Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Spectator
A mix of wild berry, spice, tobacco and stone flavors, this red is taut and compact on the finish. Austere for now, yet packed with fruit, this ends with a chalky sensation. Best from 2022 through 2036.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru La Riotte has a very attractive bouquet with joyful maraschino cherry, cassis and blueberry scents permeated by cold stone, almost flinty aromas. This is very well defined. The palate is crisp on the entry with fine tannin, layers of pure red and black fruit and well-judged acidity. It conveys the typicité of this premier cru with style and panache and as such, it constitutes one of Christophe Perrot-Minot's best offerings this year. This comes recommended.
Barrel Sample: 91-93
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.