A very cool book – really super photos from Jon Wyand – it also looks like he’s been flying a very sturdy kite, given some stunning aerial shots…
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Entries from 2014
what to do on a friday?
good day, thursday…
mist, sun, barrels, horses, trees and sky…
It just felt like that kind of day!
On my way through the mist to visit Le Grappin today, I even saw peoples’ breath steaming a little – it didn’t seem that cool, but apparently…
The sun managed to break through quite early today, it was already sunny around lunchtime. The vineyards close to the RN(9)74 have lost much of their leaves, but on the hillsides they remain beautifully coloured, delineating the vineyards – none more-so than Monthelie and St.Aubin in the Côte de Beaune.
Heading back to Puligny from Saint Aubin I happened upon the horses of Leflaive doing their thing in Pucelles. Idyllic…
That’s what I call a press!
St.Aubin 1er Les Castets
Leflaive Pucelles
Puligny
A cellar(!) in Puligny
Puligny…
Le Grappin 2013s
Tasted with Andrew Nielsen in Beaune 29th October, 2014. Pictured right, Andrew and Emma Nielsen.
Le Grappin
@legrappin
www.legrappin.com
Well, there was no point in making you wait 2+ more weeks for the October issue of Burgundy Report EXTRA! to read this – because the Le Grappin 2013 offer closes on the 4th of November – so here you go for a free view of what’s assembled in the EXTRA! The highlighted wines are personal my favourites.
Andrew and Emma were moving, scrubbing and moving (again) everything in sight when I visited. The former cuverie of Fanny Sabre in the centre of Beaune remains their compact and bijou home. It could have been an even tighter squeeze were it not for the hail of 2013: With the addition of a contract for Santenay-Gravières blanc they had the potential to produce roughly 35 barrels of wine in 2013, but of-course their vines were hit by hail – so just 18 barrels of 13s await…
The wines…
Andrew plans to bottle his whole production next week – he notes that the year he used a contract bottler for his 18 barrels, it took them just a few hours – when he did the same himself last year it took them over a week! I guess the contract option looks rather appealing 😉 Overall, a lovely set of wines – there’s nothing here that I wouldn’t consider buying:
2013 Savigny-lès-Beaune
From 60 year-old, organic managed, vines in Aux Fourneau. Really badly hit by hail in 13 so he was able to get a few more rows from the same grower, but they took a whole week, pre-harvest, to drop sub-standard and damaged fruit. That said, they took a further 14 hours to sort the remaining 3 barrels-worth of fruit once harvested. Still, they managed to find about 10% good whole-clusters too. There was no pigeage and just 3 remontages with the whole-clusters on the top of the grapes.
Really great colour. The nose has fine depth of aroma, and is seemingly almost textured – really lovely. Round yet with the upmarket concentration expected of a 1er cru – lovely weight of extract. I think this an excellent result
From 60 year-old, organic managed, vines in Aux Fourneau. Really badly hit by hail in 13 so he was able to get a few more rows from the same grower, but they took a whole week, pre-harvest, to drop sub-standard and damaged fruit. That said, they took a further 14 hours to sort the remaining 3 barrels-worth of fruit once harvested. Still, they managed to find about 10% good whole-clusters too. There was no pigeage and just 3 remontages with the whole-clusters on the top of the grapes.
Really great colour. The nose has fine depth of aroma, and is seemingly almost textured – really lovely. Round yet with the upmarket concentration expected of a 1er cru – lovely weight of extract. I think this an excellent result
2013 Beaune 1er Boucherottes
Also hailed, but less dramatically than in Savigny – it was also ‘hit-and-miss’ hail – unlike Savigny where every single cluster was damaged, in this plot some remained perfect. Andrew has managed to make 7 barrels worth, and also include 25% whole-clusters in his recipe. Daily remontage plus 4 days of light pigeage here.
Again excellent medium-plus colour. The nose is darker and just faintly spicy. Despite a little CO2 this is clearly a more direct and transparent wine of good intensity. Lovely width and purity to the flavours from the mid-palate onwards into the finish. Really good!
