Pre Arrival Offer Spring 2021 (Closed)
OFFER OPENS FRIDAY 17 SEPTEMBER
OFFER CLOSED FRIDAY 1 OCTOBER
WINE LANDS EARLY DECEMBER
PRE ARRIVAL OFFER SPRING 2021 (VIEW WINES)
Producers included in this offer:
- Champagne JP Morel - Verzenay, Montagne de Reims
- Champagne JL Vergnon - Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Cotes des Blancs
- Pascal Janvier - Jasnieres, Coteux du Loir NEW TO FWC
- Jean Pabiot et Fils: Domaine des Fines Caillotte - Pouilly-Fumé, Loire Valley
- Domaine Coquard-Loison-Fleurot (CLF) - Flagey-Echezeaux, Burgundy NEW TO FWC
- Millemann - Nuits Saint Georges, Burgundy
Champagne JP Morel - Verzenay, Montagne de Reims
This is our third shipment of Champagne JP Morel. We made a conscious, early decision with this one, to price it to compete in the category of best value Champagne available in Australia. Fine, Recoltant Manipulant Champagne from the village of Verzenay in the Montagne de Reims, produced by the marvellous Jean-Paul Morel, for $49 a bottle once again this year.
750ml
375ml
1500ml
Grand Cru Champagne: 70% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay. A nose of red apple, cinnamon, preserved lemon, fresh croissant and brioche. A nuance of toffee-apple balanced with taut salinity lifts in the glass as it is exposed to oxygen. The same character of red toffee-apple, preserved lemon and sea spray drives through the palate with a powerfully round, yet fresh structure and persistence.
NV Blanc de Blancs Brut
750ml
Light and bright. Lifted lemon pith, salinity and green apple. A nuance of delicate fresh croissant. The palate has a beautiful airiness to it, akin to the smell of freshly baked croissant wafting through Epernay on a near zero degree spring morning. A long, fresh finish with present but not overpowering minerality.
750 ml
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Champagne JL Vergnon - Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Cotes des Blancs
Run by Didier Vergnon and son, Clement (4th and 5th generation respectively), and founded in 1950, this domaine is one of the finest in the Côte des Blancs. With predominantly grand cru sites and a good portion within the infamous ‘Les Chetillons’ vineyard and surrounds, JL Vergnon produces intensely powerful and taunt Blanc de Blancs. It was Didier’s father who believed that mature, clean and ripe fruit was the key to fine Champagne. It enabled them to chaptilize less and use less dosage. They also found it helped translate the terroir of the incredibly white soils of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, in the wine.
“This is one of the top estates in the Côte des Blancs today.” Peter Liem, Champagneguide.net.
NV ‘Murmure’ Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature 1er Cru
1500ml
50% Vertus 1er Cru, 50% Villeneuve. No malo, fermented and aged in 50% stainless steel and 50% seasoned 400 litre barrels. 36 months on lees. Tasting note: Beautiful crystalline purity. Defined, lifted floral notes with fresh lemon pith. The palate has a fine line of minerality that does not overwhelm but effortlessly carries the detailed fresh citrus and Granny Smith fruit flavours.
NV ‘Eloquence’ Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut Grand Cru
750ml
1500ml
90% Le Mesnil sur Oger, 10% Oger/Avize. No malo, 80% stainless steel with the remainder fermented and aged in seasoned 400 litre barrels. 36 months on lees. Tasting note: White of almond, white floral notes, quite subdued and restrained. There is a whisp of delicate mountain herbs and fresh breeze. The palate is very energetic, pure, mineral, saline and long.
NV ‘Rosemotion’ Extra Brut Rosé Grand Cru
750ml
90% Chardonnay, 10% Pinot Noir. 90% Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, 10% Oger and Avize. No malo, 80% stainless steel, 20% seasoned 400 litre barrels. 36 months on lees.
2012 Hautes Mottes Brut Nature Grand Cru
750ml
Single vineyard ‘Hautes Mottes’. Aged in 300 litre barrels. 60 months on lees. 0g/l. Tasting note: Sweet spice lifts from the glass which evolves into more focused baked apple and pear fruit characters. Slight wood frame. The palate is layered and complex. Not traditional but very engaging.
