Tasted with Pierre Meurgey at the Château de Bligny, 05 April 2017.
Maison Pierre Meurgey-Croses
Château de Bligny
14 Grande rue
21200 Bligny-lès-Beaune
www.pierremeurgey.com
As you may remember from my previous visit, the name Croses comes from Pierre’s mother’s maiden-name, who was from the Mâcon, and still lives in Uchizy. In 2013 there was just 1 wine, so Pierre describes 2014 as really his first vintage ‘with a range of wines.’ Here is his next stage – and he has extended his range to reds from the Côte d’Or too – 2015 is the first vintage for these.
Pierre on his 2015s:
“It’s my second complete vintage – for the whites at least. The maturity is obviously there but it was blocked for a while but then came suddenly – particularly in Pouilly-Fuissé. The acidities are not high, but the balance was not bad. Almost 2 degrees were added in 3 days the change was so fast – actually one parcel even stayed blocked, tiny grapes and 12.5° but I think that it calmed the riper grapes when they were blended together – it was really the Pouilly-Fuissé that needed the most care.”
The wines…
The first vintage for reds at this address – and they show a little oak just now, though not in a vanilla style – but 2015 will eat that oak quite quickly I think, otherwise they are excellent. The whites are very tasty and show a good touch in this vintage – a vintage where it was all too easy to have a little excess richness at the expense of vivacity…
2015 Côte de Nuits Villages, Aux Montagne
Bought, certified bio grapes, 30% whole cluster and a cool maceration to start. ‘Chatacteristic of 2015 is that it takes the oak well.’ Here 3 new barrels from 8, bottled 21 February.
Nice depth of aroma but with a growing freshness and accent of flowers too – a great start. Very nice shape in the mouth – fine acidity with a slowly growing intensity – but the roundness keeps the balance. There’s a little tang of salty oak in the mid-palate, but overall this is really excellent! A note of oak toast in the finish but it’s modest and it will fade.
2015 Nuits St.Georges 1er Les Pruliers
All destemmed, two barrels worth, farmed bio
More depth and a finer more focused aroma of fruit. Much bigger in the mouth – really lots of volume. There’s plenty of oak here too but rather tending to creamy vanilla than the toast of the last. Today this is too much oak for me, but the volume, texture and complexity are first class. Be aware of the oak but it’s excellent wine all the same – and long too.
3 barrels, all destemmed, close to Clos des Citeaux, two barrels new – so 66%.
Ooh – that’s nice – bright and fresh fruit above, a deeper bass-line – a very subtle smokiness of oak but it remains discreet. Hmm, a great mix of volume, texture and energy. The least oak too – maybe that’s why I like it so much. But there is density and depth wrapped in a perfect delivery. Really fine. Super wine!
Les blancs…
All grapes, like the 2014s, were bought from friends of the family.
2015 Macon-Uchizy
All tank elevage, bottled in July. ‘The elevage was always reductive and I keep about 950mg gas at bottling.’ Wines can be heavy in Uchizy but this place has a minerality that slowly brings balance.’ Normal yields.
A nice blend of weight of ripe fruit and saline freshness. Bright, mobile, there is a depth of ripe fruit but this is actually really super in the mouth – layered and with a clinging flavour profile – but never heavy. Excellent.
2015 Viré-Clesse Vieilles-Vignes
A friend of Pierre’s mother – they were at school together – is a proprietor so this comes from him. Lieu dit Le Monts near Peronne/Quintaine. Old vines, more than 60 years. There’s an old cuverie in the middle of the town where the grapes are pressed then the must was moved to Davailler. 85% in tank for elevage, the rest in large barrels, here with a little batonnage. Bottled in August.
Very fresh – it’s a fine lemon freshness. Volume without the same weight as the Uchizy. More melting flavour, softer, more complex less overt energy but beautiful. Long and mouth-wateringly mineral, very long. Clearly more interesting in the second half of the wine, vs the extra interest in the first half of the last wine.
The same idea as the last, with 80% in tank, 20% in barrel. From Leynes south of the appellation next to St.Amour. Big barrels, here with one new.
Good aromatic volume and a depth of ripe but fresh fruit. Hmm – this is super in the mouth – volume, only slowly developing weight of flavour – saline. And a super length. Bravo! This is a beauty!
2015 Pouilly-Fuissé
There are 2 cuvées, this and the VV. From the village of Pouilly and some from Solutre. All hand harvested. The VV is more of a barrel selection.
Ooh – this has a striking fresh but ripe yellow citrus. More composed in the mouth, ripe, lots of flavour dimension, but fresh. I start a little disappointed at the more composed nature but it’s really super the longer you hold in the mouth – fine saline complexity and weight. Super balance. Super… really a great finish too!
2015 Pouilly-Fuissé Vieilles-Vignes
All from the village of Pouilly. Elevage in big barrels with 25% new. 55-85 year-old vines.
A very wide nose, composed and fresh though much tighter depth. Ooh! Textured depth, layered, unctuous – yet, slowly mouth-watering and very moreish – of-course I’d like a little more freshness, but this is delicious! Really complex in the impressive length – palate staining. Really super!