Tasted in Charnay with Jean Paul Brun, 19 February 2021.
Domaine des Terres Dorées
565 route d’Alix
69380 Charnay-en-Beaujolais
Tel: +33 4 78 47 93 45
www.terresdorees.fr (not yet online)
More reports for Domaine des Terres Dorées
Jean Paul on 2019:
“We had frost then quite a lot of rain so the flowering wasn’t great. We passed near to the hail but avoided it! I would say almost a normal vintage given the mid-September harvest – which is easier than having to rush everything in August. I think it’s a vintage more in the tradition of Beaujolais too. Everything is now bottled but many of the cuvées are not yet commercial as there are still plenty of 2018s to sell as there was more volume in that year.”
The wines…
A super vintage from Jean Paul – mostly excellent, often great wines – even the whites – it’s a great success in 2019.
2019 Beaujolais Le Ronsay
A majority of young vines are here. ‘A wine for the fruit’ all-natural yeast, some pigeage.
A round and very attractive red fruit – lovely. In the mouth too – open, lovely acidity, a lightness of touch but still depth of flavour. That’s a great rendidtion of this wine – airy and delicious with a mouth-watering finish. Excellent wine.
Vines of about 70-years-old – the old vines cuvée.
A faint reduction so a bit more depth of aroma, slowly adding a little floral too. In the mouth, wider and a little more structured. Less ready but more of everything here – this will be great in a year or so…
2019 Beaujolais l’Ancien Buissey
‘Not made every year as I don’t want to take anything away from the previous wine.’
Modest colour – a deep nose almost a roast, reductive accent to the red fruit. Rounder in the mouth, more layered flavour – still a bit of a reduction here too. But wide and faintly grained with tannin – beautifully finishing – yum.
2019 Côte de Brouilly
Here facing the rising sun.
Hmm, a little saline edge to this complex and deliciously inviting nose. Mouth-filling, fresh, energetic – fruit but overtly-so, faintly tannic – a grain but no astringence. Wide and deliciously flavoured. Really excellent again – a super dimension of finishing flavour…
On the hill towards le Bourg not far from the cemetery.
A stricter nose – deep but saline top notes and a core of red fruit too. Wide again, faintly herbed, a grain of tannin but finer than the Côte de Brouilly. Slowly relaxing over the palate – delicious again – but not a bit simple – with complexity and saline notes in the finish. Gorgeous finishing – bravo here.
2019 Fleurie
Had the vines about 10 years – it’s a hot area. A little more than 5 ha, here with an age of about 40 years in Grille-Midi.
A little extra depth of aroma here – a faintly biscuity reduction too. Rounder, mouth-watering – a bit more of an intensity to the flavour here – more direct. Fine and fresh finishing – in preparation for the next sip. Very tasty.
2019 Fleurie Les Garants
Second vintage. South-facing a hot place where you can very quickly have over-mature fruit – lots of attention needed here in 2018 and 2020.
A more concentrated fruit with plenty of depth to the aroma – red and pure fruit – but ample. Great mouth-filling shape – open flavoured, slowly layered with flavour. More depth of flavour – the most delicious of all so far in the finish – if not the most complex. That’s an excellent and very classic Fleurie with finesse.
Also Grille-Midi but 1950-1955 planted old vines – never more than 25 hl/ha
A lovely nose – red fruited but here with an extra floral accent. More vibrant and mineral flavoured – always with energy. That’s a classy wine with a proper structure and no hard edges. Bravo!
2019 Morgon
2.5 ha in Bellevue – not a lot of soil here.
A width of pure, darker-red fruit – not so deep but lots of width. Mouth-filling – depth of texture – velvet – layered flavour in the middle and finish. I really like the waves of finishing flavour here – a wine with direction than the Fleuries and a final suggestion of dryness on the palate. Excellent again.
Foot of the hill, east-facing, fifth vintage.
A similar fruit to the last but with extra vibrancy. Directly in the mouth, there is more here – complexity, a layered quality to the flavour – more tannin but neither grained nor particularly drying. Fine texture and plenty of intensity – harmony. Bravo.
2019 Moulin-a-Vent
Tour du Bief in Chénas – 6 hectares – about 50-year-old vines
More weight and a little spiced complexity defining this nose. More weight in the mouth – less completely open but pretty good. Again layered flavour, slowly lingering on the palate. Excellent wine again.
Close to the Moulin.
Narrower but with impressive depth and complex high-tones. Hmm- here’s a cooler fruit and a super impact from the flavour. Layered flavour again. Ultra-fine tannin. This will be a great wine but it’s for keeping a couple of years. The finish is very persistent.
2019 Moulin-a-Vent La Rochelle
A nose that’s definitely wider than the Thorins – ultimately less complex but there’s an additional floral note here. Mouth-filling, more composed than the Thorins, less overt energy. No lack of flavour complexity though. Excellent wine – I prefer the energy of the Thorins but the finish of this…
Les Blancs
Fewer whites here in terms of cuvées, but it’s an important volume for the domaine – more than 25% of the volume. ‘We prune Guyot so 8-9 buds, that’s quite modest:‘
Cement elevage and some stirring of lees until the malo is done.
A ripeness of fruit – not quite exotic but close – freshness of aroma at the same time. Round, supple – concentrated – nice energy here – in the middle there’s the same fruit as the nose. Slightly saline and nicely mouth-watering. No rigour, just a very tasty wine with the 2019 classic touch of tannin at the end of the flavour… Bravo Beaujolais Blanc.
Here with some barrel elevage to go with tank and foudres too – ‘it brings something of more depth and character.’
Again a little touch of the exotic for the fruit but a more direct freshness too – the oak supporting. Wider, a little more depth to the texture and a more granular complexity of flavour. I prefer the more direct ‘classic’ wine but this is charming, complex and delicious. Bravo for both Beaujolais Blanc!