Tasted in Pontanevaux, with Gregory Large, Philippe Bardet, Frédéric Maignet & Cyrielle Rizzo, 28 March 2023.
Maison Jean Loron
1846 RN 6
71570 Pontanevaux
Tel: +33 3 85 36 81 20
www.loron.fr
Other reports with Jean Loron
Frédéric on 2021:
“In our domaines we made often made more wine in 2021 than in 2022. In 2021 the young vines did okay but in 2022 they really suffered from the dryness of the growing season.”
The wines…
Save for a couple, wines that largely avoided any ‘gentian complexity.’ Always impressive quality in the style offered here – a more concentrated, Burgundian style with destemming – this year, however, all the wines – even the whites – would have benefitted from being opened an hour or two before our tasting – at home, I would have definitely reached for the carafe for many if not all…
Whites are DIAMs but the reds are cork, usually Trescasses:
2021 Domaine Cornillac, Beaujolais
A domaine in Saint-Verand – 5.5 ha on blue_stone – destemmed a little maceration.
Very dark colour for the vintage. Plenty of depth here – but needs a bit of air to open. Nice shape in the mouth – fluid – mobile – juicy – for the label an excellent wine.
A domaine in the Pierres Dorées – From Moroncé and exclusivity of Nicolas
A warmer fruit – slightly more open – I’d still carafe this and the previous – with air a suggestion of gentian. Wide and cool – lovely energy – delicious complexity – ‘extra’ vs the last, almost mineral – bravo for the label – super wine!
2021 Château de la Pierre, Beaujolais Villages
A domaine with 30 hectares – vines in Régnié
Plenty of colour again – all these wines, so far. A hint of reduction, broad and fine energy – really vibrant – the finish with a finer depth. Carafe again – a nose short of great here – but the finish is great!
69 is the department – I had to ask! The ‘rift’ is the fault that separates Beaujolais and Mâconnais. Another wine without added sulfur – more southern vines in Beaujolais after the crus. They are already starting to commercialise the 2022
Higher-toned fruit, more floral. In the mouth a chalky wine with a delicious purity in the finish. A great, finish!
2021 Château de la Pierre, Brouilly
Two parcels and very different soil – lots of blue-stone here. In 2021 there’s a parcel selection (following) from here too – ‘for us it’s something of a 1er cru here – it’s about the soil, not the age of the vines.’
Again, another wine that needs a bit of air – slightly metallic to start. That character is visible in the flavour too – faintly reductive – more tannic depth of middle and finishing flavour. Carafe – a super finish.
2021 Château de Fleurie, Fleurie
The first wine with an obvious note of gentian. In the mouth nice volume and energy – mouth-watering wine, faintly tannic – some visible structure and chalky finishing tannin. For keeping – I like some of the finishing complexity here
From young vines.
Lots of colour. A slightly saline complexity – needs air again. Large in the mouth – fluid despite the complexity and a faint chalky tannin – carafe – potentially a great wine.
2021 Domaine de la Vieille Eglise, Juliénas
A mix of clay and blue stone. Not yet bottled.
Depth of dark fruit – needs air again. I note the extra CO2 but that will be gone when bottled – there’s more floral accents in this width of aroma. Finishing with extra tannin – that’s a potentially excellent wine – maybe even better…
1.5 ha. A mix of younger and older vines. Also not yet bottled.
Some extra high tones here. Always extra high-toned perfumes in this – ooh gorgeous – not quite ready – but long. This will be a great one!
2021 Domaine Jean Loron, Moulin à Vent Champ de Coeur
1.8 ha of mid-slope vines. Vinified at Bellevue, again the label in the reserve caveau style – but nicer. A small harvest for this due to the frost.
A rounder, fuller, nose with some of the barrel still visible. Wide then deep, always fresh – a complex and very easy wine to drink – delicious, still showing its oak – holding long with a faint finishing tannin.
2021 Château Bellevue, Morgon Les Charmes
Deep but also slightly reductive. Broad but also a little reductive depth (too) – vibrant and mouth-watering – carafe – I’m sure it’s excellent. The last flavours stick in the memory with some faint tannin…
The complexity here could also do with more air – there’s almost an English breakfast tea aroma – then sweetening and becoming more perfumed. Complex, deep, sweeping lines of flavour. Slowly fading and texturally tannic. This will almost certainly be a great one – maybe as good as the 2019!
Second vintage for this.
Deeper colour. The oak is the most obvious aromatic note – slightly sweet – becoming more and more open with air. More depth and more intensity – fuller in the bass-notes. The finish resembles that last wine – I wouldn’t touch one of these for 5 years – but I think it will also be a great wine.
