Tasted in Santenay with William Waterkeyn, 12 October 2021.
Domaine Jessiaume
10 Rue de la Gare
21590 Santenay
Tel: +33 3 80 20 60 03
www.jessiaume.com
More reports with Domaine Jessiaume
There are new owners here – the previous Scottish ownership exchanged for a Parisian who bought the domaine in August 2020.
William on 2021:
“Half a harvest and of course more in the reds. Actually, not too ridiculous yields in the whites – the latest pruned were not so bad but the earlier pruned vines lost the most. So a complicated vintage – frost, mildew was a challenge with all the rain of the year – particularly if you’re organic like us. I expect wines with plenty of acidity, not the maturity of the 2020s that we’re going to taste, also not the same level of concentration as some of the recent vintages but the half-harvest was still a good foil for the extra rain of the year. I like the aromatics so far – probably an airy, fine style to the wines – better than I could have hoped for. New vines in Santenay came just before the harvest too plus a little Bourgogne and aligoté”
William on 2020:
Not a big volume but here in Santenay it was not too bad. We historically sold some of our production as grapes too but with the new proprietor in 2020 we decided to keep everything. We’re very happy with the vintage; the concentration in the wines belies the fact that we averaged close to 40 hl/ha in this vintage!
The wines…
What a great set of reds here – you could certainly blind-buy the red wines of this domaine and be happy whatever you got – the quality of the vintage shines through these wines – only the Bourgogne, whilst still tasty, is a step behind! The whites are also very good – and one is great – a Hospices wine – but that might be quite expensive…
The two Bourgognes are bottled, all the others wait in barrel or in their tanks. All the whites and the regionals are sealed with DIAM, since 2019. “I’m still asking the question of whether to do all the whites again in DIAM in 2020 but the regionals are already done!” From south to north:
2020 Bourgogne Pinot Noir
From bought grapes from the Côte Couchois
Plenty of colour here. A nice volume of aroma here – with plenty of freshness that hints of whole-cluster but there’s only one wine this year with wc – and it’s not this one! Like all the wines this year no sulfur during elevage – only at bottling – and no filtration. Round, supple – this is a super year for the Couchois – a fine grain to the tannin but full ripe with a good, tasty, mouth-watering flavour. A very good regional.
‘Definitely a clos within the clos,’ the vines almost in the village.
Less width but an ample and attractive depth to this nose. Silky – the grain of the last practically absent – more concentrated too. This is a big step up with fine layers of flavour. A narrower finish but still much longer, almost perfumed – Really a top villages!
Good depth of colour but not approaching saturated. A narrow nose with, slightly acidulated, darker fruit at the top and much width of generous, perfumed, fruit at the base. Another level of sophistication again, ultra-fine grained tannin that has no dryness. Plush texture but not fat. A great mouthfeel. Broader finishing with a little more length and energy too. Excellent wine – great Comme!
As they have 4 hectares of Gravières, and kept everything this year, they made a second, smaller, cuvée which has higher average vine age and will have a longer elevage – first the general assembly of grapes:
2020 Santenay 1er Gravieres
Here the nose is a little tighter – some flashes of dark fruit and flowers but it’s not easy to pick out the elements. Super concentration again – just a hint more tannin/structure versus the Comme. Generally less approachable today than the Comme but possibly a longer finish, a suggestion of barrel here today too – which won’t last more than a couple of months.
Some vines here about 80-years-old.
More open and a nose with more focus on the perfume than the fruit – it’s lovely. More concentration but also more energy here – really a wine of complexity and energy. Younger impression in the mouth – the structure more evident – but without the touch of austerity of the last. This will be a great, long, Santenay – dynamic and bravo!
2020 Auxey-Duresses
In Les Eccuseaux
The aromatic register changes a little here – more herbs in the complexity but another wine that favours the perfume over the fruit today. More of mouth-filling wine – a grain of tannin too – mobile, less dense yet still with a fine concentration, even a little fat. A nicely vibrant finish with some faint phenolic bitters as a counterpoint. Delicious and impressively concentrated too. Simply an excellent villages Auxey!
Vines next to those above.
