Burgundy 2012 Day 3: Visit to Taupenot-Merme

On a trip that was mainly focused on visits to unexplored areas and uncovering lesser known makers, Domaine Taupenot-Merme in Morey-St. Denis was one of the few familiar addresses that we called on, and for good reason too. Over the past few years, this has become a quickly rising star in the firmament of a village that already has more than its fair share of great vineyards and makers whose names roll of the tip of any Brugundy lover's tongue - Ponsot, Dujac, Groffier, Lignier, Clos de Tart, Clos des Lambrays etc.

I was looking forward to our visit here. Amongst other things, it is always a pleasure catching up with Romain Taupenot. A consumate gentleman, he combines a deep respect for terroir with intelligence, knowledge and an admirable drive for improvement - a catch-up with him always provides thought-provoking insights to Burgundy and its wines.

We tasted through a range of the 2011s. Romain characterised them as being slightly less concentrated than the 2010s. A bit like the 2007s, but with higher concentration and greater balance, showing sweet fruits on attack but showing a little leaner at finish than the 2010s. He thinks that the results across Burgundy were very dependant on the which village the wines came from and how good the work in the vineyards were.

To my own tastes, I found the wines to be perhaps less juicy than 2010, with less exuberant fruit and slightly less, ripe, supple tannins. That aside, I found them to be very pleasing wines, all carrying what has become for me the stamp of the domaine - these were pure, elegant wines, with charming fruit wed to fine-boned structures, great balance and a clarity that allowed them to speak of their terroir eloquently.

This, I would say, is a domaine to watch closely in the coming years. It has the rare distinction of seeming to improve with each vintage. The 2011s that we tasted are a case in point. As much as Romain warned us (repeatedly) that the wines were racked barely a week ago and were not showing well, I thought they were fabulous - consistently good across the range, with a few stunners that I liked as much or even more than the 2009 and 2010 counterparts.

*NB: I should add a quick note to say that I have given this a scored range after each note to reflect the fact that the wines had not been bottled and may not be showing as well as they would be.

• 2011 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru La Combe d'Orveau 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru

  I liked this quite a bit. From a plot of 65 year-old vines just next to Musigny, this was every bit the archetypal Chambolle. A bit of reduction aside, the nose opened up to show absolutely perfumed, feminine notes of cherries and raspberries ringed with a floral fragrance - really pretty. Those feminine overtures were taken up on the palate again. Like many of the wines on show, it had an admirable clarity, with the pretty little notes of sweet cherries and raspberries on the attack showing a lovely purity as they floated though beautiful wafts of flowers on the midpalate and into a finish with hints of tensile minerality and a bit of grip. Lovely balance, with mouthwatering freshness though the finish, and a fine, silky feel made the wine such an elegant pleasure. This will be good young, but should also age well in the medium term. (90-92 points)

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• 2011 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Gevrey-Chambertin 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin

  A neat Gevrey village. This started out a bit tight on the nose, needing some air to draw out lovely red-fruited wafts of raspberries and strawberries packed alongside a bit of meat and undergrowth. Quite classic Gevrey aromas. The palate was evne tighter than the nose I thought, with a firm tannin backbone and clean acidity forming a solid spine behind clear, high-toned notes of strawberry and cherry jam. I liked the sense of purity on the fruit here, before tt finished with a nice spicy warmth and a touch of bittersweet bramble. I thought there was just a touch of slightly drying tannins at the end, otherwise, this was pretty nice and should make a good little village when bottled. It should age nicely too - I would start drinking this sometime in 2015 or 2016. (88-90 points)

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• 2011 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Bel-Air 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru

  Another nice 1er Cru from the stable. This was made from vines at an average of 30 years old, situated in the cooler reaches of the Cote just above Clos de Beze. Deeper on the nose than the pretty Chambolle that preceded it, this showed some sweet cherry jam aromas, damson plums and violet flowers aongside some of the earthy, stony notes that always seem to proceed from Bel-Air. It was just a touch volatile on first pour, needing a bit of time to settle down, but was really quite pleasant after that. The palate was very tight and minerally on the attack, but fanned out over the midpalate with clear, pure notes of plums and cherries, underlined nicely by a touch of ferrous earth and a layer of fine, grippy tannins. The finish feints to fade a little past the midpalate, but quietly fills up with nice notes of spice and a lovely bright acidity that lifted the wine into a decently long tail. A good wine, and one that probably needs a lot more time in the bottle than the Chambolle. I would start drinking this sometime closer to 2018-2020. (90-92 points)

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• 2011 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Pruliers 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru

  Wow - this was truly excellent, really standing out from amongst a trio of very solid 1er Crus. It had lovely sweet notes on the nose, with cherry jam and dark berry aromas seasoned with black pepper and backed by a nice earthiness. It was a lot more masculine than the wines that preceded it on the palate. While it showed the same charmingly sweet fruit notes as the nose - with dark berry jam and black cherries at the fore - this was undergirded by a muscular sense of structure and a lovely stream of earthy, stony minerality that led into a strong, spicy finish of great length and refreshing acidity. A very full, very complete wine, supply structured and perfectly balanced as well. I was very taken by this. While it may be difficult to keep my hands of it when young, especially with a nice hunk of red meat, this really deserves a good 10 years or more in the bottle. Excellent. (92-94 points)

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• 2011 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Corton-Rognet 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  This was a very accomplished Corton, with a easy elegance that belied its strength and structure. I liked the nose here, with its subtle notes of black cherries and plums, earth and sweet spices - pepper and cloves I thought - all rather expressive in a quietly insistent way. The palate was excellent as well. Dense, packed and powerful as you would expect from a true Grand Cru, but beautifully integrated and velvety, even elegant in spite of its sweet black fruited depth and supple, muscular structure. It had a long and delicious finish too, with a beautiful earthiness at the base, juicy black-fruited notes and tiny floral touches at the sides. Very easy, very giving for a young Corton and yet with the depth and structure to age, this was a really pleasing wine. Whie one could easily drink this young, I can well imagine it aging well into its second decade and beyond. (93-94 points)

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• 2011 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Mazoyères-Chambertin 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Mazoyères-Chambertin Grand Cru

  The Mazoyeres is always one of my favourite wines in the Taupenot-Merme line-up, and this year was no exception - this was outstanding. Every bit as good, if not even better than the superb 2010. It had a lovely nose, far larger in scale and complexity than the two Gevreys we started the tasting with, with sweet red-fruited aromas reminiscent of stewed raspberries and ripe cherries, and then a bit of meat, a touch of earth and some lovely, perfumed floral notes. A really attractive bouquet. The palate was superb too, with beautifully delicious flavours of dark cherries and blackberries seasoned with fragrant spices, and backed up with touches of earth and hints of meat. These were then perfumed by slight floral inflections as the wine wove its way into a long, velvety finish - just beautiful. Brilliantly integrated and perfectly balanced, this was charmingly friendly even in its extreme youth. Make no mistake though, here is a wine will age wonderfully, with a lovely ripe structure undergirding the whole package. A beautiful wine, and one that I would happily cellar for 10 to 15 years before popping. (94-95 points)

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• 2007 Domaine Taupenot-Merme Auxey-Duresses 1er Cru Rouge 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Auxey-Duresses 1er Cru

  Lovely - this has really grown over the last one-and-a-half years in the bottle, showing beautifully this time round. A blend of grapes from the Duresses and Grands Champs vineyards, it had a beautiful nose of strawberry and flower aromas touched with bits of earth, meat and spice. The palate was such a delight. It was fresh, lively, showing gobs of really juicy acidity, yet without having the bright, aggressiveness of some 2007s - almost like biting into a juicy fruit, with lovely flavours of dark cherries and berries underscored by a fine, earthy minerality. It was really approachable, but its youth was still apparent at the finish, with some chewy tannins underlying more flowery acccents. Still though, I found this very good indeed. Good now, this will be lovely in a couple of years' time.

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