750ml
3000ml
From entirely within Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. 70% from Les Chetillons, 30% Mussettes. No malo, 100% stainless steel. 84 months on lees. 3g/l. Tasting note: The nose is subdued but laced with brioche, saltiness and butter notes. A wine of breadth but not heaviness. A lovely line of minerality and saltiness.
Pascal Janvier - Jasnieres, Coteux du Loir
This is our first vintage importing Pascal Janvier! Pascal looks after no less than 66 parcels of vines covering 9 hectares. The wines are classic in style and are of particular interest, at very reasonable prices. Pascal began his working life as a butcher, turning to the grape life in 1991. Chris Santini of Santini in Auxey-Duresses, put me onto this address. Chris works with Kermit Lynch so the introduction was made.
The Loir estuary sits above the Loire River and is a fertile, beautiful, quieter place to visit than the Loire River. Less touristy, beautiful gardens and quaint waterways. It really is like taking a step back in time. Jasnieres and Coteux du Loir are minute wine regions that are hard to find, both sought after for their structured savoury Chenin Blancs.
Andrew Jefford, The New France...
“Jasnieres and the larger neighbouring AOC of Coteux du Loir. Jasnieres is the cru of these slopes, and it AOC is for white wines based on the Chenin Blanc grape alone, grown on flint, clay and limestone soils into which the tinkling Loir has carved its course. The geology, however, is less important here than topography and latitude: these are, for the late ripening Chenin Blanc, almost arctic conditions, and its cultivation is only possible thanks to south facing slopes and tough minded growers. Great Jasnieres is France’s riposte to Germany’s classical Saar Riesling. These are, in other words, piano wire wines out on the far edge of ripeness. Their apple and grapefruit flavours can have a shocking, jangling intensity; the juices seem drawn from a cold stone well rather than from vines on a sun warm hillside. Yet with late harvesting even these wines can begin to hint at honey and apricot.”
2019 Coteux du Loir Blanc
Grape Variety: Chenin Blanc. Vine Age: 15-30 years. Terroir: the entirety of Coteux du Loire is 300 hectares, Pascal’s area under vine is a minute 1.5 across multiple plots within l’Homme.
Refined, restrained and savoury nose. Abundant dry extract, dried florals. The palate is refined. Welcoming yet dry and savoury with fine structure, phenolics and minerality.
2019 Jasnieres ‘Cuvee du Silex’
Grape Variety: Chenin Blanc. Vine Age: 15-40 years. Terroir: the entirety of Jasnieres is 128 hectares, Pascal’s vines are divided into four plots totalling 2 hectares. The soils consist of limestone, flint and clay.
An even more restrained nose, more crystalline and pure, defined precise fruit. The palate has a whole other level of drive, precision and focus. These are savoury and structured wines, the emphasis is not on the fruit.
2019 Cuvee Henri IV Coteux du Loir Rouge
Grape Varieties: Gamay, Cabernet, Cot, Malbec and Pineau d’Aunis (60%). (6000 vines per hectare). Vine Age: 20-40 years. Terroir: divided into four parcels in the commune of Ruillé l’Homme. Clay limestone soils.
Juicy, vibrant nose with a nuance of musk, raspberry, strawberry and fennel. Mountain herbs and fresh air. The palate is bright, juicy and fresh. Resolved tannins.
Jean Pabiot et Fils, Domaine des Fines Caillotte - Pouilly-Fumé, Loire Valley
Classic, smoky and mineral Pouilly-Fume! Run by Alain Pabiot and his son Jerome, the domaine dates back to 1880. Based in the village of ‘Les Loges’ it covers 29 hectares in Pouilly-Fumé across five communes, with 30 separate parcels in total.
Varying terroirs combine to give complex and nuanced wines displaying the epitome of Pouilly-Fumé characteristics. Sustainable viticulture is practiced. The grapes are hand harvested and quickly taken to the winery. The grapes are destemmed and around 15% spend a short period of time on their skins before pressing. Fermentation begins spontaneously with natural yeasts. All parcels are vinified separately and blended later on prior to bottling. The gross lees are removed three weeks after fermentation while the wine spends at least another four months on its fine lees.
