Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Aux Cheseaux includes 20% whole bunch with the same percentage of new oak. This is much more expressive on the nose than the Millandes at the moment, ebullient black cherries and bilberry jam. The palate is showing very well, full of energy with fine tannin, a grainy/chalky texture and a palpable sense of mineral tension toward the sustained finish. This is one of the best Aux Cheseaux that I have tasted from barrel at the domaine.
Rating: 92-94 -
Wine Spectator
Lush and velvety, featuring black cherry, blackberry, violet and spice flavors. Firms up by the finish, while a mineral accent and a chalky texture emerge. Beautifully integrated, with a lingering black pepper note on the finish. Best from 2022 through 2037.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
While Morey-St-Denis of Burgundy might not get the same attention as its neighbors, Gevrey-Chambertin to the north and Chambolle-Musigny to the south, there is no reason why it shouldn’t. The same line of limestone runs from the Combe de Lavaux in Gevrey—all the way through Morey—ending in Chambolle.
There are four grand cru vineyards, moving southwards from the border with Gevrey-Chambertin: Clos de la Roche, Clos St-Denis, Clos des Lambrays, Clos de Tart and a small segment of Bonnes-Mares overlapping from Chambolle. Clos de la Roche is probably the finest vineyard, giving wines of true depth, body, and sturdiness for the long haul than most other vineyards.
Pinot Noir from Morey-St-Denis is known for its deep red cherry, blackcurrant and blueberry fruit. Aromas of spice, licorice and purple flowers are present in the wines’ youth, evolving to forest and game as the wine ages.