Tasted in Beaune with Vincent Avenel and Justine Savoye – vineyard manager for 3 years now. 12 December 2022.
Chanson Père et Fils
10 Rue du Collège/r Paul Chanson
21200 Beaune
Tel: +33 3 80 25 97 97
www.vins-chanson.com
More reports with Maison Chanson Père et Fils
Vincent & Justine on 2022:
“Very happy with this result – the first impression was not so high – the second was quite a bit higher and reality was somewhere in-between – there were plenty of kilos of grapes but the amount of juice was still modest in comparison – but given the general dryness of the vintage we can be very happy – roughly 35hl/ha for the domaine – very ‘correct.’”
Vincent & Justine on 2021:
“We are a little poor in white in this vintage – also two have not yet finished their malolactics so we won’t taste those. Nothing is bottled – normally our elevage is 14 months for whites and 16-18 for the reds – depending on tasting might do earlier. We averaged 15 hl/ha – that was after a severe triage because we wanted good and pure. It’s frustrating but for the quality we are very happy and the crystallinity of the wines. It was a testing start to our first vintage in conversion to organic viticulture. In general, we are harvesting not quite as late as once was the case – we are more average in that respect today – instead of being one of the last. Though the pressure from the botrytis helped with this decision in 2021! We were confident of the whites from the start but the reds had us asking many questions early in their elevage. We have changed from (always) 100% whole cluster and destem as much as half these days.”
The wines…
I’d say that Chanson are in a transition phase; since parting ways with their old technical director they now pick their reds a little earlier and no-longer use 100% whole clusters – though still around 50%. So in 2021, despite using fewer stems, their wines still have some slightly gothic stemmy aromas – though the same could be said of DRC this year so they are in great company! There is more accessibility, though, in the context of the vintage, these are very much vins de garde. I’d be waiting 4-5 years before approaching any of them – but the older vintages here I’d be saying 15-20 years, so much has changed! The whites are top and also ‘keepable’ here (DIAMs) – the reds you should wait – they are far from shedding all their structural aspects.
All the wines, reds too, in DIAM – 10 and 30 – started in 2010 and for all whites. ‘Cork is simply not pragmatic:‘
2021 Santenay 1er Beauregarde
Domaine wine – 1.5 ha
A breadth of precise berry fruit. Mouthfilling, good structure, a little tannin – the structure is showing today but the clarity of flavour is super.
2021 Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Dominode
Domaine wine – 1.70 ha 90 year-old vines
Darker fruit, more depth – no obvious reduction – a textural nose – slightly grained. Breadth and intensity – modestly wrapped with a tannin but dark and vibrant – slowly a more perfumed width of finishing flavour.
2021 Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Les Vergelesses
Domaine wine – 5.4 ha here!
A fine, more airy width of perfume – intertwined with some darker fruit. Direct, cool, fresh, framed again with some slightly dry tannin – growing in intensity and then really holding brilliantly well in the width with references from lots of small, fine bitters.
2021 Beaune 1er Les Teurons
Domaine wine – 4 hectares mainly in the flat at the bottom of the hillside.
A little narrower in the aromatics but another wine with both fine depth and clarity. Large-scale in the mouth – a structurally impressive wine whose flavours melt well over the palate. Easy but persistent in the finish – hmm – a lovely finish.
2021 Domaine Beaune 1er Clos des Mouches
Not the widest nose but one with a fine freshness – a little dark cherry stone at the core. Lots of scale again – structured too – but the tannin is much less obvious here. No grain and tons of freshness – invigorating wine. I love the energy here, almost a chalky finishing texture today…
2021 Domaine Beaune 1er Clos des Marconnets
A little over 3 hectares, mid-slope – well exposed.
Hmm, a very inviting width of perfumed fruit here – simply lovely. Large scale again – like the Clos des Mouches here with a hint more intensity to the volume. Extra finishing complexity – ooh that’s good – simply excellent wine – but for keeping!
2021 Beaune 1er Les Grèves
Domaine wine – 2 hectares
A large-scale aromatic here – less overtly inviting than the Marconnets today but certainly with an extra level of complexity – maybe a faint gentian/pyrazine note. Intense fresh and energetic – almost dynamic. Cool finishing lots of finishing tannin here – but don’t worry – you should be lapping this up in 5+ years. Excellent again!
More airy, more red, faintly smoky aromatics. No quarter is given or asked: incisive, direct, texture of velour but still growing in intensity. A finish you can practically chew on. Long finishing – hyper-impressive – wait 5-7 years in the first instance but this could be great.
Les Whites…
2021 Chassagne-Montrachet
Normally part domaine and part contracts – there were no contracts this year due to the frost – so it’s all domaine but they haven’t changed the labels:
Ooh – vibrant, attractive energetic citrus here – yes! Mouth-filling, melting, delicious wine – there’s some intensity but spread over a breadth here. Nicely vibrant width of finishing flavour too – excellent.
More direct, an extra ripeness to this, still, fresh yellow citrus fruit. Brilliant mineral width – we are talking Savigny here – just a touch of rigour in the flavours but this will relax. Bravo!
2021 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Les Folatières
Domaine wine – 0.3 hectares. Only one barrel instead of the normal 3
Classy – very perfumed – you sense the minerality too. A shimmering width of slowly vibrating flavour – this is so impressive – lots of agrume fruit here. Finishing with a faint tannin – almost chalky – what an excellent, delicious wine.
Domaine wine – 1.8 ha owned. Are replanting a section now.
Also beautifully perfumed – more perfume than minerality for this one. Extra incisive and the minerality is even more obvious on the palate – the structural shape too. Bravo – I love this – and the finish is ultra long too – it would shame a few Charlemagnes!