Due to only travelling once a year to France at the moment, I have not been able to taste the finished 2020 wines. They were still fermenting when we briefly tasted just after the 2020 harvest.
2020 Pouilly-sur-Loire ‘Chasselas’
100% Chasselas, grown near the village of Les Loges. The vineyard was planted in 1925, giving the high acid variety a layer of depth and complexity while maintaining supreme freshness.
2020 Pouilly Fumé
750ml
375ml
1500ml
100% Sauvignon Blanc from varying terroirs and soils; caillottes, Kimmeridgian Marl, Clay limestone and Silex.
2019 Pouilly-Fumé ‘Cuvée-Kiméride’
Solely from Kimmeridgian marl (a limestone soil rich in fossilised oyster etc)
Chateau des Bormettes - La Londe les Maures, Provence
A top up of our wonderfully dry and great value Provencal Rosé from producer Chateau des Bormettes. Only a pallet, landing just in time for the festive season!
2020 Cotes de Provence ‘Cote der Mer’ Rosé
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Domaine Coquard-Loison-Fleurot (CLF) - Flagey-Echezeaux, Burgundy
Neal Martin (whilst at The Wine Advocate)
“Coquard Loison Fleurot is your new favorite domaine. I know, I know. It’s a bit of a mouthful. Writing this I keep having to check the correct spelling. It was the “surprise package” of over 100 visits tasting 2016s. It was the visit that sent tingles down my spine. It was the visit where I had to maintain my Lady Gaga-approved poker face in order to disguise the thrill. Let’s rewind a bit. C.L.F (please accept the acronym) had been on my radar for two or three years. In fact, I reviewed some of their 2013s at a London tasting organized by Robert Rolls, who distributes their wines to restaurants here in the UK. Their 2013 Clos de la Roche received 95 points, hefty praise, and in the producer blurb my avow to visit the domaine. Fast forward three years and I am sitting in Dilettante restaurant in Beaune. Serendipitously, behind me sit two chaps from Latimer Vintners who distribute C.L.F’s wines to private clients and the trade in the UK and inquire if I could join their visit to C.L.F the following day at 1 p.m. And what do you know, against all the odds, I have a rare “window” in my schedule at 1 p.m. the following day. Fate? Divine intervention? What I did not anticipate was being blown away by the quality of their 2016s in barrel. It is these unscripted episodes that I love the most. Winemaker Thomas Callodot, together with Claire Fleurot, have hit the ball out of the park with wines that will hopefully put this name on the map. For many years the crop was sold to négoçiants, and it was only around 2009 or 2010, when contracts started coming to an end, that they began bottling under their own name in their capacious winery in the heart of Flagey-Echézeaux. What is remarkable about this domaine is their holdings. Rather than the usual pyramid of holdings that might be crowned by a barrel or two of grand cru, C.L.F has no less than six grand crus to their name. Moreover, these are parcels of good vine age and considerable size, thereby giving Thomas more to play with if one or two barrels seem to be lagging behind. This includes three barrels of Grands Echézeaux from 0.18 hectares of vine, though sadly reduced to a single barrel in 2016 because of frost, as well as 1.29 hectares in Echézeaux. Oddly, their range skips over premier crus (even their sole Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru includes some declassified Echézeaux, though frankly, I would be bottling the Beaumonts under its own label!), but even their village crus are located in some of the more reputed vineyards at that level. Winemaking is classic and hands-off, and the 2016s are completely destemmed except for the Grands Echézeaux due to limited quantity. I found the oak here prudently used, whereas perhaps in previous vintages it came across a little heavier, allowing the terroirs to really shine in a vintage that permitted that. Stylistically, I was thinking of Mugneret-Gibourg or his nearby neighbor Emmanuel Rouget, wines brimming full of crystalline red fruit and tension with satin textures and spine-tingling tension. Thomas himself, a good friend of Sebastien Cathiard, seemed to be a chilled out and relaxed fellow who, perhaps out of the limelight, has been allowed to refine his craft. It is rare that you ever stumble across a domaine that owns their own vines, boasts enviable holdings of grand crus and, yet, seems to have flown under the radar with the exception of one or two eagle-eyed importers. If the wines are as brilliant as these 2016s, that will not be the case for much longer.”
