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An Exploration of Great Beaujolais Domains In Situ
Villie-Morgon, France and environs
Tasted March 29, 2011 - April 1, 2011 by drwine2001 with 1,141 views
Flight 1 - Jean Foillard (5 notes)
We were shown the range of 2009s by Agnes Foillard and tracked down the 2007 Cuvee 3.14 at a local restaurant that evening.
Red
2009 Jean Foillard Fleurie
Deep and long but without quite the airiness and excitement of the '07. Definitely heavier, more chocolaty and less vibrant than the older vintage.
Red
2009 Jean Foillard Morgon Côte du Py
Deep, rich and sappy with a vein of earth, although lacking a bit of precision today. This was more apparent in retrospect after tasting the 3.14.
Red
2009 Jean Foillard Morgon Cuvée 3.14
Best wine in the stable today. A notch more structure, intensity and minerality than the regular Cote de Py. Outstanding and one to buy (if it can be located!).
Red
2009 Jean Foillard Morgon Cuvée Corcelette
Not as herbal as I've found it before, but seemingly a bit more diffuse than the Cote de Py. I was not moved by this today. Noticeably alcoholic amongst its peers.
Red
2007 Jean Foillard Morgon Cuvée 3.14
Deeper and riper than the Metras '07 Moulin a Vent. Typical sour cherry. Both some layered lushness and minerality appear over time along with complicating herbs. Both of these '07s had uplifted aromatics that we just did not find in most 2009s. Wonderful, elegant wine that we also preferred to the same cuvee in '09 tasted chez Foillard.
Flight 2 - Charly Thevenet (3 notes)
Charly himself kindly walked us through both his biodynamic vineyards and 3 of the first 4 vintages he has produced. At the age of 29, he has also taken over the winemaking for his father's property.
Red
2010 Charly Thevenet Régnié Grain & Granit
Very nice, light straight ahead wine that is already tasty. Not nearly as weighty as the '09 and that is not a bad thing. Nice sense of freshness and lift.
Red
2009 Charly Thevenet Régnié Grain & Granit
Although this has calmed down considerably, I still find it a bit dull and ponderous. Distinctly chocolate flavors.
Red
2007 Charly Thevenet Régnié Grain & Granit
First vintage produced and a lovely effort which I preferred to the 2 most recent vintages. Supple, lively acid, completely enjoyable now in a lighter, more refreshing style. Quite a promising first effort. Maybe even better than the '07 Metras Fleurie we had at lunch the same day.
Flight 3 - Dominique Piron (Piron Lameloise) (5 notes)
We really enjoyed the uncompromisingly lean, stony character of the top Crus here.
Red
Red
2009 Dominique Piron Morgon Côte du Py
Deep, stony and less fruity than basic Morgon. Mineral. Surprisingly excellent in a leaner style.
Red
2009 Domaine Piron & Lafont / Piron-Lameloise Chénas Quartz
In same stony style as the Morgon Cote de Py but a little less of everything and consequently less exciting.
Red
2009 Domaine Piron & Lafont / Piron-Lameloise Moulin-à-Vent Vieilles Vignes
Big wine by Beaujolais standards. Riper than Morgon Cote de Py but still highly structured, ageworthy and excellent. I love the lean house style; all of these wine represent great value and are understated rather than fruit bombs.
Flight 4 - Louis Claude Desvignes (3 notes)
Their 2009 Cote de Py was not available, but based upon these 3 wines, the daughter and son team of Claude and Louis are making some exciting wines. The Impenitents was a one off micro-cuvee that is not commercially available, but it may have been the single best wine we had on the swing through this region, and as you can see, there was some pretty stiff competition.
Red
Red
2009 Louis Claude Desvignes Morgon Javernières
Light on its feet, feminine and very spicy with dominant cinnamon. Very long.
Red
2009 Louis Claude Desvignes Morgon Javernières Les Impenitents
Deep color. Cherry liqueur followed by superb structure and substantial fine tannins. Complex, sappy red and black fruit. Absolutely profound wine that could last 30 years. Avoids the excesses that can plague '09s. Wow!! A wine to kill for and without question, the best young Beaujolais of the tour.
Flight 5 - Marcel Lapierre (14 notes)
This was one of the most enlightening tastings I have ever been privileged to participate in. After we had a chance to sample 5 different components of the 2010 assemblage out of barrel, Mathieu Lapierre (yet another 29 year old-the fashionable age in Beaujolais, it seems) led us through a six year vertical tasting of this reference Morgon in both its sulfured and natural bottlings. Pretty eye opening with regard to the early deleterious and later beneficial effects of this treatment. Tasting the 2 recent Cuvee Marcel bottlings was also a treat. The spirit of the departed elder Lapierre is still palpable in this cellar in the way Mathieu spoke reverently about his father's efforts on behalf of the domain and for Beaujolais in general.
