Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
-
Jasper Morris
This includes the youngest vines (2000) of the grand cru declassified, which will account for 40% of the 1er cru. Delicious fresh mid purple, lovely strawberry notes, 50% whole bunch. Not massive, but detailed and balanced, a touch of spice behind, fruit is certainly on the soft side, a tannin or two and fair acidity.
Barrel Sample: 91-94 -
Decanter
This Premier Cru Morey is produced from three parcels - Les Sorbets, Le Village and Les Riotte - located just below the grands crus. Half of the grapes are fermented as whole clusters and the wine is aged in 40% new casks. The result has notes of Havana cigar, spice and what director, Jacques Devauges, called 'vegetale noble' – the elegant menthol aromas from whole clusters. Less forward than the village wine, but more substantial, structured and intense.
-
Wine Spectator
A bright, expressive version, this red reveals cherry, raspberry and floral notes augmented by mineral and spice elements. Firms up on the finish, suggesting this needs a few years to integrate fully.
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.