Mercurey: A Hidden Jewel of Bourgogne!!

Credit: Freddie Wong

14 October 2015: The fifth instalment of the live satellite-broadcast training on Bourgogne wines hosted by BIVB (Bureau Interprofessionnel des Vins de Bourgogne) or the Bourgogne Wine Board put the spotlight on the appellation of Mercurey and its climats. The English broadcast reached trade audience over 20 locations around the world including the UK, USA, Canada, Norway, Belgium, Germany, Taiwan and multiple cities in China (including Hong Kong). (The live broadcast was also available in French at different times.)

Mercurey, named after the God Mercury, is one of the most celebrated appellations of the Côte Chalonnaise that stretches 25 kilometres south of Chagny, a town perhaps better known for its 3-Michelin-starred restaurant Lameloise. Covering 635 hectares, with production of 3.5 million bottles, Mercurey is one of the largest appellations of Bourgogne, after Chablis and Pouilly Fuissé. Traditionally known for reds, now accounting for 85% of the total production volume, Mercurey’s whites have been gaining recognition for their flinty and fruity character and remarkable freshness. 27% of the production comes from the 32 Premier Cru climats. The historic rustic character of the reds has given way to charming wines today, full of cherry pit character, overlaid with spiciness, with a roundness and smooth texture, that could fit every palate, affirmed Amaury Devillard, President of the Mercurey Producers Union, also co-proprietor of Château de Chamirey and Domaine des Perdrix. And the whites cannot be overlooked, he hastened to add. He said that there was not just one Mercurey wine style, but that it resembled a patchwork of colours, with diverse expressions across the beautiful Village wines and the distinctive Premiers Crus, and more importantly a remarkable price-quality ratio. He shared with the audience his two favourite Premier Cru climats: limestone-based south/southwest-oriented Clos des Barraults for flinty, pure and elegant Chardonnay and clay-based Clos du Roi for fresh, juicy Pinot Noir with a smooth finish.

The diversity of the wines is in part due to geological upheavals caused by the rising of the Alps 50 millions of years ago, smashing to pieces the sediments formed during the Jurassic period (around 137 – 195 million years) of the Mesozoic Era. This geological disruption resulted in a number of terrains consisting of 5 different types of marl and 10 different types of limestone. For simplicity, they are largely grouped into 5 different families of soil and subsoil, explained Jean-Pierre Renard, Instructor of the Ecole des Vins de Bourgogne, part of BIVB. The first family consists of 270 hectares formed on hard compact limestone less than 1.2 metres deep and found mainly in the north, represented by climats such as Les Montelons, La Frambroisière, La Perrière, La Mission (monopole of Château de Chamirey) and En Sazenay. The second family of 190 hectares is based on a subsoil of marl, covered by shallow limestone pebbles, represented by climats such as Creu de Montelons, La Cailloute, Les Croichots, Le Clos des Barraults, Les Vasées and Les Montaigus. The third family is also based on marl, with pebble and red/brown soil, ranging from 40 cm to 2 metres deep, characterised by climats such as Les Combins, Le Closeau, Les Crêts, Le Clos L’Evêque, Le Clos du Roi, La Chassière and Le Clos de Paradis. The fourth family is clay-based, with no limestone, and soil 1.5 metre or deeper, stretching across 70 hectares, with examples such as Le Bois Cassien, La Corvée and Le Clos Rond. Erosion of slopes on both sides of the small valleys that fuse with the central valley Val d’Or gave rise to the final family, which contains no limestone in the deep soils. But it could be much simpler than this, Devillard shared with us the wisdom of his grandfather, Marquis de Jouennes, who was the first to bottle wines at domaine in Mercurey in 1934. His grandfather taught him to watch how quickly the snow melted to understand the quality of the terroirs. The quicker the soil melts, the more quickly the bunches ripen, and the higher potential for quality of the wine.


Naturally, the human hand has played an important role in shaping the modern landscape of Mercurey, and the diversity of styles. Improvements in viticulture and the winery effected by a new generation of dynamic winemakers have given the wines a modern allure and market potential.


6 wines were tasted during this one-hour seminar, including one village white, one village red and 4 Premier Cru reds. In Hong Kong, the seminar elicited a wave of interest and lively discussions amongst the trade professionals who attended. The Hong Kong group gave a resounding nod to the flinty and refreshing white with balancing fruitiness. Although opinions were divided amongst the reds, there was no question that the two red Premiers Crus from the 2012 vintage showed a firm structure and potential for ageing that would reward years of cellaring. Renard recalled his memorable experience of tasting Mercurey wines with 10, 20 years of age.