Neal Martin, Vinous.om
“This was a wonderful set of 2019s from the domaine that most people refer to as “CLF”. They have really come out of nowhere in the last three or four years, propelled by an enviable array of holdings in decent size, thereby gifting Collardot flexibility in terms of deselecting anything that does not come up to scratch and not forgetting the talent of Collardot himself. The Clos Saint-Denis knocks the ball out of the park, one of the highlights out of over 2,000 wines tasted and demonstrating just why this Grand Cru deserves to be seen as an equal to Clos de la Roche. Generally the wines are harmonious knitted together with fine-boned tannins, displays purity of fruit with impressive persistence on the finish. If you have not discovered “CLF” yet, then now is the time to do so.”
Producer note: Thomas Collardot runs this 9 ha 12 appellation domaine that is incredibly endowed with excellent terroirs. The viticultural approach is organic though the domaine has no interest in being certified as Coquard candidly admits that he wants to retain the flexibility, should certain circumstances arise, to be able to treat with synthetic products. The fruit is harvested manually and whole clusters are used, or not, depending on the vintage. A roughly 25-day cuvaison is followed by one week of lees settling and then the new wine is barreled down into new wood that varies between 30 and 50% save for the Clos St. Denis and Grands Echézeaux which see about two-thirds due to generally having 3 barrels of production. The élevage lasts between 15 and 18 months and then bottling, which is done in-house.is accomplished without fining or filtration. I would describe the style as "refined traditional" which is to say the wines offer good purity of fruit without necessarily being fruit-forward while the individual terroirs are allowed to speak clearly. The wines are also equipped with good structure while, largely anyway, avoiding having too much austerity. These well-made wines are well-worth seeking out as I was impressed.
2019 Bourgogne Rouge
Perfectly pitched red fruits with lifted violets and lovely tension. Dried Roses. Incredible, ripe, viscous tannins coat the palate with long persistence and ‘attack’. Bright red fruits of raspberry and red cherry. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Bourgogne Rouge has quite a boisterous bouquet of upfront blackberry and iodine aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, modest depth, mulberry flavors and a light briny influence on the finish. Fine. 86-88 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
Vibrant purple with a rich buoyant nose, pinot in all its peacock plumage. Tastes great until the burning feel of the finish (14.5%). Walnut kernel intensity. 85-88 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
This is at once notably ripe yet agreeably fresh with its aromas of poached plum, spice and earth. There is excellent mid-palate density to the delicious and plush middle weight flavors that exhibit fine length and depth for a wine at this level plus it will age if desired. Recommended. 86-89 Points. Outstanding. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Chambolle-Musigny
A delicate, truly perfumed Chambolle with an ethereal airiness. Filled with incredible florals. So perfumed. So mineral. The palate is so incredibly fine and delicate with absolute harmony of perfume, subtle ripe tannins and such fine minerality. Long. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Chambolle-Musigny Village, which contains 40% whole bunch, takes a few swirls of the glass to meld together, finally delivering airy blackberry and bilberry scents, perhaps more Morey in style than the titular village. The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy black fruit, a granular texture and a salty, slightly brusque but fresh finish. Fine, but it will need some bottle age to smooth its edges. A second cuvée without the stems is perhaps just a little less interesting on the nose. Thomas Collardot is not sure what the final blend will constitute but I suspect there will be a few stems in there. 89-91 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
