Tasted in the Mâconnais, 7 April 2017.
My, now, traditional trip to taste a selection of wines from the Artisans Vignerons de Bourgogne du Sud – almost certainly the greatest ensemble of producers from the Mâconnais – this time looking at their 2015 vintage.
One day, two locations, 47 wines – so a morning and an afternoon session – in both cases, starting with the reds!
The morning session…
At the cuverie of Guillot-Broux. All the reds were 2015s and it was just a great range – very different characters for all, but each are cellar-worthy. The lowest indicated alcohol was the last with 12.5, highest the next to last with 14 – the rest 13 or 13.5:
2015 Delphine & Sebastien Boisseau, Macon-Bray Descente Dangereuse
Medium-plus colour. A freshness of aroma, more red than black fruit, accented with a little with vanilla oak. Round, mouth-filling, luxurious texture, wide, and mouth-watering. Yes there is the oak accent, but there is delicious flavour too. Long, a little mineral. Indeed very long. Big, sauve and fine.
Just a modest shade lighter colour. A deeper nose with some vibrance of minerality and a modest accent of florals. More volume, more freshness – a wine that is layered, but here with a lick of fine-grained tannin – no astringency though. Mineral finishing too. I really appreciate the extra freshness here and there’s no overt trace of oak flavour either. Excellent.
Ooh – this is a vibrant, open, fresh floral and fruit combination – really attractive. Very fresh, very sleek, a lick of faintly astringent tannin, but a lovely combination of freshness and delicate, elegant-even, flavour. This wine clearly begs a little cellar time to diminish the astringence, but it will be worth it – bravo!
A big heavy bottle and a deeper colour to match. A big, fresh, dark-fruited and spiced nose. Fresh and direct, with tannin but less dryness to the tannin – just a little ripe grain. Wide, mouth-watering flavour and a simply fabulous finish. Gorgeous!
Of course lighter colour. A deep nose and a spiced nose – much more overt and open than the colour might suggest. Less impact and less overt energy but here is nice middle-weight with a lovely texture, very modestly accented with tannin, wide, floral-inflected delicious red fruit. Beautiful indeed and that’s despite following the great manganite!
Les blancs
Only one of these wines was sealed with DIAM, the Domaine des Gandines. 12.8% was the lowest alcohol noted on the Guillot-Broux Perrières. A couple were at 13 and the rest were noted at 13.5 or 14%. Whilst I recommended only 3 for my own cellar, one was 12.8% but another was a 14% – er…!
2015 Domaine de Thalie – Peter Gierszewski Macon Bray Les Pierres Lavées
A modest nose, some freshness and an attractive core of ripe, fresh peach. Modest volume, nice texture. A wine with a certain concentration and a fine flavour, indeed beautiful flavour – also fresh peach but lacking a little energy today. Long, long, long though. Really a very discreet wine despite good concentration.
2015 Jean-Marie Chaland Domaine Sainte Barbe, Viré-Clessé l’Epinet
A fresher nose – good depth and with a faint salinity too. More volume in the mouth, again modest energy but this is still a very mobile wine – beautifully textured and constantly changing on the palate. This is a very delicious wine which could of-course benefit from a little more energy, but it’s still a lovely thing, with a fine mouth-watering finish, even with a hint of tannin.
2015 Jean-Marie Chaland Domaine Sainte Barbe, Viré-Clessé La Perrière
A little more aromatic volume here – a faint citrus in the mix. More fresh, more direct, good volume if less overt than the last. Beautiful mouth-watering complexity. I love rolling this around in the mouth. It’s not a super energetic wine, but it’s delicious again. Super!
2015 Domaine des Gandines, Viré-Clessé
A big bright nose with a little sherbet and a greener fruit component. A trace of gas but then a very silky, almost buttery texture. Some green fruit, perhaps a little stewed at the end, and a modest but nice freshness. This is tasty, beautifully textured and particularly long.
2015 Olivier Merlin, Saint-Véran Le Grand Bussière
A bright and fresh nose with a little oak cushioning. Decent volume in the mouth, a subtle underlying minerality, good texture – almost a lick of tannin here – and plenty of oak flavour too. Complex with a decently mouth-watering and tasty finish.
2015 Olivier Merlin, Macon La Roche Vineuse Les Cras
This nose has less width but a decent freshness and plenty of depth. A little more direct, no less oak, good silky texture and a really ingraining and indeed fine mouth-watering flavour. The finish is the best part, there much less oak and a very fine mouth-watering intensity. It’s really my favourite part.