Red
2010 Marcel Lapierre Morgon N (Sans Soufre)
This has classic Beaujolais weight, pretty red fruit and the salinity that dominated one of the biodynamic barrels. Reminded me of the 2007 with perhaps a bit less material. Lovely style.
Red
2010 Marcel Lapierre Morgon
The sulfur was just added yesterday and it was striking how much this muted the wine and gave it a strange metallic edge compared to the non-sulfured cuvee. Not enjoyable now. Both this and the other 2010 cuvee were from the very first bottling that is done in March primarily for Parisian restaurant clients who want to have the new vintage in stock for the spring; most of the blend's components was still in barrel.
Red
2009 Marcel Lapierre Morgon N (Sans Soufre)
Alive and open with gorgeous crunchy red fruits but avoiding the heaviness we found in so many '09s we tasted. Distinctive saline notes as also found in the 2010. Excellent.
Red
2009 Marcel Lapierre Morgon
Same color as the other cuvee but much more closed and aromatically stunted compared to the unsulfured wine.
Red
2009 Marcel Lapierre Morgon Cuvée Marcel Lapierre
Deeper than the normale. Despite a small dose of sulfur, this is still marvelous with an extra layer while avoiding the excesses of some of the tete de cuvee wines from 2009. Not as noticeably mineral as the regular 2009 though.
Red
2008 Marcel Lapierre Morgon N (Sans Soufre)
Clearly lighter than anything else in this vertical series, but pretty, delicate red fruit. Ready to go and much better than the majority of other '08s.
Red
2008 Marcel Lapierre Morgon
Perhaps even lighter than the non-souffre wine and in this lighter vintage, the sulfur stripped away the pleasing elements of that wine. Very interesting.
Red
2007 Marcel Lapierre Morgon N (Sans Soufre)
Ravishing wine that is drinking very well now. Perfect weight, crisp acidity, gently ripe fruit.
Red
2007 Marcel Lapierre Morgon
This was the first vintage going backward where the difference between this and the other regular cuvee was barely noticeable. Again, very enjoyable wine.
Red
2007 Marcel Lapierre Morgon Cuvée Marcel Lapierre
Fabulous as always with all of the seductive components of the regular '07 bottling plus even more seductive texture. Perhaps a few years behind in its development. One of my favorites in this extraordinary series.
Red
2006 Marcel Lapierre Morgon N (Sans Soufre)
Absolutely mature and open, in fact a bit loose and lower in acidity. This takes on a gamy note as it opens which is interesting if not entirely pure. I'd place this vintage behind every other one tasted except for '08.
Red
2006 Marcel Lapierre Morgon
This was the first vintage we encountered where the sulfur added freshness to the fruit and made the wine seem younger and more focused. Attractive earth element as well. Will hold.
Red
2005 Marcel Lapierre Morgon N (Sans Soufre)
Very good and clearly ready if not past its prime. Both this and the 2006 showed better today in their bottlings with sulfur.
Red
2005 Marcel Lapierre Morgon
Again, the blend with some sulfur trumped the natural wine in this vintage comparison. The most structured and Burgundian of all of these wines. Beautiful balance and stoniness. This is completely ripe but has a completely different character than the '09 wines. This version could carry on for another decade.
Flight 6 - Michel Tete (19 notes)
Michel Tete was incredibly generous with us in opening a full range of wines that included some cellar treasures.
White
2010 Michel Tête Juliénas Fleur de Chardonnay
Midway in style between the '09 and '08. Lemon fruit but somewhat dilute.
White
2009 Michel Tête Juliénas Fleur de Chardonnay
Pretty typically ripe for the vintage with tropical fruit notes. Pretty good for the very low price. Apparently, the fruit comes from St. Veran.
White
2008 Michel Tête Juliénas Fleur de Chardonnay
Again, a small scaled but clean Chardonnay but completely different from the '09 with impressive, Chablis like finishing minerality. My personal favorite of the 3 vintages tasted.
Rosé
2010 Michel Tête Beaujolais Beaujolais Rosé
Medium salmon. Simple melon flavors with a bit of glycerine and reasonable acidity. Serviceable rose.
Red
2010 Michel Tête Beaujolais-Villages Domaine du Clos du Fief
After some reductive aromas cleared, light, simple cherry fruit. Quaffable as it should be.
Red
2010 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief
Pretty Cru wine that is well balanced and light. Tart acids and some mineral on the finish.
Red
2010 Michel Tête Saint-Amour Domaine du Clos du Fief
Deeply tinted. More material than the Julienas and more dark fruit character. A bit of cocoa and earthy finish. Pretty impressive for the Cru in the context of other 2010s we tried today. Heartbreakingly inexpensive too.