Fresh purple, a little less immediately in one’s face than the Bourgogne. Slightly more delicacy on the palate but with a firm finish. There are 12 barrels of this, plus three which have been made separately from the lieu-dit Gamaires, with 40% whole bunches. This cuvée had a slightly livelier nose, with the flavours spreading further across the palate. At the time of tasting, Thomas had not decided whether to bottle this apart or to blend some or all of it with the main cuvée. A trial blend seemed to build on the advantages of the stems while developing more richness. Three stars without the Gamaires, four stars as a blend. The rating given assumes a blend. 89-92 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
A pretty and perfumed nose offers up notes of red and dark currant, violet, lavender and a whiff of anise. The notably finer medium weight flavors possess both good detail and a subtle salinity that adds a sense of refreshment to the mildly rustic if persistent finale. 88-90 Points. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Morey St. Denis
A deep nose of plum, cassis and a red cherry lift. A fine floral lift and subtle tension is present but not dominant. The palate has an overwhelming pleasing darker fruit profile which is driven, for what seems like an eternity with a wonderfully strict line of minerality. Jono Hersey, FWC
Blended with 20% whole-bunch fruit, the 2019 Morey-Saint-Denis Village has an enticing mixture of red and black fruit on the nose, touches of iodine and sea spray developing with time in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy black fruit, fine salinity and great precision and poise on the finish. Très Morey, très bon. 90-92 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
20% whole bunch. Lively mid purple, not showing the heat on the nose, more floral, with tightly knit deep red fruit and a touch of heat behind. Fresh feel nonetheless with some length. 90-92 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
Ripe and very fresh liqueur-like aromas speak of dark berries, newly turned earth and a hint of spiced tea. There is very good richness to the appealingly textured medium-bodied flavors that possess a caressing texture, all wrapped in an intensely saline-suffused finish that offers just a bit more overall depth. A quality MSD villages. 89-91 Points. Outstanding. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Gevrey-Chambertin
Very bright red current lift that leads into an array of defined wild fruits in perfect harmony. Again, there is an incredibly pleasing tension which gives an addictive bouquet and compliments the florals and fruits giving the impression of crystalline clarity and definition. The palate is overwhelmingly pleasing with bright red fruits which are voluminous without undue weight. Perfectly ripe tannins and a very long mineral finish. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Gevrey-Chambertin Village is predominantly red berry fruit on the nose, mixed with light rose petal aromas. The medium-bodied palate offers silky tannins and pure red fruit mixed with white pepper and sage. Very cohesive on the finish. It was a wise decision not to add any stems here – it doesn’t need them. 88-90 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
No whole bunches. No real reason, shrugs Thomas. Deep purple, solid powerful exuberant fruit, some blacker notes here, black cherry with walnut, not so typical but still potentially quite fine. 90-92 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
Here too there is an attractive freshness to the more deeply pitched aromas of pungent earth, smoke, various dark berry and poached plum scents. There is a lovely inner mouth perfume to the fleshy and dense medium-bodied flavors that are surprisingly refined before culminating in a stony and youthfully austere finale. This is an excellent Gevrey villages. 89-92 points. Outstanding, Top Value. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Vosne-Romanee
La Violette:
A little more brooding on the initial whiff. Concentrated florals and tinyred current bursts from the glass with some coaxing. More spice and an underlyingdarker fruit profile separates the wine from the previous cuvees.
The palate has depth, spice, palate coating tannin. A little more closed but I expect this will excel.