2015 Delphine et Sebastien Boisseau, Mâcon-Bray Clos Rebetiot 115
I’m assuming that’s the age of the vines!
Bright, fresh and with a little sherbet. The best combination of volume in the mouth and freshness so far. Still not overtly energetic, but here is a beautiful width of flavour complexity, underpinned with a little minerality. Ripe but never cloying fruit. This is a beauty and with a very fine finish.
A nose of volume, ripe yellow citrus, and some freshness too. Here is fine line of flavour and accompanying freshness too. Good depth of flavour and length of flavour too. Brilliant in the finish with an intense little burst of fireworks then length… excellent!
2015 Domaine des Gandines, Viré-Clessé Loris Vieilles-Vignes
Ooh this has a very different nose – bright, some aromatic vibrance of fruit. Some gas. Really plenty of volume in the mouth and good energy too. There seems a little oak in this complex mix of flavour but not too much. This is its own thing, an individual, and its very long too. But I like!
2015 Guillot-Broux, Mâcon-Cruzille Les Genevrières
A bright, open fresh, ripe citrus nose. Fresh, concentrated flavour with a direct line in the mouth. Super texture and slowly melting flavour, with an engaging length. It’s a very ripe fruit but it’s very well-balanced too. Tasty wine with one of the best levels of energy.
Another nose of good volume and freshness with a ripe fruit core. Fine, cool fruit and with good freshness in the mouth- much the most overtly mineral wine so far. Hmm this wine finishes with a nice little lick of tannin too! Not the biggest, not the most complex but really the most balanced and satisfying wine so far, with a beautiful finishing flavour…
A deep nose, a vibrant nose – ripe fruit that hints of very little sulfur. Plenty of gas. A heavy fruit, almost roast, that also indicates low/no sulfur. But there is freshness and energy here – really plenty. A wine of very fine balance and complexity and a superbly intense finishing flavour. For what it is – bravo! 14% too!
The afternoon session…
This time in the cuverie of Heritiers de Comte Lafon in Milly-Lamartine. Just two reds to start with:
Deep colour. A big, bright, open nose of deep and delicious dark fruit. Big and fresh in the mouth, a lick of tannin, all nicely textured. Long. This is really excellent, mouth-watering gamay. Excellent wine.
2015 Chateau de Lavernette, Xavier, Kerrie et Anke de Boissieu, Saint Amour
A fresh and sweetly floral nose – good aromatic power here. A big wine, concentrated, textured, layered flavour. A base of tannin, some oak is apparent too. Not the vivacity and joie de vivre of the last wine, but here is much extra concentration to be assimilated. Very impressive wine, but wine to wait for. Oaky in the finish too, but really well-managed – there’s almost no vanilla. Super.
Les blancs
2015 Chateau de Lavernette, Beaujolais Blanc Les vignes de la roche
A sweet and open apricot nose. Volume, weight of flavour and concentration. Long and intense. This is delicious, though it lacks a little energy.
2015 Dominique Cornin, Mâcon-Chaintré Les Serreuxdières
A much fresher nose with a good width of aroma. A little gas. It moves well over the palate, quite good energy, and a super line of mouth-watering flavour – this gets nicer and nicer the longer I stay with it. Super wine!
Less width but a nice freshness to the nose. Good volume in the mouth, with really quite nice freshness and mouth-watering of flavour – here a hint saline. This is excellent and very drinkable! A great finish too.
2015 Celine et Laurent Tripoz, Mâcon-Loché Cuvée du Clocher
A sweet and ripe core of fruit – modest but appealing depth. Plenty of gas here. Nice in the mouth, good dimension and freshness. This is a really nice choice and is finely mouth-watering in the finish.
2015 Domaine Giroux, Mâcon-Fuissé vers Chaines
Here is freshness but also tightness – not much, aromatically, to comment on. Also a little gas. More depth of riper fruit. Layered fruit flavour, and it melts beautifully over the palate – lacking a little energy but delicious all the same!
A good volume of aroma, quite ripe but lots of depth. Hmm, this is super in the mouth – intense, long, and shows great texture. Not super energetic – but enough! Really super juicy in the finish – this is gorgeous.
2015 Heritiers Comtes Lafon, Mâcon-Milly Lamartine
Here is a little toasty, biscuity oak – or rather reduction. I think it’s the latter, as it slowly fades. Wide, fresh, growing in volume, mineral, hmm this is really fresh for the vintage – long and mouth-watering – excellent!
A core of ripe fruit surrounded by some fresher aspects. Hmm, this could be a 2014 – bright, mineral fresh. Long and mineral again! Bravo!
