Tasted in Chambolle-Musigny with Michel Digioia, 30 March, 2023.
Domaine Digioia-Royer
Rue du Carré
21220 Chambolle-Musigny
Tel:+33 3 80 61 49 58
More reports with Domaine Digioia-Royer
Michel on 2022:
“Yes I’m happy – it was a good volume – a good volume but not lots and lots. It was hot for a time but we had a big episode of rain at the end of June – and that got us through the rest of the growing season with a few drops again at the end of August – I think these rains saved the vintage for use but it’s a good vintage and a volume that we haven’t seen since 2018 – just a bit less than 2018.”
Michel on 2021:
“A little more volume than 2016 – one was 60% less, the other, 2021, was 50% less. Some of the smaller wines have been bottled but that’s all at this time as I’m still waiting for corks and bottles! It was a vintage where, at the start, I was sceptical – much more classic before the malos – more like 15 years ago – but after the malos I decided it was really a good vintage – and a very accessible one too.”
The wines…
A really enjoyable range from Michel in 2021 – some wines that are clearly great in 2021 and are worth a special search on your part.
2021 Bourgogne Côte d’Or
Commune of Chambolle fruit blended with some from Gilly and Morey. Manual harvest, half barrel, half tank elevage.
Hmm – that’s got an inviting breadth of perfume. There’s concentration here – a little structure – but the flavours are fine – just a few finishing bitters. You should wait for this – 2-3 years.
2021 Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits
From Concoeur above Vosne, nearly 60-year-old vines with a limestone soil. All manual harvest, in bottle about 3 weeks.
A little more colour – also a big waft of perfume. Larger scale – more structural/architectural. Red fruit with great energy. This is another wine to wait for but certainly the most accessible of these first two Bourgognes – yum!
2021 Savigny-lès-Beaune Dessus les Vermots
2014 the first vintage. This is assembled for bottling
A deeper nose due to some reduction but with a red fruit style. Supple – more depth to this texture – framed with a fine grain of tannin – modest finishing bitters – less perfumed today but my favourite wine so far – it will be lovely!
2021 Nuits St.Georges Les Charmois
From Les Charmois – 46-year-old vines in a slightly colder area so harvested late like HCDN, ‘It’s not windy but it’s cool here.’
More compact in the high tones but there’s still a nicely perfumed width of aroma here – a fine invitation. Clean, energetic, and a clarity of flavour in this structure – this is my new favourite! A wine of structure but nothing hard – really excellent villages.
2021 Chambolle-Musigny
Around 8 different parcels. All the parcels except the Fremiers – which is the old vines cuvée…
A clear next step in aromatic clarity and cliché floral Chambolle perfume – yes! An open structure like the Nuits with clarity of flavour but this more accessible and rounded at the edges – more generous. Supple, very faintly supported with some tannin – micro-grained. The finish is very impressive… Simply excellent Chambolle.
From Les Fremiers and mainly 85+ year-old vines – selecting some for a massale selections. 0.70 hectares.
Less width of aroma but deeper – with clarity of slightly darker fruit. Oh yes – broad – mouth-filling but with fluid energy and an almost cascading sense of mouth-watering flavour. At least excellent, possibly a great villages.
Vines from 1986
Here we leave the fruit to be overwhelmed by the beautiful perfume – I could be convinced that there’s a hint of WC here – though all is destemmed here. In the mouth too – high-toned perfume and complexity – it’s simply a top wine – bravo!
79-year-old vines
Something of a similar character to the Gruenchers but this is at a much deeper level – more compact in the high tones. This wine the more direct and mineral brother – there is structure and a little muscle here – a more chalky interpretation – but juicy too – the Gruenchers is the more caressing today and this the more direct and demonstrative – but this is just as good!
Two wines from contracts – since 2019 – “It’s not always to find things, good things, but:”
2021 Beaune 1er Les Avaux
Less width but deeper, yet opening very quickly with air – much redder fruit, slightly rounder fruit – still with a good perfume. Red in the mouth again – fine texture and a mobile, changing experession to the flavours. Growing wider and ever-more interesting as you head into the finish – more creamy here – that’s an excellent Beaune…
2021 Clos de Vougeot
Aromatically more compact than the Chambolles but this nose still has some beautiful perfume. Cliché architecturally shaped – framed with a little tannin – though not aggressive. The finish is very wide and persistent. It’s a wine that’s really worthy of the label – it’s much more than very good – it could be excellent CV.
And to finish, the domaine wine:
2021 Bourgogne Chardonnay
Bottled
A relatively compact nose today – some density – but not opening so quickly. Nicely direct and a little mineral too – growing in width with a small salinity. Cool for the apero – the length is very interesting!