine is ripe, dense, layered, extracted, rich, with dark and brooding fruit, lovely balancing acidity, bramble, dark plum, dark pomegranate, tart cranberry, dense and mouth-coating tannin, with dark fruit, and rich salinity. The finish is long, dense, ripe, and layered, with chocolate-covered espresso, tobacco, and more smoke. Drink from 2026 until 2035. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Domaine Aegerter Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru, Fonteny, Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru, Fonteny – Score: 90 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose on this wine is the most pronounced of the VA than the previous wines, with dense fruit, smoke, sweet cedar, licorice, garrigue, bramble, rock, more roasted meat, blackberry, and dark plum. The mouth on this full-bodied wine has the VA to start, followed by the dense extraction, rich blackberry, raspberry, dark cherry, and rich saline, with brooding fruit, the most of the group, more rose petals, white flowers, and dense espresso. Drink until 2034. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Domaine Aegerter Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru, Champonnet, Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru – Score: 90 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose on this wine is the most obvious of the VA style wines with clear balsamic vinegar, sweet strawberry, a wine that is dense and rich with rich saline, dark cherry, plum, roasted herb, licorice, smoke, roasted animal, and sweet fruit. The mouth is dense, layered, and concentrated, with more ripe fruit, milk chocolate, dark plum, rich saline, and good licorice. Nice! Drink from 2024 until 2032. (tasted November 2021)

2020 Chateau Sainte Marguerite Cuvee Symphonie Blanc, Cotes de Provence – Score: 92 (QPR: EVEN)
The nose on this lovely wine is rich, acidic, tart, and plush, with rich peach, apricot, lemon Fraiche, yellow plum, smoke, orange blossoms, green notes, and white flowers, lovely! The mouth on this medium-bodied wine is plush, a bit oily, with lovely tart peach, apricot, rich orange, nectarines, with balancing acidity, nice fruit, good weight, nice mineral, slate, and orange pith. The finish is long, green, sweet, and plush, with lovely pith, more fruit, rich saline, mineral, slate, more orange blossom, and lovely smoke. The pith, smoke, sweet fruit, and rich spices linger long, lovely! Drink by 2022. (tasted June 2021)

2018 Chateau Trianon, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru – Score: 92 (QPR: WINNER (France))
The nose on this wine is dynamite, really lovely, dirty, earthy, smoky, with rich blue and black fruit, great earth smoke, mineral, and rich loam, wow! The mouth on this medium to full-bodied wine is lovely, plush, layered, rich, and concentrated, without crazy extraction, pure elegance, good acidity that takes time to come out, with blackberry, blueberry, green notes, foliage, and lovely tension, fruit focus, and mineral. WOW! The finish is lovely, green, fresh, rich, with smoke, graphite, dirt, and rock. Lovely!! Drink from 2025 until 2033. (tasted June 2021)