Tasted in Meloisey with Alexandre Parigot, 13 December 2022.
Domaine Alexandre Parigot
8 Route de Pommard
21190 Meloisey
Tel: +33 3 80 26 01 70
More reports with Alexandre Parigot
Alexandre on 2021:
“21 – yes it was worse for volume than in 2016 – we were between 20-25 hl/ha here – but the frost didn’t just reduce the yield it stressed the vines and increased the losses due to deperissement it was since 2005-06 that the problems grew. It undermines the morale – here we replant a parcel so it’s hard to retain the quality of the domaine when the average age of the vines keeps going down and of course there’s no wine for a few years…
“21 was simple – I did the opposite of 2020! In 2020 I did little leaf-thinning to protect the grapes from the sun – the reverse in 21 – to provide aeration to limit the porriture. We had a summer with not much sun for a time – it resembled 2013 in that respect. We are so lucky that the market is so good for our wines that, despite the 2021 volume, I chose not to increase my prices – it’s about the relationship with our faithful customers – a lot in Belgium and quite a lot in Asia – in France too for our Hautes Côtes and Savignys. Every year we start at zero – we have to stay humble.”
The wines…
Such consistent wines – almost always excellent, except when they are great! Well-done Alexandre for these 2021s…
2021 Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune
Vines around Meloisey including Les Perrières, 12.6-12.7° but about 1/3rd of a normal volume
A pretty red fruit though quite compact today. Mouth-filling, a creamy accent to this pretty red fruit. A little finishing structure but not hard. Very good!
2021 Savigny-lès-Beaune Au Grands Liards
Just under Lavières
Broader, a still fine and red nose – a little cushion here. Good flavour impact, a depth to this fruit flavour, faintly framed with a tiny-grained tannin. Ooh – that’s a really super finish – generous and concentrated. Simply an excellent villages – great finishing!
2021 Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Aux Vergelesses
Have half a hectare here, at the domaine since 2008 – ‘I love this terroir near Talmettes with the trees above’
A pretty red fruit nicely airy and perfumed. Mouth-filling with delicious, clean, red fruit – nicely intense, serious even but not long in bottle. Simply an excellent wine.
2021 Volnay
From Brouillards, near Pommard Combe – ‘I do very little pigeage here or you will see the Pommard – I have a lot of clay here…’
Darker red fruit with an extra silk. Larger scale in the mouth. Faintly tannic, properly structured but finishing with pretty flavour. A super wine and one with plenty of concentration…
2021 Pommard Vignots
Half a hectare under the forest. 5 years old vines but already with a lot of vine losses.
A pretty perfume with this clean red fruit. Mouth-filling – lots of mouthwatering energy – slowly leaching fine flavour from a slightly harder structure today. This will be super in 4-5 years. Very likeable wine.
Near Levrières
That’s a super nose – very perfumed – a great nose! More sucrosity, more generosity, fine texture – mouth-filling delicious wine with a moreish mouth-watering finish – bravo villages!
2021 Pommard 1er Clos de la Chanière
0.86 ha. Young vines. An ‘entry’ wine for 1er crus says Alexandre – bought in 1999 by parents – nearly 1 ha of 6-year-old vines – first vintage 2019 – on a root that supports plenty of active limestone.
Less broad but a slightly fleshy depth to this red fruit. Fuller, melting with great flavour. The texture is of velour – the tannin more visible in the finish but practically grainless – just a little dryness.
2021 Pommard 1er Charmots
An early parcel above Epenots near Commaraine – harvest a bit earlier as there is slightly less acidity from here.
Hmm, another wine of enviable perfume and depth of aroma. Broad – a panorama of flavour here – plenty of structure to this wine – as it should be – the finish is vibrant and complex – that’s a super finish. For 3-4 years of patience but this is a wine that will reward.
2021 Nuits St.Georges 1er Damodes
0.25 ha near Leroy – domaine vines – newish domaine vines – first vintage in 2019.
A modest volume of aroma but with fine clarity. Some middle structure but what a fine breadth of lovely flavour from the middle into the finish – really super here! That’s a simply excellent wine – indeed, it’s a great finishing wine!
Les Whites:
Good, broad aromatic freshness. Mouth-filling – super width – gorgeously mouth-watering wine – that’s completely delicious with a fine hint of citrus skin tannin at the finish. That’s a great Bourgogne
2021 Meursault Vireuils
Had 5 cm of snow here in 21
A pretty, ‘noble,’ reduction note to this nose. Mineral, direct, slowly broadening in the middle flavours – young, fine flavour with a hint of ripeness and small florals in this finish.
In 15 years the price for this land has increased 6x! Half a hectare here – the first bought by Alexandre with his father.
Wow – perfume – the vines are close to Genevrières – so is this gorgeous perfume. Crystalline – mouth-filling, a faint grain of tannin. I adore it!
There’s no Chassagne in 2021 as it was more than 90% frosted but for the road:
2013 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Clos St.Jean
Bought in 96 planted to white
Young colour. Faintly spiced – Alexandre likes to find a white pepper here. Mouth-filling – lots of wine with lots of energy here – 2013 remains a vintage with so much white treasure – not yet red (only aromatically) – the finish is a fine line of beautiful flavour – more than excellent white!