Tasted with Olivier Merlin in La Roche-Vineuse, 03 April 2024.
Domaine Merlin
106 Chemin du Lavoir
71960 La Roche-Vineuse
Tel: +33 3 85 36 62 09
merlin-vins.com
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I tasted a few wines with Olivier here – but this report features much extra breadth of wines from their 2022 vintage…
Olivier on 2022:
“2022 didn’t bring a big volume – we had a lot of grapes but the amount of juice was microscopic. Over 150kg of grapes were needed for a hl of juice. In Moulin à Vent we saw 35-36 hl/ha so that was a good harvest in the end – but Burgundy in general had more rain than here – every time we had 4-5 mm of rain, they had 10-15… The tendency here is a little more whole-clusters as our son, Théo, is now making the wines. Our 24 hectares are all harvested manually – it takes 13-15 days to harvest and about 50 people needed – but all are lodged and fed here…”
The wines…
A very strong range here in 2022 – there are multiple great wines that would be worth a special search to find – but the oak is quite obvious in some wines – and maybe will remain sol for at least 3 years…
All wines are cork-sealed. There are two cuvées of Bourgogne Pinot here – small parcels:
2022 Bourgogne Pinot Noir
Not a deep colour. Full, wide, almost cushioned, perfumed fruit – that’s a lovely invitation. Easy, fluid, tasty wine – with a tiny suggestion of tannin – just a little finishing bitters to even out but another year and all will be ready…
2022 Bourgogne Pinot Noir Les Cras
They are now allowed to declare a lieu-dit with Bourgogne – but the allowed yield is a couple of hl/ha less for that. There’s more iron in the soil here – 1ha, 1 cuvée – these bourgognes bottled in December 23…
Also fully perfumed, here with a faint creaminess of barrel. Extra silky, there’s a more sophisticated texture here and a modest generosity. Supple and delicious – yes some finishing oak too and silkier bitters. That’s a beauty…
2022 Moulin à Vent
5 small parcels – ‘good ones’ but all too small to make a single cuvée.
Hmm – such a breadth of perfume. Large in scale – fresh – energetic flavours – properly structured but juicy, juicy flavoured. Fine and complex finishing bitters. You should wait a couple of years for this but it’d be no shame to drink also this weekend !!
2022 Moulin à Vent La Rochelle
More compact and concentrated but with a width of airy fine perfume too. Direct, more intensity but it’s a relaxed style here – a little wood flavour but not excessive and it will be gone in a couple of years. Wait 2-3 years but this has a really sophisticated shape and perfumed flavours…
Les Whites:
“For the whites, we achieved 45-55 hl/ha. The market is okay for us – we sell about 40% in France but everywhere else too. We have a very large client list so those that buy a bit less tend to be balanced by those that buy a bit more…”
2022 Macon La Roche Vineuse
Just stainless elevage and made from the young vines. This with Nomacorc – all the rest are with cork
A breadth of aroma slightly hard and mineral but not excessive. In the mouth, this is juicy and with a good ripe fruit. Lots of finishing salinity here…
2022 Macon La Roche Vineuse Vieilles-Vignes
Broader, super-attractive aroma, here with a small hint of barrel. Hmm – an extra class and fluidity to this wine, only slowly fading. That’s an excellent wine – also finishing saline but a hint less than the cuvée made in stainless.
2022 St.Véran Le Grand Bussière
From Prissé, a limestone, almost chalky, light, soil but there’s plenty of clay too. The most precocious ripening place of the domaine…
Round, creamy oak with a base of ripe citrus. Round, concentrated quite oaky today – but this will fade over the next 12-18 months… Long finishing and with fine shape…
2022 St.Véran En Creche
Next to the Lycée Viticole on Davayé
A more open and floral width, the barrel present again but with lower visibility. Lovely, almost crystalline in the mouth and the oak is much less present – they use a maximum of 15% new. This is a simply excellent wine…-
Largest sector here – 1.2 ha in one parcel. Just under Pouilly-Fuissé Sur la Roche – the high part of Côte Rôti
Hmm – that’s a lovely nose of both high tones and depth of aroma – the barrel only leaves a faint accent here. Hmm – the most fluid and mineral of these wines – some oak visible only in the finish. That’s a potentially great wine – I’d wait 2 years for the barrel to fade but what a wine.
2022 Pouilly-Fuissé
A blend of parcels from 3 different villages. INAO didn’t want 1ers in Vergisson to start – they thought the whole area too high!
A more compact nose – but what a great nose! Supple but mouth-filling. Nicely direct into the finish with a very lovely texture. A lovely wine…
2022 Pouilly-Fuissé 1er Au Vignerais
From Solutré – a large sector that starts low and goes quite high – only a small 0.3 ha here but the highest part.
Lovely depth – ripe citrus but with vibrant energy. Mouth-filling, almost chalky minerality – the finish lightly tannic. Less juicy than many but quite stony and long-finishing
From Vergisson
Here is more aromatic energy and width – it’s a larger invitation – I find it more floral too. So much more energy and juicy flavour than Vignerais. This is such a super wine – I’ll wait for the oak again but it is already excellent and could be a great one!
In this case Clos de France – Vergisson again
Less aromatic impact but more floral perfumed. Hmm, again such purity and energy. Made from stone this wine – so impressive – it’s still got plenty of barrel showing today so wait 2 years… Simply excellent again and also potentially a great one…
Now to Chaitre:
The most southerly of all the 1er. This parcel the easterly of the climat
Extra width and perfumed energy for this nose – it’s a beauty! Large scale with salinity and juiciness – finishing faintly chalky texture – clearly a great wine!
Lots of limestone but not active limestone – very insoluble… Just a month in barrel – similar for all these 1ers.
Open, wide, airy – a very elegant nose – less floral than the previous two wines but this also grows in the glass. A wonderful minerality here, vibrant – it’s a different flavour profile and although the barrel is still present it is less jarring with this flavour profile. Another great wine – 5 completely different 1ers but all with the same vinification!