A little wider and with fresher fruit – nice. Really fresh in the mouth almost a base of tannic texture, long, mouth-watering wine. Juicy in the finish like the Vessigaud. Just a beautiful wine!
Also a reductive note – it’s the DIAM! Bright, fresh, much broader than the Maillet wines but with fine mouth-watering freshness. Really delicious fresh finishing flavour. Bravo!
2015 Franz Chagnolean, Saint-Veran Prelude
There is weight here but the nose is still very tight. Hmm, a nice line, mineral wine, no overt oak. Simple – I like it very much!
2015 Jacques Saumaize, Saint-Veran La Vieille Vigne des Creches
Such a long name for such a totally corked wine 🙁
2015 Olivier Giroux Clos des Rocs, Pouilly-Loché Les Murs
A modest nose but with a vibrant and interesting core of fruit. Big in the mouth, rather mineral wine, nice texture and really quite good energy for the vintage. A good burst of finishing flavour too. Hmm, this is a good one!
2015 Olivier Giroux Clos des Rocs, Pouilly-Loché Clos des Rocs Monopole
Also a modest nose. Hmm, this is fine and layered wine really with both a good line and plenty of weight. Not full of energy but enough! Excellent.
A deep and ripe nose, almost in the direction of modest sulfur. Nice volume and good energy. Layers of good flavour, fine texture and slowly growing juicy flavour. Really a great finish – bravo!
Here is a little more open freshness to the nose, hmm getting better and better with delicate flashes of fine citrus. There’s a little gas. But lots of complexity and energy too here – fine volume in the mouth, mouth-watering too. Just really a super wine. Juicy finishing and long – bravo!
2015 Dominique Cornin, Pouilly-Fuissé Les Chevrières
Tank sample.
A deep and vibrant nose. Plenty of gas. Lots of volume. Good energy, plenty of complexity too. This is very good. Layers of finishing flavour – less juicy but very tasty indeed . Yum!
2015 Franz Chagnoleau, Pouilly-Fuisse Pastoral
Assembly of two vines.
A faint whiff of reduction. In the mouth this has a modest oak and lots of width. There is a clear minerality here, through a fine and silky texture. Really strong and impressive in the persistent finish. Gets better and better in the mouth! The last note is a modest oak.
2015 Daniel et Julien Barraud, Pouilly-Fuisse Les Chataigniers Vieilles-Vignes
A wide line of aroma, more limited high and low tones. Plenty of volume the mouth, it moves well over the palate with warm fruit and a nicely mouth-watering fruit – through a denser core.
2015 Saumize-Michelin, Pouilly-Fuisse Le Haut des Crays
Plenty of depth here, though much is oak derived. Plenty of oak flavour too, though this has good width and complexity – it needs 2-4! years before I would return to re-asses – without the oak.
2015 Robert-Denogent, Pouilly-Fuisse Vieilles-Vignes Les Cras
Also a sample
A big and deep nose of fresh fruit. Big, muscular wine, lots of concentration and intensity, quite good energy too. The texture is super. Good wine. And really intense in the finish.
A tight nose but with a good freshness. Hmm, this is lovely, lithe, complex, mobile. Really tasty wine. Super – bravo!
A nose of modest volume but fine and interesting all the same. Another wine of good volume and lots of energy, minerality and complexity. Bravo! A little additive oak in the finish in this case.
2015 Pierre Vessigaud, Pouilly-Fuissé Vers Pouilly
The nose is not playing. But super in the mouth with insinuating concentration, a hint of salinity and lots of complexity. This is super wine – really complex, just missing a hint of juiciness in the finish.
2015 Daniel et Julien Barraud, Pouilly-Fuissé Les Crays
A modest volume of aroma – but nice all the same. Supple, lots of depth, plenty of oak too but not too much vanilla. A big burst of finishing flavour. The oak just takes a little brightness away I think, making the wine slightly duller. Otherwise super wine…
Tank sample
A modest weight of aroma but complex and pretty all the same. Good volume in the mouth, also a little oak to add to the complexity – less dulling in this case and it’s an explosive width in the finish – really great here. Super wine!
2015 Robert-Denogent, Pouilly-Fuissé Vieilles-Vignes Les Reisses
A sample
Unfinished wine – the nose clearly not ready to play. Lots of gas too. I can’t really do this wine justice today…
A big open and quite fresh nose – almost textured and with faint flashes of citrus. A little gas. Slowly growing in volume and mouth-watering flavour too. Nice texture and a really super wave of finishing flavour – here with extra complexity. Quite good to start and great to finish – really worth your tome!