 

The 6 wines that BIVB selected for the tasting were:

Mercurey Les Rochelles 2013, Domaine Louis Max

Mercurey Les Closeaux 2013, Domaine de l’Europe

Mercurey 1er Cru Champs Martin 2013, Domaine Theulot-Juillot

Mercurey 1er Cru Les Vasées 2013, Domaine François Raquillet

Mercurey 1er Cru Clos du Roi 2012, Château de Chamirey

Mercurey 1er Cru En Sazenay 2012, Domaine de Suremain



Quoting Devillard’s conclusion, Mercurey is [indeed] one of the hidden jewels of Bourgogne. It is now turning out excellent wines that offer an attractive price-quality ratio….and the new generation of winemakers are relentlessly making this a lasting impression. During the live Q&A session, Renard was asked whether the premier cru wines of Mercurey were under-priced. With his characteristic sense of humour, he turned the question round and asked if the wines from the Côte d’Or were over-priced??!!

Birthday Wines

27 September 2015: This month, we were invited to a couple of important birthday celebrations.....and here are the wines our hosts served - I made a note against the ones I particularly enjoyed:

40th birthday party at Dine Art:
1996 Salon ***
2004 Meursault-Perrieres, Roulot ****
2001 Batard-Montrachet, Ramonet
2002 Griotte-Chambertin, Fourrier *****
1999 Romanee-Saint-Vivant, Sylvain Cathiard
1999 Grands-Echezeaux, Rene Engel


60th birthday party at Nicholini's:
2000 Krug Clos du Mesnil *****
2007 Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet, Henri Boillot
2004 Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet, Leflaive ****
2008 Meursault-Caillerets, Coche-Dury *****
2001 Clos de Vougeot, Leroy ****
1988 Lafite-Rothschild ****
1989 Lafite-Rothschild

What treats we had!

1999 Echezeaux: Emmanuel Rouget versus Jayer-Gilles

27 September 2015: Mid-Autumn Festival dinner. To go with my homemade lime and chili flavoured guacamole, we started with a 2013 Chablis Mont de Milieu, Domaine Pinson Frères. Harvest started early for the Pinsons for this vintage...with the Mont de Milieu grapes from 30-year-old vines being brought in on 16th September. The domaine started using 100% indigenous yeasts as of 2013 vintage, which would lead to slower fermentation process and more complex flavour development, but also could explain the trace of residual sugar in the Mont de Milieu. It was rich and opulent,with an intense stone fruit, citrus lime, slightly honey, smokey and mineral expression. Acidity was noticeably softer than a classic Chablis vintage but the wine was nicely balanced overall, with a long saline finish. 16/20

Over Richard's roast lamb loin, scented with rosemary and garlic, with caramelised shallots, we compared 2 bottles of 1999 Echézeaux, one by Emmanuel Rouget and the other by Jayer-Gilles. 

The Rouget showed bright, rich and pure red fruit of raspberry and cherry, laced with savoury bacon, smokey, sweet vanilla nuances, in a rich and luscious expression of old vines (around 65 years then) from the climats of Les Cruots, Les Treux and Clos Saint-Denis. Beautiful concentration, presented by the seamless integration, firm structure, velvety texture and balance and energy. Drink now and over the next 10 -12+ years. 18.5/20 (According to Winesearcher.com, a bottle currently retails at  around GBP 420/USD 635.)

The Echézeaux du Dessus by Jayer-Gilles revealed a more subdued and yet refined character, and an impressive balance that led to a persistent finish. More evolved than the Rouget, showing more game, sous-bois, spicy, and mushroom notes. Elegantly balanced, with lovely lift of freshness. Drink now and over 8 - 10+ years. (The Echézeaux du Dessus is a much favoured climat of Echézeaux, about 3.55 ha in size, and lying just above Grands Echézeaux, and neighbouring Les Loachausses and Les Cruots.) 18/20 (According to Winesearcher.com, a bottle of this wine currently retails at around GBP 225/USD 345.)

