Tasted in Meursault with Romain Pertuzot, Nadine Gublin & Martin Prieur, 13 December, 2021.
Domaine Jacques Prieur
6 Rue des Santenots
21190 Meursault
Tel: +33 3 80 21 23 85
www.prieur.com
More reports with Domaine Jacques Prieur.
Nadine 2021:
“Today we don’t talk about 21!”
Nadine & Martin on 2020:
“It was a nice, classic, volume in the whites – around 40 hl/ha – unfortunately more like 20 for the reds, though that really concentrated the juice. Our malos were done very quickly. Nothing, red or white, is racked, all are still in barrel, in elevage – as we were three weeks earlier we thought we’d be having an earlier bottling too but having recently tasted we are sure that we will need the normal time or even longer for some of the wines.”
The wines…
Always plenty of great wines at this domaine – particularly the whites – but in this vintage many of the whites seem to need extra elevage, as they were showing lots of structural rigour. That being the case, I’m sure that my notes are conservative..
First, a selection of ‘maison’ Labruyère-Prieur wines:
2020 Santenay Clos Genet
One of the latest harvested areas, with quite high vines and all destemmed.
Broad, silky, concentrated darker fruit nose. Mouthfilling but there’s not just concentration, there’s intensity too. Finishing silky and with a licorice note.
Over 40% wc, harvested a week later than the last.
Also wide and silky – but a little more freshness too. Extra silky, extra concentrated – direct, intense – growing fuller in the finish too – great Santenay but with the concentration to keep for decades – if you wish!
2020 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Morgeot
A large parcel of almost 1 hectare quite central in parcel, Grand Glos and Brussones. Harvested in-between the last two and all destemmed.
A nicely airy and open nose – clearly plenty of material but the aromas here are more calm. A touch of extra structure but there’s no grain here. Wide, impressive – never a hard edge – simply super again.
2020 Volnay 1er Santenots
In Santenots Blanc, a 21 August harvest – close to the front of the harvest and all destemmed
Hmm – that’s a lovely, open, silky and slightly floral nose. Open in the mouth too – mouth-filling, vibrant, a little structure again but also without grain to the tannin. Vibrant finish.
Vines above the ‘Clos Platière.’ 29 August harvest and all destemmed.
My favourite nose so far, a little more direct with fine clarity – that’s lovely. Really mouth-filling, tons of intensity – insistent but highly detailed. For keeping – at least 5 years and probably as long as you like! Love that finish! Bravo!
Now the domaine wines:
Nearly 50% whole cluster
That’s a lovely nose – slightly spiced like a white Meursault. Hmm, that’s really super in the mouth too – energy, a certain floral character – depth and, concentration. Grand Meursault villages – red – that might be my first!
2020 Beaune 1er Clos de la Feguine
All destemmed
Also a lovely width of rounder, faintly spiced, aroma. High-toned – not quite a pyrazine but heading in that direction. Actually, this is lovely – backed with some creamy oak too. Complex and highly interesting.
2020 Beaune 1er Grèves
All destemmed again
A little narrower but with lots of aromatic depth. More airy, nicely open – still with some direct intensity. Less impact but more width and mouth-watering intensity in the finish – that’s a super finish, it just keeps going and going…
2020 Beaune 1er Champimonts
A couple of days later harvested than the last two – 50% whole clusters forthis wine.
A nose, once more, of concentration but lots of bright flashes of fruit and pure interest. Direct, almost mineral, a cascade of mouth-watering flavour. Broad finishing and again so very persistent.
2020 Volnay 1er Clos des Santenots
Harvested 27 August, all destemmed. Only one cuvée this vintage – the older and younger vines together.
So dark – almost saturated. The nose is far from monolithic with faint spice, a graphite minerality and sweeping dark fruit notes. Fresh, cool-fruited – a mixture of width but still a direct style. Plenty of oak today but that’s going to fade.
The first harvested vines in 2020 with 30% of the whole clusters retained.
That’s a more vertical nose but with fresh and perfumed top notes – very attractive even despite a pyrazine suggestion. Open, vibrant, beautiful in the mouth – no fat just rippling muscle and energy – bravo!
1.2 ha. Harvesteed 1st September with about a third of the whole clusters retained.
A fuller nose – lots of perfumed high tones. Oh yes! Here is a mouth-filling, structured wine but with such fluidity of flavour – so mouthwatering – such great potential – and the concentration that mandates waiting like some of the others – proper CV yet, somehow, approachable due to this fluidity! Bravo!
2020 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru
This the young-vine Chambertin – destemmed
Open, wide, complex. Extra-wide in the mouth – really impressive shape and presence. Long and direct finishing – that’s simply an excellent wine!
2020 Chambertin
Harvested 1st September and destemmed like the younger vines
Much more profound depth – maybe it’s a stage in the elevage but this, like some others, suggesting but never fully delivering some pyrazine complexity. Cool, direct, tactile-silky but with a growth of a more velvet style as the tannin surfaces. Give this 15+ years despite how drinkable it already is… Excellent.
0.36 ha of roughly 50-year-old vines, planted north-south, in Champs-Traversins – Poulaillères nearby is all DRC, these vines in the domaine since 1996. A modest 3-4% slope and the current of air from the combe also keeps these vines cool in the recent hot summers. ‘I think the location here always exceeds the vintage variation.’ 31 August harvest and also all destemmed. ‘We have to work hard in the Clos de Vougeot but this place does it all on its own!’
