22 vintages of Bruno Clair Chambertin Clos de Beze

18 November 2014: The highlight of our annual visit to Bourgogne this year was a vertical tasting of Bruno Clair's Chambertin Clos de Bèze. We were delighted to be joined by Bruno Clair and his son Edouard who started working at the domaine 4 years ago, after a degree in biology!

Bruno, seated in the middle, with his son Edouard on his left

Bruno is the grandson of Joseph Clair, originally from Santenay, who met and married a lovely girl from Marsannay, Marguerite Daü, during the 1st World War. Domaine Bruno Clair has 0.98 ha of Chambertin Clos de Bèze. The vines were planted in 1912 (about 2/3) and 1972. Bruno's vintage at the domaine was 1979.  When Joseph died in 1971, the domaine Clair-Daü was split up amongst the children and some of the vineyards either sold to Jadot or entered into metayage arrangements.

The 1966 bottle got squirreled away in this photo!

We tasted 22 vintages of the Chambertin Clos de Bèze, Bruno Clair and here are my impressions of the wine in brief:

1966 (this was a Clair-Daü label): Aromas of autumnal leaves, dried roses, mushroom and cinnamon spice filled the mature bouquet overlaid with mocha, caramel and dried fruit notes, evoking a sense of warmth and spiciness. A lovely mature wine, with silky texture, graceful balance, and a good dose of vibrancy on the palate. Definitely drinking now, and if kept well, should have a further life of 4 - 5 years, at least. 18/20


1989: Quite a bit of brett on the nose. Lacking in intensity and energy on the palate...though some complexity. Well evolved. I had expected more body/flesh, given the warmth of the vintage. 15.5/20


1990: Some ripe fruit still showing...but volatile acidity has started to poke through and is evident on the finish, with the fruit barely holding on. Strangely delicately-framed given the vintage's hallmark warmth and flamboyance. 15.5/20


1991: One of the star performers of the vertical. Plenty of intensity, concentration of ripe fruit, but maintaining a very elegant impression. Vibrant acidity, with well-integrated extremely fine tannin. Very harmonious and a most complete wine. 19/20


1992: A ripe fruit vintage. This has evolved nicely, still showing beautiful freshness. While attractive, the wine does not have the power and concentration of the climat. Drinking perfectly today but there is no upside potential to be had....this should continue to drink well for another 5 -6+ years. 17/20


1993: Quite a bit of brett on the nose. The acidity is firm. Quite austere, not very charming today. The best may still take some time to come? 16.5/20


1995: (From a magnum) A brett-dominated nose! Totally without charm today. Question whether this wine will ever turn around??!! 14.5/20


1996: Ripe fruit on the palate, but somewhat lacking in concentration, lively acidity, perhaps it's finally turning the corner?  I did not like the dry finish so much!   16.5/20


1998: Some brett and volatile acidity on the nose, but silky texture and well balanced. Seems to have more flesh than the 1996. Will need to revisit with further bottle evolution. (Richard remarked a good 1998) 16.5/20


1999: Another star performer for me. Beautiful aromatics (dried fruit, leather, spice, sous-bois and mushroom). Intense flavours and silky tannin structure lifted by firm acidity filling the rich and complex palate. Utterly moreish and finishes long. An excellent wine! (A remark from the group that the wine seems to have matured at a faster pace than expected....perhaps not one for the very long haul.) 18.5/20



2000: There was a bit of brett on the nose. Dark fruit and dried fruit (prune). Not as flamboyant and fleshy as expected of the vintage. Not very expressive. A little disappointing. Drinking well now! 16.5/20


2001: A lovely perfumed nose, well-balanced but delicate in its frame. A lovely lift on the finish....17/20


2002: Another star performer for me. There was a whiff of volatile acidity on the nose...but not enough to mar the enjoyment of this gorgeous, expressive, classy wine. Beautiful fruit showing ripeness and purity. Nicely concentrated, fleshy, beautifully textured and structured, with everything perfectly proportioned. Very refined. A classy wine of its terroir and vintage. 18.5/20

One of my favourites!