Quartiers de Nuits and Basses-Maizière
More red fruit flavours which will add some lightness to the cuvee. The palate is fresh and mineral. A good marriage. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Vosne-Romanée Village contains 20% whole bunch from the La Violette lieu-dit and destemmed fruit from the Quartiers de Nuits and Basses-Maizière lieux-dits. Aged in 30% new oak, it is quite backward and surly on the nose at first, but opens to reveal white pepper and clove aromas tincturing the tightly wound black fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy black fruit, and quite sweet at its core, with that white pepper leitmotif and a touch of graphite toward the crunchy finish. 90-92 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
Two cuvees were made in the same way as the Chambolle experiment, but they will be blended. 40% whole bunches were used on the Violettes part, none on the rest so 20% overall. Bright mid purple. The whole bunch is more evident on the nose, though this could be how the sample was drawn. Really charming sumptuous dark cherry and ripe raspberry notes, the best length by far of the village wines. 91-93 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
A wonderfully spicy nose combines notes of hoisin and soy with those of fresh plum and violet. The sleek, delicious and well-defined middle weight flavors possess an equally lovely texture before firming up on the focused, youthfully austere and moderately structured finish. Once again, this offers very fine quality for a villages level wine and is worth investigating. 89-92 Points. Outstanding, Top Value. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Clos Vougeot Grand Cru
more mineral inflicted nose with ripe red cherries form the basis of the nose. A myriad of rose and white florals lift from the glass. The palate again has a marriage between mineral inflicted drive and sweet red cherry fruit. This particular Clos Vougeot has power without weight, a fine example of what can be a tough vineyard. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru has a very perfumed, floral bouquet of ebullient dark plum and elderberry fruit intermingled with light sea spray/seaweed aromas, all beautifully defined. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit, a fine bead of acidity and a crunchy, minerally finish that does this ancient clos proud. Superb. Give it 5–6 years in bottle. 94-96 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
Rich imperial purple. The bouquet delivers a depth of fruit in classical form, not over ripe. Good acidity running through, and a firm finish as is reasonable for Clos Vougeot in its youth. 93-96 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
Distinctly earthy aromas are comprised by notes of both red and dark currant along with pretty floral wisps. There is again a really lovely mid-palate texture to the punchy, muscular and solidly powerful broad-shouldered flavors that culminate in a beautifully complex, long and youthfully austere finale. This isn't as refined as the Beaux Monts, but it stops short of being rustic. 91-94 Points. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru
Charming in the very sense of the word. Open, mineral, delicate but present fruit. The detail is incredible. The palate is so long and welcoming. There is an airiness like that of a warm summer night in a strawberry field. An unusual descriptor but it truly does take one away. Incredible. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru was much more closed on the nose compared to the Clos Vougeot, offering tightly wound black fruit mixed with blueberry. The medium-bodied palate displays good salinity on the entry. This is a nicely proportioned Charmes-Chambertin that is predominantly black fruit with veins of blood orange and black pepper toward the finish. It will just need 4–5 years’ bottle age for the aromatics to awaken. This is 15.0° alcohol, so drink modestly if alcohol goes to your head. 92-94 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
A full purple colour, with a nose that is unusually reticent for Charmes-Chambertin. There is generous fruit on the palate, but this is softer than most, a little bit toasty behind, perhaps from the 50% new wood utilised for the grand cru wines. There is a long finish but the wine is currently perplexing. It measures the highest degree in the cellar (15%) but with a low pH. I am taking a cautious line. 91-95 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
Here too there is just enough wood to remark upon framing the spiced aromas of poached plum, warm earth and a hint of the sauvage. The delicious and vibrant medium-bodied flavors possess solid mid-palate concentration that confers a sappy texture to the youthfully austere and lingering if slightly warm finale. 91-93 Points. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Clos de la Roche Grand Cru
The 2019 Clos de La Roche Grand Cru has a delineated, succinct bouquet, the 25% whole bunch seamlessly integrated with blackberry, briar and faint traces of dark chocolate. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-boned tannins and nice focus, leading to quite a strict, linear finish. I can imagine this requiring cellaring for several years before it loosens up. Fine salty aftertaste. 93-95 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
20% whole bunch like the Echezeaux. One of the more delicious noses, perhaps helped by the whole bunch component. Roses and raspberries. Sweet and savoury together, with that mineral crunch, fills out the mid palate very nicely, now a feel of ripe strawberry too, exceptionally persistent. 95-98 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
A cool and restrained nose speaks of various dark berry aromas nuanced by hints of earth, dried flowers and a whiff of oak. There is outstanding volume to the very rich and plush big-bodied flavors that exude a subtle minerality on the delineated, powerful and serious but, in contrast to a number of wines in the range, not really austere finale. This too is really very good and while it needs to add depth over time, the potential is clearly present. 92-94 Points. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Clos St. Denis Grand Cru
