Tasted in Premeaux-Prissey with Patrice Rion, 14 November, 2017.
Domaine Michèle et Patrice Rion
1 Rue Maladière
21700, Premeaux
Tel: +33 3 80 62 32 63
www.patricerion.com
Patrice on 2017:
“Generous but ripe, and fermenting well. This harvest was needed not just for the bank account but also the morale, since 2010 it’s the first vintage that we had to do some green harvesting. The frost was again a danger, we had a number of days with -2°C but everything was dry so we escaped with very few problems – we did use some candles in the vines here.”
Patrice on 2016:
“In 2016 Premeaux and Chambolle both suffered terribly. The domaine is down 70% in volume. I’ve never seen frost at the top of the hills like it – I think the last volume losses so high were in 1945 but still not like at the top of the hills. So the purchases from Chambolle basically stopped because the growers had nothing or chose to keep what they had for themselves – many had almost nothing. We bought no new barrels for the 2016s but we had plenty of 1-year-old barrels.
“We kept a little 2015 back, and will try to bring a little 2017 forward and we can get through it – but it’s by the grace of 2017!”
The wines…
Probably start some bottling in December.
Another set of very fine wines at this address – fewer cuvées and fewer bottles though, unfortunately
2016 Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits La Damme Huguette
Lots of clay but a little limestone too.
Lovely colour. Profound, beautiful fruit. Round, a beautiful line of acidity, held in check by the depth of flavour. And it’s vibrant delicious flavour – I’m not sure that I’d wait as the acidity is quite something – but its mega delicious already.
Old vines, mid-slope in Comblanchien, quite close to the Clos de la Marechale
More width of aroma, a little raspberry. A burst of energy, bright, pure fruit. Pretty waves of finishing flavour. Wow, delicious bravo! A little dry material right on the end of the tongue
The previous wines were assembled in tank – those reds that follow were sampled from barrel.
2016 Nuits St.Georges
A little more depth, more guarded but also more floral aroma. Less overt sweetness, fine energy and a lovely, lovely red fruit. Just an ounce of extra flesh but the flavour opens out in the finish with great distinction – beautifully floral – really memorable wine!
2016 Chambolle-Musigny Les Cras
The vines near Bonnes-Mares with Fuées above – had much less frost than the rest – lost about 15%. 40 year-old vines.
A wide nose with a vibration of fruit. Some gas, very floral and fine flavour across the palate, the texture becoming very fine as the gas fades. Beautifully finishing. Simply gorgeous harmonious wine – again!
2016 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Les Charmes
“It’s just the road that separates this Charmes from Amoureuses” 50% of usual harvest, an old vine.
A tighter nose but with a purity, slowly opening with flowers. Crystalline purity, width, fine acidity, mobile, changing flavour, fine density in the mid-palate and finish, going long and mineral – super wine.
And for fans of those wines, I’m afraid that the Fuées and Gruenchers won’t come back in 2017 as the next generation of the vigneron are taking on the vines…
Stony here, normally tannic, close to the Clos de Vougeot
A wide and very attractive nose, mixing fruit and flowers. Layered wine starting very mineral but the melting flavour is floral and slowly the whole wine gains volume and momentum of flavour. This is really my style of wine – bravo – such a great crescendo!
The domaine is part replanting here as the vines are 65-70 years-old – they are doing it in stages. A miserly 5 hl/ha
Not the widest nose but it’s deep and highly attractive. Wide, getting ever wider, this has energy and really brilliant complexity. Great wine, the structure is really very well hidden.
Not the same weight of aroma but a little more volume and a more complex perfume. Silky, wide, transparent, growing waves of complex flavour, floral mixed with fruit, the intensity rising with a twist of salinity too. This holds a really persistent line – bravo again.
Et le Blanc…
Also about 30% a normal volume
A bright wide and vibrant nose. Composed, mineral, pure, slowly changing flavour, a hint of gas here – really a fine intensity finish. This is a delicious vintage for this wine, highly recommended despite not being the most energetic wine of 2016 but there is a palpable purity and the presence is of composure. Bravo!