2003: A hint of burnt fruit...only a little, together with some spice and leather. There was an understated elegance in the evident richness, representative of the vintage but not over done. It will be interesting to retaste this in 5 years time to see how it has evolved. 16.5+/20


2004: Hints of the 'ladybird' secreted methoxypyrazine (an aroma compound like overcooked mushy peas), amidst a red fruit and floral nose. Still a little astringent......will need some time to develop but may not have the material to support long term development. 16/20


2005: Very attractive aromatics, showing bright and ripe berry fruit. Still very primary. Vibrant acidity with still firm but fine-grained tannin, needing time to resolve. The palate confirms its power, concentration and intensity. Today, this very complete wine is still a little closed but shows plenty of promise and will need at least 8 - 10 years to fully deliver! 19/20


2006: Plenty of ripe fruit...but lacking in precision in the detail......seems a bit loose in the structure. This will need some time to develop. 17+/20


2007: A little one-dimensional.....lacking in concentration or complexity, but a very fine effort. 16/20


2008: At first quite unyielding, with very firm acidity, and not much on the palate. Started to show better definition and structure with aeration. Could develop into a classy wine. 17+/20


2009: Fleshy and opulent, given the ripeness of the vintage. Already very approachable. Moreish. Needs time to develop more complexity. 18+/20



2010: A little muted but the linearity, elegance and purity are evident. Well crafted, a great expression of the vintage. Love the vibrancy and complexity on the palate. To revisit in 8 - 10 years' time. 18.5/20


2011: Lovely red fruit....a bit clunky and four-square. This could do with more time to resolve the firm tannin and develop some padding on the palate. 16.5/20

Bruno had brought along for us to taste a magnum of his 2008 Morey-Saint-Denis 'En La Rue de Vergy'. It showed lovely minerality, nuances of fennel seeds, still plenty of energy and a nice crisp finish. A lovely wine! Perfect with cheese!  He also brought a magnum of 1994 Clos Saint Jacques which according to those who were quick to the bottle, it was absolutely delicious!


What a fabulous tasting!  (And thank you so much to our wonderful lunch host!  I loved the sausage and lentil stew!)  These are expressive wines that reward patience!

Aren't they beautiful?

Lessons from nature: Domaine Comte Abbatucci

8 November 2014: Despite its long tradition of winemaking since 15th Century, the Abbatucci family had long been better known for its connection with Napoléon Bonaparte and his descendants. Jean-Charles Abbatucci (1770 – 1796) was a friend of Napoléon’s and while serving as General, he conquered Holland at the young age of 23 years. Jacques-Pierre-Charles Abbatucci (1791 – 1857) served as lawyer of Corsica, magistrate of Orleans and then Paris and eventually became the Minister of Justice of the Second Empire. He was well known for his love of all traditional products of Corsica and was responsible for crafting the modern Corsica.

Jean-Charles Abbatucci

The current winery of Domaine Comte Abbatucci has been making wine for over a century, covering 100 hectares of granitic terroir, about 20% of which are planted, in the area of Ajaccio. The winery is now run by Jean-Charles Abbatucci, whose father started planting some near-extinct local indigenous varieties in the family vineyard in 1960’s and spent 10 years preparing a notebook detailing results of his study including ampelography and cultural character of these varieties. There are an estimated 22-23 indigenous varieties in Corsica and you can find 18 of these at Domaine Comte Abbatucci. Jean-Charles is passionate to craft the best wines possible from his land, and since 2000, he started practicing biodynamics when he noticed that nature produced the best fruit possible when unadulterated. Apart from biodynamic practices in accordance with the lunar calendar, he has augmented such with phytotherapy. The most remarkable changes to his vineyard and wines since the adoption of biodynamics are that the depth of topsoil of decomposed granite has increased from 7 cm to 30 cm, more vigour in the canopy, greater biodiversity in the soil, greater concentration of micro-organisms in the roots, and the whites are showing much more minerality while the reds demonstrate a distinct aroma of the earth, especially in his top cuvée Ministre Impérial. The use of natural yeast has also ensured a better balance between aromatic complexity and complexity on the palate. It has been a long and rewarding learning process, learning about the harmony between nature, vines and man.