Hmm – here a deeply concentrated nose – with the fruit in ascendent – really enticingly complex too. Wide, vibrantly flavoured and at the same time an airy style – despite the concentration – that’s a highly attractive trait – elegant despite the material – even some salinity in the finishing flavour. Another bravo!
Low-slope but Brouillards plus some Grand Poisots. This wine is partly negoce – but all sees triage and elevage here.
Yes! Beautiful depth of crystal-clear red fruit – gorgeous! The tannin is practically absent but there’s nothing louche about this wine – it’s properly shaped and very mouthwatering. The finish is well-sustained and slowly mouth-watering. Great villages!
2020 Pommard
In Combottes, south Pommard – meagre soil, so not a lot of grapes in the last hotter vintages. As the last wine, a mélange of home and purchased grapes.
A little extra colour here. Freshness that’s slightly herbed over a deep, ample, base of fine fruit. Structured but with hardly visible tannin – like the Volnay – but here with the impression of more concentration – again no fat. A mouthful of tasty and really long wine – this is excellent.
2020 Volnay 1er Brouillards
Lots of colour. Less fully open with a faint suggestion of reduction – the subtle base still not hiding the multi-dimensional aspects of the aroma. Silky, sleek, wide – more direct this wine – despite its width – fresher acidity but balanced by lots of concentration. A wine to wait for but such an impressive wine – it will be worth it – an excellent Volnay 1er.
2020 Volnay 1er Santenots Hospices de Beuane Cuvée Jehan
The proprietor bought a barrel of this and a barrel of white
Ooh – now that’s deep colour! An inky-deep nose yet not a bit overbearing. A combination of lightness of touch and amazing but fresh concentration. I rarely find the Hospices wines as good as ‘proprietor’ wines – there’s usually something that is in excess – but this is a seriously impressive wine.
2020 Beaune 1er Cent Vignes
A little more width and crystalline freshness of aroma – it can’t compete with the concentration of aroma of the last though! Rounder, more comfortable but at the same time not lacking purity or concentration. An impressive density and length of finishing flavour – not a bit embarrassed by the Santenots. Another excellent wine.
Les blancs:
2020 Bourgogne Chardonnay
From Santenay and ‘north Chalonnaise’ Mainly but not all négoce – the red was all négoce. Like the regional red, this is bottled.
Quite a forward and concentrated nose, some herb and rich fruit – almost a little pear and quince. Concentrated, composed, even a little contemplative. This is rich in style but I have to say very tasty too.
2020 Rully
Also a negoce wine from the higher vines of the plateau.
Less aromatic impact but here’s an attractive more airy complexity. Some richness again but this plays very nicely over the palate, mouth-watering in style. That’s a fine and tasty Rully – I like it very much and a big contrast to the last wine.
2020 Santenay Blanc
A parcel in Combe St.Jean, in the direction the three crosses exposed directly to the east. Also 100% bought grapes.
A narrower nose but with depth and a suggestion of minerality. Mouth-filling, nicely shaped, certainly the most mineral, accented with nice yellow-citrus fruit. This needs more elevage but there’s much to like here and I think the finish is already more impressive than that of the Rully.
2020 Santenay 1er Gravières Blanc
From two parcels, one lower, one higher – both domaine.
A fresh nose with more clarity to the fruit – though the fruit is a little more tropical. More width of flavour more intensity too. Properly mouth-water which balances the extra richness versus the villages. Also to wait for – there’s lots of material here – but today I prefer the balance and crisper style of the villages. Finishing with a little lick of tannin the finish here.
2020 Auxey-Duresses 1er Eccuseaux Blanc
A broad nose, plenty of weight to the aroma – I’m just hoping that the palate has more energy than the nose suggests. Hmm, actually that’s very good. Layered, complex, tasty wine that you could easily pass off as a Meursault from lower in the village. Very tasty if rather round – there’s structure enough to carry it off. That’s very good wine.
2020 Meursault
All negoce
More freshness and width to this nose – Meursault? – yes, it could be! A little more mineral than the last and more mouth-watering too – a better balance. Silky and concentrated but never too much. That’s a very good Meursault.
Not an overly oaky nose – they changed the barrel – some oak spice but generally a more mineral and citrus blend. Ooh – that’s super, concentrated but intense and mouth-watering – long too. Wow – I’m shocked, a really great wine from the Hospices – actually two here – bravo!