Mr Joly

So. The discussion goes, especially here in Norway, have Nicolas Joly gone to far. Are the wines too oxidized? How should a really great Coulee de Serrant taste like? I had to find out.

2002 Clos de la Coulee de Serrant;
Dark lemon, high fill, no sign of sepage, but soaked cork. Intence minerality, some apples and yellow plums, petroleum, dust, cellar and fresh mushrooms. Medium body, fresh in a weird way, lots of acidity, lots of intencity, some oxidized notes, long aftertaste, different but good, needs decanting. Can be left in the bottle for weeks without much happening. 86

Not as oxidized as 05 and 06, but still, much of the same. Major difference is actually less alcohol, and that always helps.

1996 Clos de la Coulee de Serrant;
Dark golden, soaked cork. Again this almost insane minerality, pear, stone, leaves, schistes, some mushrooms, actually more youthfull than the 02!. Medium body, extreme intencity, massive and fresh acidity, yellow plums, apples and pears, acidity never gives in, very long finish, but still a bit oxidized........88

So, how much older do we have to go, to get rid of the oxidation.........

1994 Clos de la Coulee de Serrant;
Golden, cork only half soaked, this one leaps out of the glass, again this massive minerality, honey and melon, grapefruit, flint and schistes, unripe pear and is it botrytis back there? It almost has this Sauternes tropical fruit over this increadible massive minerality, it want's to love you and kill you at the same time, dry and crisp finish, still some oxidation. 92

I like them better and better, mostly because the oxidation and alcohol level both seems to drop with age......

1991 Clos de la Coulee de Serrant;
Paler than the 94, still golden, again soaked cork, but it's a older bottle. Not as intence as the 94, otherwise more or less exactly the same, more gentle, shorter and easier, more forgiving, but still a bit oxidized, and as a lighter one, it shows better. 87

A setback......