Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Domaine Ponsot makes its Clos de Vougeot from three parcels, two in the lower part of the vineyard and one in the middle. Plush, textured and well upholstered, it's all about bramble and raspberry fruit and fine tannins rather than oak or extraction. Rich and ripe, yet appealingly poised, this is one of a series of impressive Grand Cru bottlings in 2018.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru is showing well, bursting with aromas of cassis, plums, forest floor and spices. Full-bodied, firm and muscular, with lively underpinning acids, this is a chewy, broad-shouldered wine that's promising, but it will require patience. This derives from one parcel in the lieu-dit Petit Maupertuis and another located below the Château de Latour.
Barrel Sample: 92-94
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.