2013 Savigny-lès-Beaune Blanc
This plot was basically destroyed by the hail: Instead of his normal 4-5 barrels, Andrew was able to assemble only 90 litres of pressed juice. Although he prefers to make only from the same plots each year, there wasn’t enough to properly vinify, so he was forced to buy must from a grower in a neighbouring plot. He now has 3 barrels worth – ‘It had to be done’ he says…
The aromatic here is nicely round with a slowly growing, fresher aspect. Round in the mouth too with a slowly bubbling acidity below. It would be even better with just a twist more of acidity, but the depth of flavour is lovely – it remains a really tasty wine.
2013 Santenay 1er Les Gravières Blanc
The grower tells Andrew that this is the only chardonnay on the terres blanches of Gravières – easy for him to say 😉 Vines have a good age of about 40 years and provided enough for two (older) barrels worth of wine.
Here is a fresher, modestly mineral nose that has fine floral top-notes. There’s faint CO2 on the palate but behind, the wine is clearly lithe, wide and very tasty. I find a fine tension from the mid-palate into the finish. Very lovely!
The grower tells Andrew that this is the only chardonnay on the terres blanches of Gravières – easy for him to say 😉 Vines have a good age of about 40 years and provided enough for two (older) barrels worth of wine.
Here is a fresher, modestly mineral nose that has fine floral top-notes. There’s faint CO2 on the palate but behind, the wine is clearly lithe, wide and very tasty. I find a fine tension from the mid-palate into the finish. Very lovely!
2013 Beaune 1er Les Grèves Blanc
Again, lower yields due to hail, There’s no new oak used here.
Once-more there’s something floral in the aromatic – but below is more depth of aroma. Lithe and wide in the mouth – the depth of flavour growing all the time and leaving a suggestion of salt on your tongue. Lovely wine again.
weekend wines and misty burgundy
A couple of wines from the weekend above – and why not 2008! The Pillot was nicely muscled and in perfect drinking order. The Camille Giroud Corton was a pig to taste before bottling but has rounded out to a very pretty and engaging wine – very yummy. 2 hits from 2008!
Monday, back to the Côtes. It was a misty/low cloud day, and it never really left, just covered everything with a faint shimmer of dampness. Tuesday started exactly the same. I saw Blair Pethel and he said that it was just wet enough to keep him from ploughing – oh well, it seems like Autumn is arriving. But late afternoon the sun managed to break through the cloud and we were treated to a lovely last 2 hours of sun and sunset…
My tour of white domaines continues unabated, lovely wines to discover…
friday in sunny chassagne before the autoroute
Friends arrive for the weekend today – but in Switzerland! So time for just one visit this morning, in Chassagne, before heading home.
Picture-perfect blue sky. Still about 10° cooler – we didn’t really reach 10°C until lunchtime. Hopefully it’s still as pretty when I get back next Monday. Hopefully Beaune will be a little easier to navigate next week – this week, roads kept being closed for putting up the Christmas lights!
Hmm, only 5 visits in the diary for next week though – so far 😉
cold, zalto, riedel…
Ouf! Thursday was cooler – we’ve lost 10°C in 12 hours! Thursday had a brilliant sunrise (for those heading for early appointments in Maranges!) but stayed very cloudy until late afternoon. By 4pm there were the first flashed of blue sky – but don’t tell the people of St.Romain – it was already black as night when I left there!
In the evening I had a little play with, comparing a Zalto, a Riedel and a 2004 Volnay Champans from Count of Lafon. I didn’t find any pyrazines with either glass, but the aromas were a little more herbal in the Riedel versus the more floral and prettier Zalto. 1:0 to Zalto. In the hand though, I found the Zalto stem disconcertingly narrow and it seemed a little top-heavy. The Riedel seems more balanced in my hand – that could be familiarity of-course – the Riedel was more like an old friend. I prefer drinking with old friends!
But that doesn’t mean I won’t keep having a chat with the Zalto 😉
Auxey
Auxey
chevalier for breakfast…
Well, somebody has to do it!
This morning the wind had dropped, but there was also a more noticeable chill: 7°C at 07h30. The light was lovely though, and the vines haven’t yet lost all their leaves from the wind! A mix of grander and ‘insider’ domaines today, including one that previously ‘could do better.’ I was invited for lunch – a shock I know – I’m unrepentant, but I don’t have a list of commercials ‘things’ that I have to avoid on my site, so I’m allowed – I consider myself too grown up for that 😉
Back to my apartment in the evening, it’s still chilly – I will have to jog faster – but first, it’s time to eat the Bolognese that I was too scared to eat yesterday while cleaning. Yum!