What seems to take the qualities of each Charmes Chambertin, Clos de la Roche and Echezeaux. There is a charming openness with lovely perfume and delicacy, a brooding nature and an overt minerality. The palate is so light yet voluminous, long, appealing, succulent. Delicate yet powerful and ever mineral. Structure and length that goes and goes. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Clos Saint-Denis Grand Cru, matured with 25% whole bunch and 50% new oak, is cohesive and nuanced on the nose, offering gorgeous black fruit, briar, undergrowth and crushed stone aromas with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with svelte tannins, a fine bead of acidity and superb salinity on the finish. This was the last Clos Saint-Denis that I encountered in five weeks of tasting in Burgundy, and – blow me down! – it might be one of the best. 96-98 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
3 barrels of which two are new. The nose is richer and fuller than Clos de la Roche but again showing some whole bunch character. The floral aspect would be peonies rather than roses. The vintage maybe shows a little more here. Huge density behind, with some of the nutty feel, but the fruit is spread dangerously thickly on the toast. 92-96 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
A markedly floral-suffused nose that is equally cool and restrained grudgingly displays notes of both red and black currant along with smoky spice wisps. The more elegant and polished middle weight flavors don't possess the same muscle or power, but the lilting and refined texture is highly seductive, all wrapped in stony, wonderfully complex and beautifully well-balanced finale. This is terrific and while the mouthfeel is certainly very refined, the fine but dense tannins will ensure a long life. Textbook CSD. 93-95 Points. Don’t Miss! Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Echezeaux Grand Cru
A headier fruit profile straight off the bat with a classic red and black cherry fruit profile and spice. The palate is voluminous, moreish and perfectly structured. Quite closed, this will take time to blossom. But when it does, my Lord…. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Echézeaux Grand Cru contains 20% whole bunch, matured in 50% new oak. It has a very attractive bouquet of well-defined blackberry and elderberry fruit, tangible mineralité and great delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit that merges with more red fruit toward the finish. Just a little savory in style, full of freshness and tension, this is a finely crafted Echézeaux that should age wonderfully over the next 15–20 years. 93-95 Points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
Made up of one cuvée of En Orveau and Poulaillères and one of En Orveau and Les Treux, the latter including some whole bunches, all then sent to barrel together. Very attractive mid to deep purple. The nose is beautiful, wonderfully perfumed, pure rose petals, with more succulent fresh red fruit behind. Crisp finish, oak in perfect balance, pure fruit returns at the end, very persistent. 95-98 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
An overtly floral, especially rose petal, and relatively high-toned nose offers up ultra-fresh aromas of both red and dark currant and plum that are laced with plenty of spice influences. The medium-bodied flavors possess a more polished mouthfeel, indeed it's almost velvety, though not the same density while exhibiting a touch of bitter cherry pit on the saline-inflected and youthfully austere finish. This is a refined Ech with excellent development potential. 92-94 Points. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
2019 Grands-Echezeaux Grand Cru
The most brooding of all with a wildness sauvage to the nose. Black pitted olives with amaro cherry. Slight reduction mutes the perfume. As it blows off in the glass it reveals a crystalline black cherry lift. This crystalline black cherry character carries through onto the palate. It is brooding but not heavy. It is very, very long. Strong, firm mineralilty and structure. Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2019 Grands Echézeaux Grand Cru is matured in 25% whole bunch. It has an enticing bouquet of mulberry and pressed iris flower, well defined and focused, plus a touch of sea spray in the background. The palate is medium-bodied with grippy tannins and very saline in the mouth, delivering just the right amount of bitter cherry mixed with iodine on the finish. A superb Grands-Echézeaux, but not Thomas Collardot’s best wine in show this year, which is the Clos Saint-Denis. 93-95 points. Neal Martin, Vinous.com
1.5 new barrels out of 2.5 produced. Fine mid purple. The nose needs a little teasing out but delivers an extraordinary weight of fruit, less floral in style. I can detect some heat on the palate though, with just the lightest touch of over-ripeness. A solid, powerful finish with some chocolate notes, leavened by some whole bunch freshness which helps to draw out the finish. 94-97 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
This is even more aromatically restrained, indeed to the point that the subtly spiced and floral-suffused nose of black pinot fruit is all but mute. The rounded and attractively textured middle weight flavors are not especially dense but there is focused power and a taut muscularity to the balanced and hugely long finish. Once again, the tannins are quite fine but dense and this too should amply repay extended cellaring yet it's not so backward that it couldn't be approached after only 7 to 8 years or so. 92-95 Points. Allen Meadows, Burghound.com
Millemann - Nuits St. Georges
Producer note from Allen Meadows, The Burghound:Pierre Millemann is an internationally known enologist that consults for a wide variety of wine producers in many different countries including several prominent domaines in Burgundy. Given his intimate knowledge of these domaines, and beginning with the 2017 vintage, he decided to make wines under his own label using fruit from biodynamically farmed vines. The idea is to do as little as possible though that doesn't necessarily mean producing so-called natural wines. Production quantities are very low and he works only with grand cru fruit, both red and white. For example, there are two barrels made of the Corton-Charlemagne and one barrel each of the reds. The latter were vinified with relatively high proportions of whole clusters. The wines see 18 months of élevage and the 2018s, reviewed below, were bottled in April 2020. The 2019 and 2018 wines from Corton-Charlemagne will be reviewed in Issue 83.