Yes, there is extra here – it’s not the largest nose but it’s the most beautifully communicative. Mouth-filling but like the Clos de Vougeot there’s a compelling fluidity to this mouth-watering flavour. The finish mounting again and hyper-complex. Great wine.
1st September, all destemmed…
A large-scaled nose – open, floral but apart. In the mouth too. Every space is filled, there is concentration but delivered with a lightness of touch. Complexity to unfurl. Great wine – the finish seemingly palate-staining as it lasts so long!
Les Whites
“DIAM for us, now all Origine. It’s not just about consistency – which we now have – but it more importantly allows us to reduce the amount of sulfur. All the whites are still on their lees – zero battonage:”
2020 Labruyère-Prieur, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Morgeot
28 Aug harvest, from Tete de and Petit Clos.
That’s a broad, attractive nose – concentrated but still airy. Hmm – lovely freshness – a mouth-filling style here – mineral and saline too. Some pineapple and agrume fruit. Yum!
2020 Labruyère-Prieur, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Champsgains
Red earth but in a few centimetres you have the mother rock
Harvested one day earlier. Narrower but a more beautiful nose – a purity of fine yellow citrus complexity. Vibrant – lovely energy and there’s a grain of tannin to this wine. Mouth-watering, almost juicy flavour – intense and long… That’s quite a wine – excellent!
Domaine wines:
2020 Bourgogne Côte d’Or Chardonnay
Vines around the cuverie and domaine buildings, actually only the road and buildings separate it from Clos de la Barre. Concrete sphere (not an egg!) forms a large part of the elevage here, more than half.
A big airy punchy, crunchy fruit nose of agrumes – lovely. Big energy, a little gas – tons of energy and very mouth-watering with a mineral intensity – slight rigour but impressive.
2020 Beaune 1er Choucherias Blanc
The first vintage was 2018 – young vines.
More composed but a nose that’s still sizzling with a nice energy. Again mineral and intense, this time with a little less rigour. Chalky finishing. Lovely…
2020 Beaune 1er Les Grèves Blanc
0.53 hectares, 2009 was first vintage after replanting from red, so these vines more like 10 years old in the flatter base of Grèves where it’s a little more sandy. 26 August harvest – all reds and whites were roughly ready at the same time, started with the reds but hardly a difference.
A fine and silky depth of aroma here. Vibrant, mineral/structural – faint oak here too – but not really with an overt rigour for this wine. The oak stronger in the finish – so wait for a little – they are in DIAM, so no problem! Excellent.
Wooden foudres plus barrel elevage.
A fresh and mineral width. Hmm, again an intensity and a minerality – again a little chalky too. Impressively juicy, zesty even that’s excellent – indeed great white Beaune.
A little later harvested – the 29th August.
An extra airy width. Faintly, spiced accent to the citrus fruit. Driving, mineral – great! Such a super agrume soup here – clarity and zesty detail! Bravo!
2020 Meursault Clos de Mazeray
An equal blend of wooden foudres and barrels, again.
Some modest reduction in the depth here but again a wine that’s showcasing its minerality. Large-scaled. So mouth-watering – slightly strict to start today but with lovely agrume bitters mouthwatering in the finish – really lovely.
2020 Meursault 1er Santenots
22 August harvest.
A noble reduction to this highly attractive nose. Gas. Also intensity – a vibrant wine that sizzles with flavour energy all the way into the finish. Holding long. Really fine!
2020 Meursault 1er Perrières
0.279 ha. 24 August start-date
Deep, vibrant, almost dynamic pure fruit notes – crystalline. Gas. Then wide and intense – needs time in the cellar but a wine of undoubted purity and super detail. Simply excellent today and with a great, great finish of power and detail!
1.497 hectares. A very sunny a vineyard
Wow – instantly a great nose – a noble reduction, floral perfumed, mineral complexity in support. Also the subtle reduction in the mouth. Strongly mineral with a little rigour but what a great wine – everything here – keep as long as you like – all in DIAM!
2020 Chevailier-Montrachet
Here 0.1365 hectares. Most south and high section of Chevalier – close to Dents du Chien (of Chassagne) 2 september – one of the last vines harvested.
A broader nose, almost a little smoky. Full and vibrant, tons of complexity here but certainly requiring more elevage. Great, persistent but less formed finish – lots of citrus-skin bitters and phenolic texture. Much potential but way too young today…
From 2 parcels, one classic hillside and the other by Dents du Chien – forming 0.586 ha. 27 August harvest.
Hmm – that’s a nose of depth but much tighter top notes – to start – slowly showing acacia blooms. Massive but not daunting, mineral and mouth-watering, almost becoming a water-fall in the mouth. Most of the whites here showing a certain rigour that more elevage will help – this is no different but it’s great in all directions – and the finish simply doesn’t stop!
The last vines harvested.
A large-scaled chalky nose – again a certain rigour that will soften with further elevage. So concentrated – so mineral, so intense. An impression of aniseed, perhaps a ppm of pyrazine, massively scaled wine. Great wine – but wait plenty of years – I’d be thinking 10 as a starting point!