Tasted in Vougeot with Eduard & François Labet, 09 November, 2021.
Chateau de La Tour / Domaine Pierre Labet
Rue de la Montagne
21640 Vougeot
Tel: +33 3 80 62 86 13
www.chateaudelatour.com
More reports for Château de La Tour & Domaine Pierre Labet
François & Eduard on 2021:
“21 was tough – 25 hl/ha in the Clos, despite being ‘protected’ by candles. We had hard driving snow in the vineyard – some placed only delivered 10% of a normal harvest outside of Vougeot.”
François & Eduard on 2020:
“2020 is a special vintage. We began picking in late August – we’d planned for the 20th but the lack of rain and heat left us with the impression that the grapes weren’t ripe enough – so we waited until 27th to make our start – we couldn’t wait any longer for some of our 100-year-old vines and their maturity was good – but a little rain came on the 28th and it seemed that the grapes became more juicy and ‘nourished’ from that. Our bigger blocks of younger vines, particularly the stems, were not yet ripe enough so we went to Beaune before coming back to Vougeot. The lack of rain was most obvious in Gevrey so here is where we finished. 12.7-13.5° for our reds. We could see from the very start how dense the colour would be so were very careful with punching down.”
The wines…
Anothe fine vintage from the team here – most wines are excellent and the grand wines are properly grand!
From Chorey, from 46-year-old vines. ‘For me Bourgogne is not about a specific expression of terroir but it should be juicy!’ As always whole-cluster. Has been declared as Bourgogne Côte d’Or at the harvest
A width of compact aroma – not fully open today. Beautifully textured yet mouth-filling wine – there’s an ease to the character of this wine – not really contemplative as there’s energy here too – particularly in the finish where there’s a very fine complexity – this is really super, almost seductive – indeed for a Bourgogne this is not just concentrated, it’s very sophisticated too. Bravo even with that calm nose!
2020 Pierre Labet, Beaune Clos de Dessous de Marconnets
The domaine has 2 plots; red and white, plus another block waiting to be planted. The vines are close to the autoroute.
Here the nose is a little more open, the stems showing but in a nicely perfumed fashion. Mouth-filling, silky, some faint bitters – but also energy to match the depth of flavour. Keep this a bit longer but that’s an impressive burst of finishing flavour. For keeping but this is very good and again with a very sophisticated texture…
2020 Pierre Labet, Beaune 1er Coucherias
Steep and bushy in old French…
Here is a wilder more interesting nose – still a lot of wc complexity but there’s really attractive fruit in here too – becoming ever-more perfumed – simply outstanding with a bit of air. Wide, cool-fruited, a more mineral aspect too. Vibrant, almost graphite mineral, slowly mouth-watering flavour. This is excellent wine…
2020 Pierre Labet, Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles-Vignes
Crais, Justice and Jousie in equal amounts vinified together – about 1 ha of 60-year-old vines on average.
More spice here, a suggestion of the barrel – less overt wc. Mouth-filling, cool-fruited again, very, very fine tannin again. This is a wine of sweeping fine character. Very young – but if you want to keep it a long time – no problem – I’d wait a couple of years and happily drink for 20…
2020 Clos de Vougeot Cuvée du Citeaux
To be sold for l’Abbaye de Citeaux at a charity dinner. A compendium of various litres spared by multiple very well known producers in October with the finishing elevage done here. 3 barrels worth. We usually bottle in June, but this might need to be done already in April – lets see.
Hmm – that’s quite a pretty nose – a little floral and with good focus to the fruit – but today not a large volume of aroma. Fine width, a little softness but really intense and with super width – proper, very coherent, Clos de Vougeot. Super.
2020 Château de la Tour, Clos de Vougeot
About 70% of the production is this ‘classic’ cuvée.
A cool width of aroma, faintly oak-spiced. Another beautifully textured wine and this case with clarity and freshness. I love the structure, a wine still with cushioned edges but with fine open shape. The finishing flavour has lots of material, fine bitters and some balancing floral perfume too. An excellent CV…
Since 2015 the old vines cuvée is not made only from the one block of 1910 vines as in previous years.
As you would expect, plenty of colour. A more finely divided elegance of perfume – that’s a beautiful invitation. The perfume of the whole clusters is visible in the flavour more than in the aroma. The shape is super again, a little less cushion but still with plenty of fruit to wrap around the structure. A vibration of finishing flavour that is great, great. For keeping of course, but that’s a great CV – as it should be here.
Same as for the Vieilles-Vignes, not all from the single block of 1910 vines this year.
Again, deeply coloured. An airy nose – super elegant, slowly adding a little wc complexity. Round, intense but cushioned – like the VV not a bit austere – but this has such a semi-weightless, alluring, impressive style. It would be a great wine to follow…
Les Blancs…
No sulfur for any of these wines at this stage. There will be an adjustment at racking and bottling for instance, but currently, they are all ‘nature’ – no sulfur after malos. Natural, Portuguese cork used for them:
Côte de Beaune and Chorey declassified. Declared as Côte d’Or – but Francois still not sure where he would find place for the extra words on his label.
That’s an attractive nose – an enticing ripeness of fruit. Fine shape in the mouth, lovely mouth-watering flavour and shape. Beautiful – that’s another great white.
2020 Pierre Labet, Beaune 1er Clos de Marconnets Blanc
That’s a very pretty nose – a little more direct, faintly cushioned, nicely pure. Extra width – cool, sweeping flavours, a core of concentrated fruit but that’s a very tasty wine.
2020 Pierre, Labet, Meursault Les Tillets
Another level of airy – not so wide and the base of aroma is tighter but this is still a very inviting nose. Wider, more structural, mouth-watering, clean finishing – a little tight today but has great class all the same…
2020 Château de La Tour, Vin de France
Pinot blanc from in the clos. The second vintage of this that I’ve tasted…
Wide, faintly smokey, round, buttery. Mouth-filling, layered, fine cushioning to the texture. Good finishing – that’s a nicely smoky and different wine – one of the most expensive Vins de France, possibly…