Red
2009 Michel Tête Beaujolais-Villages Domaine du Clos du Fief
Carbonic and floral aromas. Delicious fruit, perhaps a little residual sugar. Not surprisingly, much more here than in the 2010.
Red
2009 Michel Tête Saint-Amour Domaine du Clos du Fief
Quite deeply colored. Candied and sweet. Not overly heavy but simple. Dry finish compared to the generous entry. In this case, I preferred the freshness and lighter weight of the 2010.
Red
2009 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief
Cooler, more classic profile than the St. Amour. Full of earth and nice austerity at the end provided by tannins. Very good and a wine to keep for a few years.
Red
2009 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief "Cuvee Prestige"
Darker and riper than the normale. All black cherry fruit with a fine, long earthy finish. Excellent and more to it, but I wonder if the regular Julienas will age better.
Red
2007 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief
Light, lively wine with fragrant red fruit. Elegant with lots of earth. Only demerit is some dryness on the finish, but I enjoyed this.
Red
2007 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief "Cuvee Prestige"
Deeper than regular cuvee. Excellent cherry fruit and complexity, more tannic. Not ready yet. Best wine to this point, preferred over both '09 Julienas cuvees.
Red
2006 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief "Cuvee Prestige"
Medium color. Less obvious fruit but fascinating rich bitter chocolate. Less definition than '07. Dry, tannic finish. Very interesting flavors but the balance is not here.
Red
2006 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief Tête de Cuvee
Sour cherry, fine acidity but silky. Delicious, very Pinot-like, lovely sense of sweet/sour balance without weight. This really knocked us out as one of our favorites of the range and clearly the best 2006 we tried in Beaujolais (ok, there weren't that many, but this far exceeds most other wines I've had from this vintage, including both cuvees of the Lapierre we tasted today).
Red
2005 Michel Tête Juliénas Tastevinage
Relatively closed with high acidity but then cocoa powder emerges. Strong minerality and tannins on the back end. A vin de garde.
Red
2001 Michel Tête Saint-Amour Domaine du Clos du Fief
An off whiff of mustiness, but this quickly resolved. Harmonious and sweet at first but then a hard edge to the finish. Very good and quite alive for 11 year old Gamay, but I wonder if there is a touch of hail or rot here. Quite a treat in any case.
Red
1996 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief "Cuvee Prestige"
Magnum. Brief reductive note resolved and then just beautiful mix of fresh, dense fruit, licorice and dark chocolate. With its black fruit and herbs, reminiscent of a Rhone as opposed to the Burgundian quality of the 2006 Prestige. Great equilibrium and pretty much perfect now. Hard to imagine a more lovely aged Beaujolais. What a generous bonne bouche following a great tasting.
Red
2003 Michel Tête Juliénas Domaine du Clos du Fief "Cuvee Prestige"
And one last treat to cap off the day. Some surmaturite here but neither pruney nor too ploddingly heavy. Notes of date and chocolate-certainly not your everyday Beaujolais Cru but astoundingly good due to amazing acidity. Eye opening with regard to the year in this region.
Flight 7 - Yvon Metras (4 notes)
This was not a visit but just an attempt to try as many wines as possible from this producer who is very hard to find in the US.
Red
2009 Yvon Métras Moulin-à-Vent
Candied red berry fruit that captures 2009, but light on its feet with astounding earth and acidity. Explosive and incredibly soil-driven in the mouth. Powerful, magical wine that strikes an amazing balance and may have better structure than any other '09 Beaujolais I've tasted to date. Of the 4 Metras wines I tasted during this trip, this was my favorite even though the special cuvee of Fleurie gets all the press.
Red
2009 Yvon Métras Fleurie L'Ultime
Very dark. Volatile, pruney aromas-not attractive. This avoids heaviness but is still outsized and freakishly chocolatey for Beaujolais. I don't think age will cure the flaws in this wine. Very disappointing especially since the Moulin a Vent was so good.
Red
2007 Yvon Métras Fleurie
Lovely bright wine with the vibrancy of the vintage and excellent intensity. Tart red fruit, spicy and quite delicious.
Red
2007 Yvon Métras Moulin-à-Vent
Light color. Racy, lean and stony like a Volnay but then expresses candied red fruit, menthol and smoke as it opens. Great interest and complexity. Burgundian in its flavor to weight ratio. Terrific wine.
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Comment
Closing
There is a lot of great stuff happening in Beaujolais winemaking these days. Picturesque villages and great dining also contribute to the pleasure of visitng this region. As far as the new vintage goes, it seems from this limited range of tasting that 2010 will mark a return to a lighter, more delicate, perfumed style of wine after the mammoth 2009s. The ones we tasted were fresh and tended to remind you of 2007s, although I'd guess that they will be more variable and across the board have a litlle less material than the best wines from that year.