To pair with the festive mooncake, we had a 2002 Pinot Gris Altenbourg, Clos des Capucins, Sélection des Grains Nobles, Domaine Weinbach. Golden hue, an intense nose and palate of white chocolate, ripe pear, macadamia, ginger, honey and caramel notes. Vibrant acidity giving this opulent wine perfect balance and the wonderfully persistent finish kept taking us back for more until the last drop. Loved the 10.5% abv! It worked beautifully with the salted egg yolk and the creamy lotus seed paste!  18/20

2008 Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne

23 Sep 2015: 2008 Corton-Charlemagne, Coche-Dury. Richard picked this very special bottle to celebrate my very low-key birthday.  Pale lemon hue.  Intense bouquet of buttered toast, hazelnut, smoke and lemon peel. A powerfully structured and delineated wine, with pronounced acidity to give the wine an incredible lift, balancing the sumptuous richness, layers of complexity, volumes of energy and tension filling the minerality-laden palate. Immaculately balanced, seamlessly integrated, with the most persistent finish, that brings out such purity and lineage.   A distinguished wine that has yet to fulfill its full potential, but why wait?  It's already so delicious!  20/20

A passion for wine, art and architecture - Chateau La Coste

22 Sep 2015: About a month ago, we were very fortunate to be invited to a very special winery visit and lunch.......as part of a birthday celebration for a dear friend.

With winemaking evidence dating to Roman times, enriched by a bastide built in 1682 by the Bishop of Aix, current owner, Irish entrepreneur Paddy McKillen has developed Château La Coste into a 3,000-acre community of wine, art and architecture based in Le-Puy-Sainte-Réparade, near Aix-en-Provence. La Coste in another time was La Côte (or hillside). Inspired by the wild nature, Provençal light and size of the property, Paddy’s vision was to build a sustainable wine estate in the Provence, esthetically and functionally in harmony with the wild landscape and peaceful surroundings, and producing world class wines using the best technology and talent possible, while respecting the soil, vines and biodiversity for sustainable growth. In 2006, he appointed Matthieu Cosse, who came with reputation established in Cahors at Domaine Cosse Maisonneuve, as the Oenology Engineer to transform the vineyards and upgrade the winemaking skills. A detailed soil analysis was performed to ensure best matching of variety to soil type. Château La Coste has been organically certified (French AB) since 2009 and having followed biodynamic principles for a while, the team is now set to engage in the biodynamic conversion process. With ‘carte blanche’ to do whatever he felt necessary to achieve the high standards set by Paddy, Matthieu has made significant improvements to the quality of the wines, especially at the high end cuvées: Bellugue, Les Pentes Douces, Grand Vin and Grande Cuvée. Average yields are kept low, with 35 hl/ha for reds, 40hl/ha for whites and 50 hl/ha for rosés. 

 

Grande Cuvee

The Grande Cuvée red is luscious wine made from 50% old vine Syrah and 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, produced at very low yields, seeing 18 months in a mixture of new, one and two year oak barrels. This is a relatively new cuvée by Matthieu, limited to about 1,000 bottle production at the moment.  The 2012 vintage still has some chewy ripe tannin, wrapped in the velvety texture to resolve, but the ageing potential is evident.  The Grand Vin white is an IGP wine, as it has incorporated 10% Chardonnay and 30% Sauvignon Blanc, to lend aromatic familiarity and fleshy body to crisp Vermentino (60%), still retaining sound minerality and remarkable freshness from a land that basks in glorious Provencal sun. While excessive dryness is not an issue today, the challenge to nurture young vines to reach their potential remains.

Inaugurated in 2008, the state-of-the-art gravity-fed cuverie, designed by Jean Nouvel, allows the winemaking process to follow the estate’s philosophy of nurturing this natural expression of terroirs. The two giant cuverie buildings, made of corrugated aluminium with insulation, measure 10 metres high and 17 metres deep below ground to house the vats. Although renewable energy is not a reality yet at La Coste, Paddy and the team have already installed a water purification plant and are studying waste recycling to further reduce carbon footprint.

Visiting the Château any day, one will see visitors and families enjoying a day out at the estate, which boasts a collection of modern artworks and creations of architecture by artists and architects from around the world, dotted over the premises. One needs to take a tour to visit all of them – 2 hours are recommended for this walk. The Tadao Ando Centre, laid out on a V-shaped plan, conceived by the eponymous architect is the art centre of the estate, housing the reception area, bookshop and cafe. The Japanese master’s signature elements, especially the interplay of exterior and interior spaces, are incorporated into this structure to create an experience of light and space in nature. The centre overlooks an infinity pool that hides the underground carpark. I was particularly impressed by the Oak Room by Andy Goldsworthy: a hemisphere-shaped cavern dug inside the sides of the hill, with the walls lined with continuous oak tree branches. One needed to adjust the eyes with help from the natural light coming in through the narrow opening, to be able to admire this artistic wonder in stunned silence. One could not miss the giant Crouching Spider by Louise Bourgeois in the infinity pool, Frank O. Gehry’s Pavilion de Musique across the field, the hilltop small chapel by Tadao Ando, or Sean Scully’s Wall of Light Cubed, and many more. The art and architecture project at La Coste has developed in an organic way over the last 10 years. Each artist or architect was invited to La Coste by Paddy to experience the beauty of the landscape and was encouraged to find his/her own unique spot on the premises, and to design a piece of work that would best express the location and the experience. One can say the landscape of La Coste is an evolving one, every visiting artist or architect adding a distinct and unique feature to the estate.