Some of Jean-Charles’s top wines, with the signature hallmark of elegance, freshness, and unique character, are sold as Vin de France, as they are not made in conformance with AOC requirements. The entry level wine range (AOC Ajaccio) is called Faustine, named after Jean-Charles’s daughter, with production levels of the red about 30,000 bottles, 20,000 bottles for the white and 15,000 bottles of the rosé. At the premium range, there is the Cuvée Collection, comprising 2 white labels and 1 red label. The whites are Diplomate d’Empire and Général de La Révolution and the red is Ministre Impérial. Just below these 3 top cuvées, there are 2 wines, namely Carcajolo-Nero (CN in short) and Barbarossa (BR) based on the varietals. About 25,000 bottles are produced all together for these 5 wines.

Faustine Blanc, Faustine Rouge et Cuvee Collection Ministre

During my tasting with Jean-Charles, I tasted 3 of his wines. I started with the 100% Vermentino, Faustine Blanc 2013, Vieilles Vignes. Vinified without use of oak. Aromatically, this recalled green grass, green apple and citrus. On the palate, there was a clean precise minerality, complementing the refreshing bright acidity. The wine finished long, with a saline complexity to the finish. Fabulous as an aperitif or to pair with seafood platter or sashimi.


The red Faustine I tasted was from the 2012 vintage, a blend of 70% Sciaccarello and 30% Nielluccio. Vinification in cement tanks, without any oak influence. The aromas presented wild berries, myrtle (characteristic of Sciaccarello), lavender and cardamom spice. Fresh acidity greeted the palate, together with fine-grained elegant tannin, lending a silky mouthfeel. Finishes fresh and spicy. Refined, aromatic and very attractive.


Both of these entry level wines are drinking well now and will continue to drink well for another 6 – 8+ years. Guided retail price about HK$200 a bottle.

I finished the tasting with the 2012 vintage of the Ministre Impérial, from the Cuvée Collection. Jean-Charles said he’s still trying to understand how the wine would develop, as its first vintage was only 2007! Made from a blend of 7 grape varieties, with Sciaccarello and Nielluccio making up 40% of the blend. Aged in 600-litre used demi-muids, without any new oak influence. The nose was intense but delivered great aromatic complexity and intensity, with nuances of raisin, plum, violet, earthy, iodine, pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg spice. The intense flavours continue on the palate, and are built into layers and layers of complexity. The tannins are firm, ripe and fine-grained, giving a velvety roundness to the mouthfeel, balanced by vibrant acidity. The finish goes on for a few minutes. It embodies elegance, finesse and harmony, even at this young age. If served blind, it would be almost impossible to position this in Corsica! This wine has been well-received by some well-known winemakers from Bourgogne, with one famous winemaker from Puligny-Montrachet, likening its style to a wine between Chambolle Musigny and Château Rayas. Further, Jean-Charles believes in wax closure for additional protection, as he uses only minimum sulphur. Guided retail price about HK$ 850 a bottle.

It was very exciting to learn that Jean-Charles had just acquired a piece of 40-hectare vineyard at 600 metre altitude where he is envisaging an oasis of vines in the middle of maquis-covered land. (Maquis is a local term, very similar to garrigue in the Languedoc, with immortelle and myrtle as key components.)



  

2002 Montrachet, Fontaine-Gagnard and 1985 Corton Charlemagne, Louis Latour

1 November 2014: 17 years apart....and so similar in colour!