1942 Jean Bourdy Château-Chalon

Garagiste

• By Jon Rimmerman
  2/25/2009, (See more on Garagiste...)

  (CHATEAU-CHALON Bourdy) 1947 Dear Friends, Ok, this was asked for on the Forum board and I said I would try. So far the response from Bourdy has been, "maybe a few bottles" - I'm not sure what that will yield but at least I tried. The 1947 Rouge is one of the most famous red wines produced in the Jura since the late 1800's - there's not much argument over that. The vintage as a whole in France has been discussed ad finitum - nearly every wine region had results that appeared from the outset to be alcoholic and short-lived but have turned into one-of-a-kind examples that have stood the test of time, including arguably the most famous red wine in history, 1947 Cheval Blanc (only 1961 Latour may be more well known)....Bourdy's 1947 is younger than both. From the same Pinot Noir, Poulsard, Trousseau combination as the other vintages, the 1947 Bourdy is almost extinct - only a dozen or so bottles remain that can be authenticated. From an original passage in the journal of Francois Bourdy, written in the 1940's: "1947: A very long winter. In early March we had not yet pruned a single vine. We only finished pruning April 12. Superb spring. For the first time, Christian grafted vines. Very rapid growth. No diseases. Very hot, no rain until July 7, then a heatwave. The grapes burned. Anna and I (the great grandparents or Jean-Francois Bourdy) picked the grapes for the vin de paille September 12, a month earlier than normal. The weather was so hot at the start of the harvest on September 12 that they could not pick in the middle of the day. The must weights were even higher than those obtained in 1893, from 14í to 16í. Ultimately, perhaps the vintage of the century, in any case hindsight says a perfect vintage. Very great vintage in Blanc, exceptional in Rouge and Chëteau-Chalon" Franìois Audouze has various testaments to the 1947's greatness including the now-famous translation "the red is extremely young for a 1947, as all the natives of mountains seem to be younger than people of the cities." (from a tasting in 2005): " Bourdy 1947 Jura Rouge - "color": beautiful color, garnet-red red - "odor": superb, nose of high-class wine, expressive - "taste": This is good! It is wine - "remarks": ! It made 14,2í naturally! I classified it first of the reds (of all vintages)" If you have any interest in this wine, please let Niki know and we will confirm orders if the wine is released to us. This parcel (if indeed we have one) is directly from the cellars of Bourdy and has never left the Caves since bottling in 1950: 1947 Caves Bourdy Cotes du Jura Rouge We also received a confirmed allocation of another legend... 1942 Caves Bourdy "Chëteau-Chalon" (Savagnin) Franìois Audouze : Very pretty golden color. Nose is very balanced, very pretty, very seductive. Beautifully balanced mouth, it's lovely. Immense finish. For me, the 5th greatest wine of the XX century." Not sure what else I can add to that? Like the 1947 Rouge, this has never moved from the Caves (I remember at the Blue Hill event many commented on the amazing condition of the 1942). Both will arrive with impeccable provenance this spring (if we get the 1947, the 1942 is on its way). Both will ship during the spring shipping season but must be shipped via air freight (no ground shipping). Thank you, Jon Rimmerman Garagiste Seattle, WA SOFR3489 SOFR3490