2021 Château de la Pierre Régnié Pur Gamay A no sulfur wine
Have been making this cuvée since 2009 – quite an early adopter here. No sulfur – also not for the bottling – but there’s a light filtration.
Deep colour. A tiny reduction again. Fluid, mouth-filling, slightly structural dark complexities. An excellent 2021 once more.
2021 Heritiers Loron, Domaine des Billards St.Amour
I don’t need to mention the colour – there’s plenty in all these wines. Also a small gentian here – the second – but at an attractive level – just more complexity. Airy perfume – attractive despite the subtle gentian. This finish has a very attractive texture – that’s a super-attractive wine.
2021 Clos Des Billards St.Amour Reserve Cuvée
Not yet bottled…
Extra pyrazine here – but lots of complexity. Great shape in the mouth – a wine of scale – the complexity is impressive and the pyrazine less of note in the flavour.
‘From nothing to a big volume wine in 6-7 years it’s our entry wine to the world of Beaujolais but the only wine where we don’t talk about terroir…’
A lovely and forward width of perfume. Supple and silky, mouth-filling almost a creamy finish – I think that’s a great wine.
2022(!) Beaujolais Villages, Rift 69
Just commercialising
A more delicate but complex nose than the Jean. Fresh and pure tannic to finish, again, a faintly savoury finishing note. Finishing a little shorter(?)
2021 Jean Loron, Pinot Noir L’Or des Fous
Vines in the Pierres Dorées
A different colour – almost a couple of years of age. The nose is smoky. A more structural wine – quite vibrant – some pretty accents but also plenty of smoky elements. A good wine, but possibly the least delicious wine of the range so far.
2021 Bourgogne Pinot Noir Rift 496
The no sulfur wine. Still quite young vines – not quite 10.
A more airy width. More obviously delicious – amazing as it’s the same grapes with the same elevage as the last – just no sulfur at bottling. A super wine!
Les Blancs:
The Pouilly is still sealed with cork, the rest are now with DIAM:
2021 Loron, Mâcon-Villages Rift 71
Also no sulfur at bottling.
Round, sucrosity, even a hint creamy in these aromas. Round, juicy, easy but delicious wine.
2021 Vignes de Chassipol – Mâcon-Chardonnay
A domaine of over 20 hectares – Loron exploiting their 3rd vintage already here. All tank elevage.
A small DIAM reduction. Slowly more lemon citrus notes come to the fore. Mineral and juicy – getting better and better in the mouth – the finish is super – this wine is getting better and better in the mouth – also carafe – it’s becoming excellent in the glass!
2021 Chateau de Mirande Macon-Villages
Bottled only a month.
A slightly saline width – this needs to open too. More structural – more lime-style than lemon. The minerality is slightly reductive in the finish – this will be lovely.
2021 Jean Loron, Viré-Clessé Vieilles-Vignes
A selection of old vines, also a large cuvée of more than 10 hectares – mainly from Clessé. This appellation just 24 years old now.
A riper fruit freshness – almost a suggestion of lime in this citrus fruit. Structured and mouth-filling – but in the best sense of those words. A modestly strict style but zero hard edges and finishing very well. Lovely wine…
A selection of old vines, also a large cuvée of more than 10 hectares – mainly from Clessé. This appellation just 24 years old now.
More depth and a little extra roundness to this fruit. Mouth-filling – juicy wine – complex and interesting. That’s a delicious finish – a chiselled wine – a year of patience and it may be great for the label.
2021 Jean Loron, Saint Véran Les Ombrelles
Ombrelles – A brand rather than a place. Historically elevage only with tank elevage but now ‘a small amount of the total’ sees barrel too.
There’s aromatic depth – though mainly hidden – it’s more airy above. There’s a little more depth and middle and finishing flavour here – extra complexity, none of the chiselled rigour of the last. Delicious finishing – actually quite tannic too.
Pierres Dorees, young vines at 400m – once planted to gamay. A little more than a hectare. Second vintage of this – vines in organic conversion.
There’s some nice fruit here – the creamy oak is obvious too. Direct, mineral – cushioned by the barrel but there’s no rigour here – that’s a great Beaujolais Blanc – but be aware that today it’s an oaky one!
2021 Jean Loron, Pouilly-Fuissé Les Vieux Murs
A perfumed, ripe citrus, width of aroma. Rounded by the elevage – but the oak is not visible. Not quite the energy of the previous wine – but much longer and quite vibrant finishing in fact it’s a great and quite zesty finish, zesty.
2021 Loron, Pouilly-Fuissé 1er Au Vignerais
A little riper – but fine – narrower but deep – a nose of contradictions. Mouth-filling, concentrated but with an inner fluidity – that’s a super – still needing to open out. Certainly the best but for best effect you will need to be patient – drink the Vieux Murs while waiting for this.