Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All Vintages
Morey-Coffinet was founded in the late 1970s by Michel Morey (son of the late Marc Morey) and his wife Fabienne (from the Pillot clan). Their son, Thibault, succeeded the couple, taking the helm of the estate in 2009. Thibault joined his father in a long lineage of winemakers in Chassagne-Montrachet with great gravitas in their family names such as Pillot, Morey, and Coffinet. He has earned the respect of his peers through his thoughtful and detailed approach. In 2014, he began to pursue biodynamic viticulture, and in 2015 gained certification.
With a stable foundation of 1er Crus from the southeast-facing hillside, the whites speak to the very essence of Chassagne, with fragrant aromas framed by powerful minerality. The reds capture the roasted, muscular aromas of Chassagne terroir and display silky texture and balance. “When the vines are properly cared for, you can take everything from the skin to the seed,” says Thibault, continuing, “it is a guarantee of complexity and stability in the wine, which will age all the better with moderate doses of SO2.” The oak regimen changes yearly to reflect the vintage, and the aromatics of the wines are expressive and vibrant, with lively tension and energy.
Thibault continues to push the quality of his domaine to a whole different level with his expressive, powerful, wonderfully hedonistic wines, and to much acclaim. Here in the Côte de Beaune, a transition, but not a revolution, is gently in progress.
A Côte de Beaune village of Burgundy most famous for its beautifully textured and powerful whites, Chassagne-Montrachet reaches farthest south in the Côte d’Or, save for the village of Santenay. It has three Grands Crus vineyards: Le Montrachet, Bâtard-Montrachet and Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet. Le Montrachet and Bâtard-Montrachet overlap with and are (confusingly) shared with the village of Puligny-Montrachet. But Chassagne-Montrachet bears sole ownership of the Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru.
The beauty doesn’t stop there as the village has a great many outstanding Premiers Crus wines and village level wines. Most famous Premiers Crus vineyards include Les Chenevottes, Clos de la Maltroie, En Cailleret and Les Ruchottes. Also, village level wines offer many lovely examples of what Chassagne-Montrachet has to offer, but at more approachable price points and perhaps less demand of waiting.
The best sites in Chassagne-Montrachet have complex soils of sedimentary rock and limestone (with less marl). Whites, which are by law composed of 100% Chardonnay (as in all classified white Burgundy from Côte d’Or), have steely power, bright and concentrated citrus, stone or tropical fruit characteristics and attractive textures ranging from plush to tactile, grippy and mineral-driven.
There is some fine Pinot Noir produced from the village. These wines tend to be high-toned and earthy, with wild herb aromas and suave tannins.
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.”