Tasted in St.Amour with Jérémie Giloux, 24 July 2017.
Domaine du Mas des Tines
Les Thevenins
71570 Saint Amour Bellevue
Tel: +33 3 85 37 41 49
www.masdestines.com
Jérémie is the 5th generation of vignerons in this family, installed here since 2002 and is the current (joint) president of the grower syndicate of St.Amour. He smiles while explaining that he has quite a small cellar, but the cellar under his grandma’s house is much bigger! And Mas des Tines? Well, a Mas is a house and tines are the containers for collecting the grapes.
Jérémie exploits about 8 hectares of vines, including 0.3 hecatres of Pouilly-Fuissé, commercialising about 50% of the total. Raisonée in the vines “But only 5 treatments this year – there is growth in the vineyards, but I keep on top of it.”
For vinification – Jérémie employs a cool maceration to start, the cap held in place with a grille. ‘Otherwise it’s a traditional cuvaison somewhere between 8-30 days!” The tanks are a blend of stainless-steel, cement and epoxy. There are barrels too, but no for most of his St.Amour. Jérémie normally bottles here in April/May, but there’s also a second bottling that could be between July and October.
The wines…
A worthy address, mainly wines for food and discussion…
2014 Mas de Tines, St.Amour
A nice depth of faintly saline aroma that slowly gains sweetness. Hmm, a nicely growing freshness too, with pretty fruit and super accessible flavours. Lots of interest in the finish too – very tasty wine.
2014 Mas de Tines, St.Amour Vieilles-Vignes
A slightly tighter nose to start. More depth of flavour, more supple – some extra weight here too. More intensity too, the freshness with a little more bitters in the finish. More for the table today but complex and certainly less facile than the first though that is much easier to appreciate today…
Ouf! A deep and dark depth of aroma – very faintly spiced – very inviting! Hmm, depth, weight of flavour, it’s a very different beast, faint tannin, bright intensity of finish. Bravo – super wine but really to wait for.
2015 Mas de Tines, St.Amour Vieilles-Vignes
From La Folie like the last – Jérémie has 3 hectares in La Folie plus vines in Bonnet.
Really deep colour. Oof – this is very high-toned, almost spirity alcohol. Supple, growing intensity and some tannin too. This has almost a kirsch-like flavour – essence of fruit macerating in alcohol – but despite the nose and description, it’s not hot. Impressive stuff. “I’d start drinking this in 2019” says Jérémie – ‘That’s still young’ I said – Jérémie smiles and says “I said START drinking!”
2016 Mas de Tines, St.Amour
A modest intensity of aroma after the 15s. Supple, nice freshness, a more overt gamay style of forward fruit and fine acidity to balance. A wine of fine fresh flavour – tasty. With a lick of finishing tannin. Very tasty wine…
The 2016 VV stays without sulfur until June and is still in tank.
2010 Mas de Tines, St.Amour Le Coeur de St.Amour
This ‘from the heart of Paradis with barrel elevage for 12-16 months.’ First made this cuvée in 2008…
Some development of colour. Not a hint of oak on the nose, some silky herbs and macerating red, spiced fruit. Fine texture and a depth of flavour too, plenty of modest tannin, a little oak in the flavour here but really this is very well-balanced. A fine line of fresh finishing flavour. And I would say that this is ready to drink – a more mature style than many fruit-forward 2010s, a faint Marsala in the mix, but delicious and for the table. Excellent! Fresh with a hint of saline in the finish…
Hmm – this has a lovely nose, freshness, and a real invitation to drink. Fresh, nice energy, and a long line, of fine flavour. This is a lovely wine – I’d drink it any day. Excellent! With a fine hint of finishing tannin. Long and delicious.