Tasted with Alix Millot, pictured with father Jean-Marc, in Nuits St.Georges, 25 November 2020.
Domaine Jean-Marc Millot
24 Rue des Seuillets
21700 Nuits-Saint-Georges
Tel: +33 6 48 17 78 95
Today Alix Millot is front-of-house at this domaine in Nuits St.Georges – close to domaines Lecheneaut, Decelle and others. But, despite its location, it’s a domain with no Nuits St.Georges!
Alix joined the domaine named after her father – who is still to be found working at the domaine – in 2014 after working a 6-month stage in New Zealand. Her mother was originally from Vosne (Flagey) and her father from Corgolion – so the Vosne-Flagey vines, which include three grand crus, come from her mother’s side of the family – the Gouroux family – actually Emmanuel Rouget is the current occupier of the old Louis Gouroux cuverie in Flagey. For a while these Vosnes were rented out en-fermage to Domaine Mongeard-Mugneret – “It’s taken us some time to recover all the vines,” says Alix.
The domaine began life in 1992 and now covers 8 hectares and Alix is just as proud to show her first wine, an aligoté, which was previously sold in bulk but she’s decided to keep it. Made without sulfur, some in barrel and some now in a jar (amphora) too. “I’m working pragmatically, using a minimum of sulfur, and I prefer remontage, not wanting to over-extract – I think as few as three pigeages can start to standardise the wines – but it’s all done by tasting.”
90% of the production is exported from France.
Alix on 2019:
“19 was an easy vintage to vinify but low volumes. We weren’t directly frosted but there was clearly an effect, that, combined with the rain during flowering brought coulure so we didn’t have many grapes and those that we had were millerandé. The rest was easy with fine weather. In fact, all the recent vintages brought us only 25-30 hl/ha – 2018, 19 and 20 – but I think the return was great quality.”
The wines…
A really super first visit – both the entry and top wines are great – and much of what lies in-between are excellent. I rarely see the wines but now I’ll be looking more carefully!
The 2019 is already sold. Just a six-month elevage. Bottled and sealed with DIAM. Vines in a quite limestone area in Comblanchien
Aromatically open, attractive and forward. Bright, expressive, nice structure but no hard wdges. Completely delicious – bravo!
To be bottled next week. In Les Vignottes 1.3 ha of vines opposite the Clos de la Marechale.
Here’s a nice depth of aroma, very silky, very classy, with a touch of barrel. That’s great bourgogne. So sophisticated, and lingering very well.
A few wines recently bottled wines:
2019 Côte de Nuits Villages Vieilles-Vignes
70-80-year-old vines
That’s a deep, dark, slightly leathery fruit to start. In the mouth, again, very silky. This seems just a little tending to roast fruit, a little savoury, but with a great finishing burst of flavour – which nearly saves it!
2019 Savigny-lès-Beaune
3 parcels; Dessus les Vermots, Au Fourches and Gollardes
Rounder, redder aromas of fruit. Wide, extra freshness a cooler fruit, the tannin has no grain and there’s a long line of finishing fkavour again. Very good.
2019 Côte de Nuits Villages Au Fauques
In Comblanchien, 2 ha, a mix of older and younger vines.
Much fresher, cleaner fruit, perfumed. More energy and direction – freshly mouth-watering. Great depth of flavour and long finishing – sustaining an excellent finsh. Super wine.!
All the following from barrel. Mainly to bottle in the January-February period:
2019 Vosne-Romanée
Two parcels; Hautes Maizières and Violettes
A silky nose of pure fruit and some density to that fruit too. Really silky again. Long, growing in complexity, not full of energy but full of mouth-watering flavour. The finish is a big one – despite that, it’s an understated but still very impressive wine.
2019 Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Suchots
Near Cathiard on the bottom side of the road, heading in the direction of Echézeaux
More width of aroma, more open, very attractive complexity, today more spicy than floral. Extra depth of flavour, beautifully layered, showing extra freshness too. That’s a really good Suchots, excellent wine!
2019 Echezeaux du Dessus
From Poulieres and Clos St.Denis
Thats a pretty nose, finer and of more width too, here the florals more visible. Depth, beautiful texture, really a swell of beautiful flavour. Not a super-exuberant Echézeaux but a completely delicious one – excellent again!
2019 Clos de Vougeot
In Grand Maulertuis – so high in the clos
The nose is rather airy, it’s open but not showing much density today. Lovely shape and structure, open with cool fruit, proper CV and very tasty finishing too.
Next to the Clos de Vougeot, and the neighbouring vines are DRC.
Here the nose starts with a little reduction, but there’s almost a textural ekement to the fruit. Reduced in the flavour but it doesn’t disguise the complexity and breadth of the flavours. A simply great finish, wide, involving, bravo!
And to finish:
2020 Côte de Nuits Villages Les Vaucrins sans souffre
Next to the Clos de la Marechale.
That’s attractively aromatic. Silky to start then a little velvet tannin come to the fore. A wine to drink while laughing with friends…