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Private Cellar : 2008 Burgundy En Primeur …. now released
January is habitually the time when the growers descend upon London and show their wines during a hectic week of tastings, organised by the major Burgundy merchants. The wines are tasted by wine trade professionals, the journalists as well as private individuals. The wines, in the main, are tank samples – bottling of the reds and the grander whites will take place over the coming months – but it provides a good opportunity for those who unable to visit Burgundy to taste in situ to taste and assess the wines and to meet the growers and (for those who speak French, as most of the Burgundians do not !) a chance to talk with them about their views on the vintage, the wines and their likely longevity.
The miraculous nature of the vintage was really reinforced by talking to some of the growers we’d visited in October again and re-tasting the wines three months on – it really was a vintage where the growers were challenged by everything that Nature can throw at them; hail in July, rot problems, lack of sun and low temperatures but which was saved by dry weather and a North wind which ripened the grapes, concentrated the sugars and acidity levels and limited the spread of rot, from mid- September. The best of the resultant wines have a very attractive freshness and precision with bright fruit and underlying richness – they are not for the long term but will make delicious medium term drinking.
A combination of the hail, the drying North wind and the selection in the vineyard and at the cellar door, order to remove damaged or under-ripe grapes, has resulted in the growers having much less wine from the 2008 vintage to sell but pricing was generally the same or slightly less than 2007; the growers are well aware of the world economic climate and the extra pressure on pricing that we have, with our weak currency. In the case of many of our growers, that means that inspite of increased costs (raw materials and labour in the vineyards) for them, their prices have not moved since the 2005 vintage – next year they will undoubtedly have to increase their prices.
So, which wines caught the major critics’ attention ? Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux, one of my favourite growers and a Domaine which I have worked with since the early 1990s were a top pick for Private Cellar and I was pleased to see that Jancis Robinson M.W. also picked them as one of her “over performers” and described them as, “reliably superior as ever”. She picked out their Nuits St Georges 1er Cru Corvées Pagets, describing it as, “Scented, tingly with real energy. Racy and polished with sweetness but terroir too. This one tastes as though it really has a future.”
We are very pleased to add Domaine de l’Arlot to the Private Cellar range – they have done us the great honour of making us one of their UK distributors and we have all worked with this Domaine in our early careers. Their Nuits St Georges 1er Cru Clos des Forêts St Georges was written up widely, my former colleague and author of The Burgundy Briefing, Sarah Marsh M.W. wrote, “Hugely expressive and intensely scented on the nose. Muscular, dense and concentrated, but still with a lot of finesse. Very long, and definitely fine.”
Amongst our other predominantly red wine growers, Jancis also liked Domaine Rossignol-Trapet’s, Gevrey Chambertin 1er Cru Clos Prieur 2008 which she described as, “Racy and sleek. Pretty confident. Long, too. Well done” and from the Côte de Beaune, Domaine de Montille’s excellent Beaune 1er Cru Sizies 2008 she decribed as, “Very pale indeed. Scented and fresh and well balanced. Lovely easy stuff. Complete and very developed.”
Amongst the whites, we have started to buy a superb range of St Aubins from a very talented young winemaker, Olivier Lamy, who is worth seeking out. My favourite from his line up is the St Aubin 1er Cru en Remilly which also caught Jancis’ eye. Describing it: “Bright fruit – very zesty with real core and balance. Sleek with lots of pleasure but real density, too”.
One of the most exciting new discoveries for me from the Private Cellar portfolio, since I joined the team, has been getting to know the wines of Domaine Matrot. Thierry is a passionate and thoughtful wine maker and they are a warm and charming family. As one finds again and again, the personalities of the grower often come through in their wines and Matrot it no exception. Nicola and I were very impressed by the whole range and the quality that shines through every wine was also picked up by Julia Harding M.W. who works with Jancis. Of the Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru les Chalumeaux 2008, Julia comments, “Complex and inviting: lots of oak but rich clear fruit at the core. Powerful, dry and smoky mineral notes to the very end”. And of the Meursault Villages Rouge 2008,
“Pure and bright. Shiny red fruit….scented with the same red fruit on the palate, tannins are present but so fine, they slip over your palate and leave your mouth with a memory of that bright fruit on the finish.” And another red which is a firm favourite of ours from the Matrot stable, “Rich, warm and inviting. Lovely bright pure juicy red fruit though not just that. Finest note of spice though the oak is very much in the background. Elegant and long.”
For further information on these and many other wines I recommend www.jancisrobinson.com and The Burgundy Briefing www.sarahmarsh.com
…and you don’t need to spend a lot of money to drink great wine
Buying En Primeur, that is ex cellars, when the wines are first released from the Domaine or Châteaux, is usually the lowest price that you will pay. The wines are quoted In Bond, that is including shipping but not including Duty and VAT. You pay the Duty and VAT when the wine arrives in the country and is delivered to you. By buying at this point you avoid the additional costs which the merchant has to build in to the selling price later on (landing charges, storage, insurance, marketing costs etc.).
Furthermore, with the serious growers being more and more selective in the fruit that they use for their grands vins, their so called “second wines” or, in the case of Burgundy, lieux dit, “regional” or village or wines have increased greatly in quality and offer superb value for money; you are getting the same dedicated care and hard work in these vineyards as you get in their top crus and the same technical team behind the winemaking. Often these wines have a component of fruit from the younger vines of the 1er or Grand Cru vineyards. It is also worth seeking out wines which are made just outside the appellation – in many cases, especially in Burgundy - these vineyards might be only separated from their grander cousins but just a narrow path or road. You can also find great value from wines made in villages which are perceived as being less “glamorous” but which share the same soil profile as their grander neighbours. Some wines I’d recommend most highly which fit into these categories, from 2008, include :
Bourgogne Blanc 2008, Domaine Matrot £85 IB
Made from fruit which comes from vineyards just outside the Meursault appellation. This is a succulent, plump and generously fruited wine which will drink from this year.
Montagny 1er Cru les Bassets 2008, Domaine Laurent Cognard £125 IB
Off the beaten track in the Côte Chalonnaise but with everything you’d expect from the Côte d’Or in flavour, tight white fruits, crisp and lemony with distant butteriness. From 2011.
St Aubin la Princée 2008, Domaine Hubert Lamy £160 IB
Just around the corner from Puligny and Chassagne, this lieu dit has rich, honeyed fruit on the palate with fine acidity behind. Delicious from this year.
Bourgogne Rouge les Grands Chaillots 2008, Domaine Marchand de Gramont £90 IB
The vineyard lies just south-east of Nuits St Georges. Old vine fruit gives a dusty black fruit flavour to the wine with a stemmy note in the tannins which is very attractive. From 2011.
Volnay 2008, Domaine Lucien Boillot £195 IB
Pierre Boillot is a very talented winemaker and this village wine exhibits classic Pinot character and Volnay terroir; elegant, crunchy red fruit, fine tannins and a lovely floral note. Will be delicious from 2011.
Clos du Chapeau Côte de Nuits Villages 2008, Domaine de l’Arlot £165 IB
From a tiny walled vineyard of old vines, it shares many characteristics with it’s 1er Cru neighbours; sweet, ripe, red soft fruit scent and flavours – very moreish from 2012.
For further information and our full offer, please contact Amanda Skinner at Private Cellar on 01353 721 608 or by e-mail amanda@privatecellar.co.uk or visit our website www.privatecellar.co.uk.
