{"id":498,"date":"2012-12-16T19:36:47","date_gmt":"2012-12-16T19:36:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/?p=498"},"modified":"2012-12-16T19:41:18","modified_gmt":"2012-12-16T19:41:18","slug":"night-of-the-premier-crus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/night-of-the-premier-crus\/","title":{"rendered":"Night of the Premier Crus"},"content":{"rendered":"

September seems like ages ago now but David Whitaker gave the NEWTS a tasting that will stay in memory for a long time with a selection of fine and rare Burgundy Premier Crus. Dave had made connections in Burgundy Wines<\/a> to provide superb quality reference information on the different Appellations of\u00a0 to go along with the tasting, although the most impressive thing by the end was the number of small lot wines that were finally shown, including some with with a production of only 50 \u2013 150 bottles<\/em>!\"Burgundy<\/a><\/p>\n

The starter wine was a gentle introduction to Burgundy Chardonnay with the Maison Louis Latour<\/a> 2010 Bourgogne Chardonnay<\/strong> (Waitrose, \u00a38.75, although now it\u2019s \u00a310.99<\/i>). This Beaune based n\u00e9gociant-\u00e9l\u00e9veur (one that owns vineyards as well as acts as a broker) has remained a family run business since its founding in 1797 and has a good reputation for white Burgundy. This Chardonnay was from 30 year old vines fermented and aged for 8-10 months in stainless steel.
\nIt had a fresh, fruity nose with sweet, toasty flavours at the top of the palate but didn\u2019t come across as overly oaked. It was a little green around the edges with sour apple and elderflower and fresh citrus acidity. Pleasant enough it was a little soft and simplistic and a touch hot on the finish.<\/p>\n

After this the Premier Cru wines were approached in flights of two comparing different Appellations, starting with St. Aubin and Chassagne Montrachet for the whites.
\nThe Olivier LeFlaive<\/a> 2009 St. Aubin1er Cru, En Remilly<\/strong> (\u00a325 in France) comes from a small n\u00e9gociant-\u00e9l\u00e9veur with a reputation for high quality, winemaker Franck Grux vinifies all the grapes brought into the Puligny-Montrachet based winery.
\nThe 1er Cru En Remilly vineyard (or Climat<\/a>) sits on the western slopes of the famous Montrachet hillside and the 2009 gave a matchstick and oak nose with fresh, mineral acidity on the palate. A little woody at the front this had noticeable texture with delicate, subtle, integrated flavours, although was a touch one dimensional on the finish.<\/p>\n

In comparison the Domaine Darviot Perrin 2008 Blanchots Dessus<\/strong> from neighbouring Chassagne Montrachet (\u00a343 in France, \u00a365 from Howard Ripley<\/i>) was a fuller wine with a rich, fruity nose. Showing sharp acidity at the front it developed richness on the mid-palate; creamy, elegant, sharp and complex with some pineapple and apricots on a long finish. This wine was from the 150-case production of the Blanchots Dessus vineyard (adjacent to the Grand Cru La Montrachet) from the husband and wife team of Didier and Genevi\u00e8ve Darviot who produce wines at a slow pace in their cool cellars, often releasing a vintage a year later than their neighbours.<\/p>\n

The next pair were from side-by-side vineyards in Monthelie and Volnay in the C\u00f4te de Beaune.
\nLeFlaive & Associ\u00e9s 2009 Monthelie 1er Cru, Sur la Velle<\/strong> (\u00a321 in France, \u00a335 from Corney & Barrow<\/i>) is from one of the best vineyards in Month\u00e9lie, effectively a continuation of the Volnay 1er Cru, Clos des Ch\u00eanes. Anne-Claude Leflaive (& sister of Olivier LeFlaive) set up this new n\u00e9gociant for biodynamic wines sourced from around the region but managed by Eric R\u00e9my, of Domaine LeFlaive<\/a>. Vinification is carried out at the Domaine cellars in Puligny-Montrachet, itself fully Biodynamic since 1997.
\nThe wine had a mature colour of \u201ctypical Burgundy\u201d and youthful fruit nose. There was a sweet palate with strong tannins and smooth, raspberry flavours although the fruit was a touch candied and a little one dimensional. The finish was lean, going a touch bitter.<\/p>\n