 

Crouching Spider by Louise Bourgeois

Local organic and seasonal fresh produce is integral to the design of the Provencal and Mediterranean-themed menus at both dining outlets at La Coste (the more casual outdoor La Terrasse and the more urbane Tadao Ando Café). I was delighted to see La Tarte Tropézienne on the menu too, for that extra Mediterranean touch!

 

The V-shaped Tadao Ando Centre and Jean Nouvel's Cuverie, view from an altitude

Paddy has already embarked on the next project which will see his hospitality expertise applied to La Coste, through the development of Villa La Coste consisting of 28 individual villas, with a gourmet restaurant, club house and spa, on a hillside site overseeing the vineyards. We were told La Coste should welcome its first resident visitors as early as Easter 2016! To arrange a visit or reservation, http://chateau-la-coste.com/en/

Musigny and Bonnes Mares.....and the wine of the evening is?

17 September 2015: For Part 3 of the Musigny dinner (Richard and I had missed Part 2), we decided to vary the theme slightly by including Bonnes Mares for some interesting comparative tasting. After a tough selection (thanks to everyone's generosity), we reluctantly narrowed down to 9 bottles, with the oldest vintage being 1978 and the youngest 1995.

Musigny has a total area of just under 11 ha, between 260 and 300 ha and is situated at the southern end of the Chambolle village, overlooking Clos de Vougeot and Les Amoureuses. There are 3 distinct parcels to Musigny, in order from north to south - Les Grands Musigny (5.9 ha), Les Petits Musigny (just under 4.2 ha) and La Combe d'Orveau (around 0.7 ha). Comte Georges de Vogüé has the entire holding in Les Petits Musigny with about 40% of Les Grands Musigny. Except Jacques Prieur which has its holding in La Combe d'Orveau, all the other domaines (I counted 8) have their Musigny holdings in Les Grands Musigny. The soil in general is clay-rich clay-limestone, with small stones to help drainage. The lower slopes are based on hard Comblanchien marble/limestone, making it tough work for the vine roots. Upper slopes are more porous. The domaines would typically have vines planted along the slopes for a complete expression. Musigny is noted for its distinct perfume and a velvety texture that belies a robust character and persistent strength.

Bonnes Mares on the other hand is at the northern end of Chambolle and has a total area of 15 ha, with about 13.5 ha in Chambolle, and 1.5 ha in Morey. There are many more producers of Bonnes Mares - I counted 23. Bonnes Mares typically has a more sauvage and earthy character than Musigny, and a stewed fruit/plum character, rather than pure red fruit.

Here are my tasting notes - we tasted from old to young - none decanted, all opened between 7:30 and 8 pm:

1978 Musigny, Comte Georges de Vogüé (US strip label): Such enthralling aromatics of mushroom, truffle, cinnamon, spice and earthy. Sensuous texture, but a little weak structurally, with a slightly hollow mid-palate and short of the lingering finish that one would expect of such great wine. Drink now (within 3 - 5 years); no positive upside can be expected from further cellaring. (17/20)


1978 Bonnes Mares, Comte Georges de Vogüé: A more earthy and sous-bois dominated bouquet. All aspects seamless integrated into a classically delineated structure that delivers restrained opulence balanced by freshness, mouthcoating flavours, robust structure and lingering finish. A wine at its peak of development. Drink now and over the next 8 - 10 years! (18/20)

1989 Musigny, Comte Georges de Vogüé (US strip label): The underlying good quality material disappointingly marred by brettanomyces, some volatile acidity, lacking in generosity on the palate and finishes dry.



