Winemaker Notes
Winemaker Bernard Gros focuses on very low yields in order to get concentrated wines, and pure fruity characters. The grapes are fully destemmed and no cold maceration is deliberately performed, fermentation comes naturally with Bernard’s own selection of yeasts taken from the finest Grand Cru vineyards. The resultant wines show structure and a very good ageing potential, combined with hints of spice and delicious fruits character, their silky tannins make them very approachable when young.
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2009 Clos de Vougeot-Musigny is a beautifully centered wine that expresses the personality of the vintage while retaining plenty of freshness. An exotic concoction of racy, floral-infused raspberries, spices, mint, rose petals and hard candy emerges from this seductive, alluring Burgundy. This is a flamboyant wine full of intrigue for the future. The open, radiant finish is backed up by plenty of energy. Anticipated maturity: 2019-2029.
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.”
Containing the largest Grand Cru in all of the Côte d’Or, Vougeot, the village, takes its name from the small stream flowing through it, called Vouge. Over three quarters of the village retains Grand Cru status, and a single vineyard at that: Clos de Vougeot (or simply, Clos Vougeot). Its mass—over 50 ha—retains the single name chiefly for historic reasons.
But today, Clos de Vougeot contains over 80 owners and shows significant soil and slope variations within its boundaries. The top, bordering Musigny and Grands Echezeaux, is calcareous and gravelly on oolitic limestone and exhibits wonderful drainage. The middle sections are limestone, gravel and clay with less of a slope. The lower part has little slant and is mostly made of clay. Historically the diverse parcels were blended but today the abundance of owners means that everyone has his own style. Exploring and understanding them is part of the allure of Clos de Vougeot.
In general a fine Clos de Vougeot when young will be dense and dark but juicy, with a pronounced austerity, and needs a good ten years to bring it to its full potential.