\"Nicholas<\/a>Across the appellation boundary the Maison Roche de Bellene<\/a> 2009 Volnay 1er Cru, Clos des Chenes<\/strong> (\u00a323 in France, \u00a339.50 at Berry Bros<\/i>) is made by Nicolas Potel (who started, but no longer owns the name to, Maison Nicolas Potel). 160 cases of this wine were made, the Climat named for the oak trees that line the Western edge alongside Monthelie.
\nThis had a typical Pinot Noir nose with some raspberry, wood and spice. There was an approachable, smooth attack with light, sweet fruit and mushrooms on the mid-palate, mellowing in the glass, but also a sharp edge going a little bitter on the finish.<\/p>\n

The next pair of reds were also from adjoining vineyards – Haut Marconnets in Savigny les Beaune and Clos du Dessus des Marconnets in Beaune, separated by the A6 main road to Paris \u2013 and made in miniscule production, 150 bottles and 50 bottles respectively!
\nThe Domaine Martin DuFour<\/a> 2006 Savigny les Beaunes 1er Cru, Haut Marconnets<\/strong> was a strange wine with enamel\/cassis on the nose and a little green and vegetal, akin to some Chilean Cabernets. Edgy on the palate, it came across as over-extracted, tannic with a concentrated texture and a touch of chemical to it \u2013 pleasant, but not what was expected from Burgundy or Pinot Noir.<\/p>\n

Its partner was a different matter, the Domaine Pierre Labet<\/a> 2009 Beanue 1er Cru, Clos du Dessus des Marconnets<\/strong> (\u00a333 in France, \u00a327.75 from Corney & Barrow<\/i>) was classic Pinot Noir with a youthful fruit nose, smooth spicy tannins with a tang of acidity. It was clean with good texture, balanced and showing a precise finish, making it a very elegant and drinkable wine.<\/p>\n

\"DomdelaVougeraie\"<\/a>The final pair of the night were from the Northern C\u00f4te du Nuits and some of the most recognisable Burgundy appellations, Nuits St. George and Vosnee Romanee. Domaine de la Vougeraie<\/a>\u00a02008 Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru, Les Damodes<\/strong> (\u00a357.50, Berry Bros) comes from a 139 case production and gave a a clear colour in the glass and a savoury-mulchy nose. This was a light, elegant wine (the term \u201cfeminine\u201d was heard), not thin as such as it carried so much flavour along with it, supremely subtle with some raspberry and floral aspects and good length, making it a hard act to follow for the Domaine d’Ardhuy <\/a>2005 Vosnee Romanee 1er Cru, Les Chaumes<\/strong> (\u00a339, Burgundy Basement<\/a>).
\nThe Les Chaumes Climat is across the street from the Grand Cru La T\u00e2che vines so we were expecting something special encouraged by a depth of colour in the glass and a powerful yet integrated nose. Spicy and smoky with a little root liquorice behind the savoury fruit this gave a slightly bitter mid-palate with tannins and dense, New World flavours \u2013 a weighty, well made wine.<\/p>\n

At the end there was well deserved applause for David having put together a superb tasting from a notoriously difficult area, especially for his resourcefulness in sourcing low production wines within the NEWTS Budget (less than the UK retail prices shown in most instances).
\nThe Domaine Darviot Perrin 2008 Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru, Blanchots Dessus<\/strong> was the stand-out white, with the Domaine de la Vougeraie\u00a02008 Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru, Les Damodes<\/strong> one of the best Burgundy Reds I\u2019ve ever tasted \u2013 although as their combined price tags come to \u00a3100 this shouldn\u2019t be a big surprise. There wasn\u2019t a bargain wine in the tasting, but at \u00a333 the Domaine Pierre Labet 2009 Beanue 1er Cru, Clos du Dessus des Marconnets<\/strong> came close as a true to type Burgundy which had nearly anything you went looking for in there.<\/p>\n

Slainte!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

September seems like ages ago now but David Whitaker gave the NEWTS a tasting that will stay in memory for a long time with a selection of fine and rare Burgundy Premier Crus. Dave had made connections in Burgundy Wines … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":501,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,43],"tags":[124,18],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=498"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":510,"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498\/revisions\/510"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=498"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=498"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.northeastwine.org.uk\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=498"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}