2019 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru
Tasting note: Ripe and citrus suffused aromas include those of mineral reduction, apple, white flower and a range of spice nuances. The racy, intense and wonderfully vibrant broad-shouldered but sleek flavors brim with minerality on the powerful, bone-dry and focused finale. This is impressive in every sense. 93-96 Points. Allen Meadows, The Burghound
Whereas the reds are all in 228 litre barrels, the one white wine has been raised in a 500 litre barrel, from the Tronçais forest. It had just gone through its malolactic fermentation but had not yet been sulphured when I tasted. It has a full yellow colour at the moment which will tone down later in the processing. The nose is intriguing with a little touch of tangerine, and some herbal notes. There is power here, good acidity, with some interesting herbal notes hiding the stones which lurk beneath. To finish, a nice touch from the oak. I did not pick this as being 14.5% alcohol because of the quality and delicacy of the component flavours, though it is clearly a muscular wine. 95-98 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
2019 Corton-Renardes Grand Cru
Cool, pure and earthy aromas are comprised by notes of various black berries, plum and soft spice and oak wisps. There is a lovely sense of underlying tension to the detailed and attractively textured middle weight plus flavors that are shaped by dense but fine-grained tannins on the youthfully austere, balanced and length finish. This is impressive and a wine that should age effortlessly. 92-95 Points. Allen Meadows, The Burghound
Tasted second at Charlotte Millemann’s suggestion, and indeed this was the second red to have completed its malolactic fermentation, in January. It is made with two thirds whole bunches, from 50+ year old vines. Clear noble purple, there is evident power here. Superbly dense supple wine with a little tingle from the whole bunch, raspberry notes, optimum ripeness. 94-96 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy
2019 Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru
Pungent aromas of wood and reduction lead to slightly bigger and more powerful flavors that possess excellent intensity before culminating in a balanced, classy and refined finish. Here too the supporting tannins are quite fine-grained though they are dense and overall, this beauty will also require extended cellaring to realize its full, and considerable, potential. 92-95 Points. Allen Meadows, The Burghound
The last of the three reds to go through malolactic fermentation, which was completed in late February. There is a touch less whole bunch here (40%) as the stems were not quite as suitable. Very dense black purple, a little bit heavier and headier. 80 year old vines. Both colours. Oak a little more in cream than toast. Richer, almost mulberry here, sensual more than hot. 92-95 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside burgundy.
2019 Chambertin Grand Cru
is also sufficiently reduced to frustrate an evaluation of the nose. Otherwise there is outstanding, indeed almost painful, intensity to the super-sleek and much more mineral-driven, big-bodied flavors that are also shaped by admirably fine-grained tannins on the muscular, powerful and focused finale. This is packed with development potential but be aware that this extremely impressive effort is not likely to make for especially good early drinking even though it is not unduly austere. 93-96 Points Don’t Miss. Allen Meadows, The Burghound
This is the third vintage from the same plot of really old vines. Slightly muddied still in colour, medium depth, two thirds, starts to open out somewhat, this is really quite discreet, but very long indeed. Semi carbonic, but raised PH so had to acidify the must. A little toast intervenes. Of the three reds, this was the first to finish its malolactic fermentation in early December. It will stay in barrel to October/November. 95-99 Points. Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy.