Tasted in Gevrey-Chambertin with Jérôme Galeyrand, 28 November 2016.
Domaine Jérôme Galeyrand
16 Rue de Gevrey
21220 Saint-Philibert
Tel: +33 3 80 34 39 69
Jérôme on 2016:
“The 2016s were placed in barrel last week. The frost was a catastrophe – I lost almost 100% of my Marsannay, Comblanchien and Bourgogne – actually I managed 3-4 barrels from more than a hectare of Bourgogne. Gevrey, Brochon and Fixin were better.
“Overall 50% was lost. Despite that from vinification standpoint and first tastings it looks like a great vintage – 12.5-13° so low volume of grapes was an advantage from the perspective of ripening.
“The 2015 harvest was also lower yielding in Comblanchien, as it was the first vintage in biodynamics.”
The wines:
Jérôme has been doing some tests without sulfur on his whites, he tells me he likes the texture but has decided that for now, he wants to keep some sulfur.
The previous Côte de Nuits Villages came from 2 parcels of vines, one in Comblanchien (vines planted in 1925 and 1932) and the other from Brochon (vines from 1947). The elevage of these two parcels was separate, and they were assembled only before bottling. Jérôme saying that the power came from Brochon, and the finesse from Comblanchien. From this vintage, he’s decided to bottle the two cuvées separately.
Only the Marsannay and Gevrey Vieilles Vignes are not yet racked into tank. Some of these need a little more elevage, but this is really a great set of wines!
2015 Bourgogne Rouge
From vines in the communes of Chambolle, Brochon, Gilly, plus a little from Comblanchien. The largest part from Les Athets in Chambolle.
Pretty and silky red fruit. A little tannin, but bold weight, a big burst of flavour and a mineral length too. Long and super. This has the chance to be really excellent.
Dark fruit, very fine clarity. Lovely in the mouth, playing on the tongue fine transparency. Just a beautiful mouth-watering flavour in the finish!
2015 Côte de Nuits Villages Vieilles Vignes
From Brochon
A nose that slowly brightens and widens. A hint saline, more depth of flavour and fine texture – yet this is also a fresher cooler wine despite some darker fruit. A super finish!
2015 Fixin
From two neighbouring parcels.
Another nose that slowly freshens with dark fruit – slowly adding even darker fruit and some weighted layers of faintly oaked but very pretty mid-palate flavour. No rusticity, even a suggestion of flowers. This is very, very pretty for Fixin!
Old 1960s vines.
A vibrant and beautiful nose. Super texture, rolling over the palate, salinity and fine richness of intensity. Just a great wine!
This nose starts muddled but becomes a very beautiful thing with a little patience. Super texture – a little wider and a little richer than La Justice – different, not better, but certainly gorgeous!
2015 Côte de Nuits Villages Les Retraits
Name of climat in Comblanchien. 2014 was the first vintage for this wine – with an individual label. ‘Pinot from another time, the owner is in his 80s but it was his father that planted these vines, the first planting here post phylloxera.’
This nose really needs some coaxing from the glass – a little rose flowers… Lovely silk, and good weight of flavour too. Rich but with very modest structure – it’s an enveloping wine. Almost sumptuous and really long. Super! The nose needs work but that’s probably the tank sample take a few hours earlier. Really fine.
100% whole-cluster
Fresher, finer, dark fruit and spice but nice clarity too. This has a super long line of flavour, less width and texture, more drive and intensity – still with fine texture – this is excellent! There’s even a reprise of flavour with texture too!
And some 2014s:
2014 Côte de Nuits Villages En Vignois Blanc
From Brochon, here with a little pinot blanc, harvested early, a week before the pinots…
Wide, becoming finer with swirling. Lithe, mineral, but with really nice points of focus and fresh, energetic flavour. Tension but with a citrus and energy. Very tasty wine…
A cool area in the hillside.
Lovely clarity of red fruit – really inviting. Lithe, fresh, super fruit/floral blend. This is less rich and weighty than the 15s but really more a thing of beauty today!
Starts a little reduced, the biggest part of that reduction leaves quickly leaving more of an anecdote plus a growing floral depth. Wide, mineral, fresh and with a growing intensity. Fine, intense, supple. Really lovely – also gorgeous – long and mineral,t fine and tasty. Bravo!
Wide, floral red fruit – fine rather than powerful – but very inviting. Big in the mouth – so much volume, nicely textured too. Fresh, wide, saline and with super weight – certainly a larger wine than many of these 2014s but delicious! Then the last notes with a modest but ripe grain of tannin. Also bravo! But I’d wait longer for this than the Fixin!