Tasted in Fleurie with Joseph Bouchard, 10 February 2022.
Château Poncié
Lieu-dit Poncié
69820 Fleurie
Tel: +33 4 74 69 83 33
www.chateaudeponcie.fr
More reports with Château Poncié
Joseph on 2021:
“Here was actually really good – we managed 40 hl/ha – we were hardly touched by the frost and our soils are really well-draining, so apart from one area at the bottom that struggled to fully ripen we have some nice things.”
Joseph on 2020:
“Our 2020 volume was a little low – it was the dryness that was to blame – we have terroirs that can do great things in small years but clearly our volume was penalized in 2020. We normally start with whites but it was clear that the reds were starting to suffer from the dryness – I’d waited for rain but nothing came so we decided to attack – 24 August – it was 3rd September for the whites. But an average of 28 hl/ha for the vintage. Still, very easy and fast vinifications.”
There’s work here to install their own cuverie and they hope from the 2022 vintage that they can do everything here. Prior to the new owners, the wine was vinified, aged and bottled in Beaune and they have agreements to continue that until the new facilities are completed here.
The wines…
Consistent with 2019, a range of simply excellent wines – even the Blanc too in 2020…
“All the cuvées have been vinified without sulfur in the last vintages – only additions later in elevage/bottling:”
2020 Beaujolais Villages Blanc
“From the back of the hill of Mongenas which was planted with gamay but we saw that there was much more clay than other parcels and we thought it a cooler place than most so we decided to make a change here – we started with 1 ha and now have 2. Maybe it’s not yet finished. This would be Fleurie if it was still planted with gamay. Very little sees barrel ageing, most in tank. Bottled October. The first wine labelled AB at the domaine – there will be others from 2020, but the larger part will come in 2020.
Here’s a modest volume of aroma – but becoming broader and grows with a little floral extra. Organic here since 2019 – planted a little more last year too. Direct, modest richness and a nicely vibrant, perfumed, flavour with a very good line into the finish. That’s a super BJV Blanc
2020 Fleurie 949
The assembly grapes around the domaine, a small amount of barrel elevage included. Vinification and elevage without sulfur.
High tones with plenty of energy – minerality too – faintly floral. Cool fruit, a wine with direction and a faint frame of tannic dryness. A hint of herb in the complexity but this is good.
2020 Fleurie Les Hautes du Py
The hillside under the forest, plain south, south-east facing – 300-400m of altitude, south, south-east facing – looking down on Poncié. Usually the last parcel to be harvested. Light soil, very sandy old vines, goblet. this was previously named Salomine.
A fuller nose – the width with faint spice and more subtle florals. Extra silk, extra ripeness – really a sinuous and silky wine – much more depth to this flavour and more sophisticated texture too – that’s simply excellent wine!
2020 Fleurie Les Moriers
Largest proprietors here with 3.5 ha – the side of the hill that looks towards Moulin à Vent. Not the last harvested, though it’s close, despite north, north-east facing vines, as the hill dominates the MAV plain below and always gets the first and last rays of the sun. 50 – 85 year-old vines, not always very high yielding as the grapes are quite small. Extra elevage here vs the last.
A more incisive freshness of aroma – but really fine. Direct, cool fruit, silky again – more direct and less generous than the Py – but ultra-sophisticated texture again. Bright, wide finishing a beacon of flavour here – that’s completely excellent again – and also completely different!