Tasted at the Château Mimande with Armand Heitz, 17 April 2023.
Domaine Armand Heitz
(Pre vintage 2019: Formally Domaine Heitz-Lochardet)
24 Rue Charles Paquelin
21190 Chassagne-Montrachet
Tel: +33 3 80 21 33 19
armandheitz.com
More reports with Domaine Armand Heitz
Our tasting venue today was the Chateau Mimande – Armand has been here since 2021 and already had 20 weddings planned for this summer, with a restaurant opening in a few days at the site – and a flock of sheep were to be arriving in another 2 weeks – lots of work. That doesn’t include the domaine viticole or the herd of cows that he manages too!
Armand on 2021 and a little on 2022:
“Practically all – 95% – of the bottling is now done. Yes, a small vintage – 50% of our normal volume. It’s hard to compensate; I couldn’t go higher than a 30% price increase! Fortunately, 2022 has helped us recover some of that lost volume – the two vintage volumes together you could almost describe as a decent average…”
Armand on 2023:
“This year (2023), for the moment, we had no problems with frost – it was dry and windy – which helped! Let’s get the St.Glace behind us!”
The wines…
They have only been making wine for about 10 years but this is already a very steady, classy producer.
DIAM for all wines, both colours – “I appreciate the regularity.”
2021 Juliénas
Vines on the hill – some altitude here – 450m so often harvested 3 weeks after the harvest in Burgundy. Wines made with whole clusters. Vinified in Juliénas but elevage in Chassagne. ‘Yes, for us it was the frost that cut our volumes, not really the hail.’ They have 8 ha – 6 in domaine and 2 that they are exploiting.
Nicely open aromatic freshness here – it has depth of aroma too – faintly herbed but not green. Hmm – direct, a little muscle – freshness – maybe even a suggestion of mint – but no gentian – that’s a lovely wine.
2021 Pommard Vaumuriens
Tried to buy the estate of this retiring producer but Safer said no, but now can still buy the produce of the domaine (!)
More airy but still with depth. Structured – cool – almost chiselled shape – like a white. Finishing broad and mouth-watering – that’s a fine wine – just delicious enough to balance the structure – nothing hard – I love it!
2021 Pommard 1er Les Poitures
The domaine’s monopole, next to the village.
The colour isn’t deeper but the nose is very much so – rounder too and very inviting. Hmm – round in the mouth – the freshness of the Vaumuriens but with extra fluidity and silky texture – that’s a beauty – simply excellent wine and with a persistence of finesse.
2021 Gevrey-Chambertin Les Corvées
A width of aroma – freshness too – but it needs more air for an invitation. Mouth-filling again – and once more with plenty of freshness. Certainly juicy finishing – only in the finish do I have a more inviting feeling – it’s fine here – a wine to wait for I think.
2021 Morey St.Denis 1er Monts Luisants
Less width of aroma bit a more profound depth – fine red fruit maybe with a small almond accent. Mineral, and with some chalky tannin – growing in volume in the mouth – a wine to keep a while – but not too long – the finish juicily red-fruited. The finish with the almond-inflected flavour that recalls the nose – lovely.
2021 Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Chaumes
An extra width of airy aromatics – today – more about freshness than perfume – but seemingly heading in the right direction – it’s certainly not herbal. Presence in the mouth – clean and of volume – a faint structural tannin but without grain. Finishing with an incisive, sappy width of flavour – an excellent young wine finish – it’s a baby. This will be an excellent wine – give it 4-5 years.
2021 Charmes-Chambertin
From Charmes, proper.
A rounder, red-fruited nose – rounded by some barrel aspects. Hmm, that’s got a vibrant energy – mouth-filling – fine juicy clarity to this flavour – still fresh – a wine of direction and drive rather than concentration – drive, like this, would be my preference – 80% of the time, anyway!
Les Whites:
In the Côte d’Or the split is about 50:50 red:white – though overall, taking into account their 8 hectares of Julienas, there’s more red than white produced here:
2021 Sauvignon Parcelle Interdit
4-year-old vines between Puligny and Chassagne – 2nd vintage – they are already no-longer allowed to plant this variety here!
No skin contact though I have a small aromatic impression of that. Mouth-filling, clean, first direct and then wide – intense even a little tannic finishing – that’s both interesting and tasty too.
2021 Bourgogne
Principally from vines at the bottom of Pommard and Meursault – sometimes a little pinot blanc and/or pinot gris in the mix – so simply labelled Bourgogne…
A broader width – also a faint impression of maceration in these aromas. Rounder, more cushioned flavours – supple – easy but still amply mouth-watering. That’s a very tasty, slightly mineral finish – lovely here!
2021 Pernand-Vergelesses Sous les Clous
Northern side of the hill of Corton – there’s over 6 hectares in this climat.
Breadth and freshness – here the nose has more golden citrus concentration. Extra concentration – there’s both depth and energy here – a slight reduction – and a more than slight personality. I think this is really excellent for a villages wine.
2021 Pernand-Vergelesses 1er En Caradeaux
A more classic, airy nose that mixes perfume with a slightly PV-style reduction. More chiselled, structural wine – nothing hard and these flavours melt over the palate in fine style. Classic and delicious – citrus-finishing Pernand.
2021 St.Aubin 1er Castets
Old vines here
Width of aroma – but a wine that needs some air to tease out the complexities. There’s a little extra reduction but here’s a wine with the clarity of the last but a structure that’s a little more mobile and bending – – melting over the palate – the finish with some extra mineral energy and certainly more complexity. This could be more than excellent but give it both time – and today – a carafe!
2021 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Morgeot
Petit Clos and Tête du Clos assembled in 2021.
A broader width of aroma here – fine above, more power below. Concentration – there’s depth to this flavour – a certain generosity as these flavours – and structure – that slowly melts over the palate. Despite the up-front impact, here is a finishing impression of airy finesse – that a hauntingly lovely finish. It’s a beauty!
The bottom of the domine’s garden! Another very different terroir in Chassagne here with more clay. Three different ages of vines from 4 to 65.
Hmm – that’s a really floral wine – the first – some honey too – more overt dimensions of aroma here. Energy and mouth-filling, impressively intense, delicious flavour – silkily direct into the finish. Such perfume – potentially great wine.
A more vertical nose – deep but with plenty of high tones too. Cut from stone, direct, chiselled shape – as much as you would hope! Widening in mouth-watering fashion to finish – and it’s very long too. This is a wine that I would wait for – and I would be drinking the Maltroie whilst waiting!
There is a small cuvée of Chevalier-Montrachet but it was only one barrel that was produced.