1990 Musigny, Jacques Prieur: A classy bouquet of spice, dark cherry, savoury and animal notes, displaying rich ripe fruit and an understated elegance befitting of the vintage and its Grand Cru status. Great poise and perfectly balanced, with a very long finish. A wine that promises further ageing potential, of 10 - 15+ years! This was agreed by all as the wine that delivered the most upside surprise on the evening! (18.5/20)


1990 Musigny, JF Mugnier: This was much less evolved than the Prieur. Rich powerful nose and palate, with meaty and dark cherry notes, and still very primary. I detected a whiff of volatile acidity and a metallic undertone...but not sufficient to deflect our appreciation of its class, power and style. A wine to revisit in 5 years time? (17.5+/20)

1993 Bonnes Mares, d'Auvenay: unfortunately, this bottle had distinct bovril notes and signs of volatile acidity.


1993 Bonnes Mares, Robert Groffier (the owner of the bottle told us that it was a recent release by the domaine, hence the unusual wax capsule): for me, this was the wine of the evening. I scored it the highest. Alluring bouquet of coffee, spice, earth, mushroom and sous-bois notes. A wine that exudes freshness, energy, voluptuous ripe fruit, balance and a sense of harmony. Finishes very long. Drink now and over the next 10 -15 years. (19/20)

1995 Bonnes Mares, Georges Roumier: Classy bouquet and structure, with elegant poise and balance. Pure sweet fruit lines the palate, complemented by well-built freshness. The Groffier had just much more persistence, well-delineated structure and elegance at this evening's tasting. (18/20)


1995 Musigny, Georges Roumier: sadly another bottle with issues of volatile acidity and microbial spoilage.


The top 3 wines for the group were:

1978 Bonnes Mares, Comte Georges de Vogüé
1993 Bonnes Mares, Robert Groffier
1990 Musigny, Jacques Prieur


Quite a shame that 3 bottles out of 9 suffered from spoilage, one form or another.......and the sad thing is we could not have foretold their fates by judging from the condition of the cork, the level of the wine and sometimes the condition of storage (too much dampness?). Ultimately patience is rewarded in many a case of great wines.....let's just call the spoilage along the way part of the overall cost of investment?!

P.S. During a recent stay at Gerard Basset's Hotel Terravina in the New Forest in the UK, we tried a bottle of 2006 Bonnes Mares, Hudelot-Baillet.  We had never heard of this domaine before.  The domaine was established in 1981 by Joel Hudelot, together with his wife Chantal Baillet. Now run by Joel's son-in-law Dominique Le Guen since the former's retirement in 2004, the domaine has taken great steps to improve the quality of wine from 8.5 hectares of vineyards, including much lower yields, and sustainable viticulture. Dominique practices cool pre-maceration before punching down in the early stages.  He then moves to more gentle pump over and also delestage for avoid extraction of harsh tannins from the pips. 50% new oak and 50% 1-year barrels for the Premier and Grand Cru wines.  Elevage in oak between 12 and 18 months.  Since 2002, the wines have been bottled unfiltered.  

The 2006 Bonnes Mares showed a deep colour, rich ripe and pure fruit, starting to display some tertiary development, a well-integrated structure with intrinsic minerality and balance, but perhaps lacked the aromatic and flavour complexity, depth and lingering finish of the better examples of Bonnes Mares. It was nonetheless a beautiful expression and a reasonable value for this Grand Cru!  Gerard told us it was his last bottle!  Hopefully, he will have replenished his wine list with another interesting wine on our next visit.

And I should mention that we also tried a 2012 Rully Premier Cru Grésigny by Paul et Marie Jacqueson.  I last tried wines by this domaine during my visit to Bourgogne in June.  It really was a great example of Rully!  Mineral, almost flinty, with fine citrus and almond notes, well-judged acidity, well-balanced and a nice long crisp finish!  We loved it!

(To read more, please refer to: http://vinumetvita.blogspot.hk/2015/06/climats-de-la-cote-chalonnaise.html)

The best wine to go with fried calamari!

25 August 2015: It was a great experience to be tasting 2013 Grecante by Arnaldo Caprai with Marco Caprai in Hong Kong! 100% Grechetto, with its Greek origin, showed vibrant acidity, pronounced minerality and elegant structural balance, proved to be a perfect pair with fried calamari, and absolutely approved by Marco! 

We went to Fishteria on Queen’s Road East, the new seafood-focused dining concept by Chef Gianni Caprioli. The ambiance is bistro-like, with focus on seafood. Friendly, casual and nicely spacious. We started with some oysters and a glass of Champagne downstairs, before heading upstairs for dinner. The salt-baked seabass was a highlight, as was the scrumptious burrata with heirloom tomatoes. Look out for Chef Gianni’s upcoming opening on Star Street (same site as The Principal).

Deep-fried calamari

Really delicious burrata and tomato salad

Salt-baked seabass