Burgundy 2012 Day 3: Visit to Huguenot Père & Fils

Our quest to dig up lesser-known producers and visit less fashionable parts of the Cote d'Or continued with a visit to Marsannay. Huguenot Père & Fils produces an admirably wide range of wines from across the Northern reaches of the Cote d'Or, encompassing Marsannay, Couchey, Fixin and Brochon, and M. Huguenot himself was one of the warmest, most hospitable hosts I have yet met in years of visiting in a region that is full of great characters.

To be honest though, the wines here were decent and workmanlike rather than the hidden gems that we were hoping to find. Nevertheless, this is not a bad address for those looking for well-priced Burgundies for everyday drinking, or for something to go with a simple meal, with the 2010 reds showing rather better than their 2009 counterparts.

• 2011 Huguenot Père & Fils Marsannay Blanc 87 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Marsannay

  Simple, but drinkable Chardonnay. The nose showed green apples, flowers and a touch of almonds. The palate was a slight change in gear though, with sweet lemons dominating the flavours profile and lots of bright acidity, almost threatening to be bit tart, but somehow just about managing to stay balanced. Finish was decent, with some smoky notes and a bit of heat. Overall, nothing exciting, but a decent enough Marsannay blanc.

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• 2009 Huguenot Père & Fils Marsannay 88 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Marsannay

  A straightforward, but decent enough Marsannay, this had a pretty nose, with lifted, high-toned notes of cherries and red berries leading into a simple, but well-balanced palate, with more clean, clear red fruited flavours kissed by bits of bramble and spice. Simple, but a nicely drinkable wine for early consumption.

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• 2009 Huguenot Père & Fils Marsannay Les Echezeaux 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Marsannay

  Okay. A small step up from the plain village, this showed a high-toned cherries and flowers with a rather distracting dose of glycerol. I liked the palate a bit better. It had rather firm, teeth coating tannins on the attack, but these were quite finely shaped and formed a good backbone for pleasant cherry flavours moving into a spice and mineral finish. Another pretty decent red, this one probably needing 3-4 years in the bottle to really show its mettle.

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• 2009 Huguenot Père & Fils Marsannay Montagne 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Marsannay

  Not bad. This one had a rather pretty nose, with cherries and floral notes wed to some earthy, mineral scents, The palate was quite pleasant. Nicely structured and balanced, it showed mid-weighted flavours of black cherries moving into a minerally finish with a nice, slate-like component. A pleasant wine, and one that will probably start drinking a bit earlier than the Marsannay Les Echezeaux - try from 2015 onwards.

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• 2009 Huguenot Père & Fils Marsannay Les Champs Perdrix 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Marsannay

  A pretty good wine, this represented the best of the 2009 Marsannays. The nose was a bit more giving, more fleshed out than the previous wines, with nice notes of cherries and red berries, a waft of violets and some earthy, meaty nuances. I thought the palate was also a slight step-up. Rounder in texture, with rather more depth and body than the other wines in the line-up, this showed clean flavours of dark cherries and blackberries held in a friendly, but still well-balanced and structured package. Decent finish too. This was quite nice. It will drink better young than the others, but should also age nicely. Drink from 2015 onwards.

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• 2009 Huguenot Père & Fils Fixin Les Petits Crais 88 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Fixin

  A decent Fixin village. The nose here was earthier and meatier than on the Marsannays that preceded it, with dusty notes swirling around a nice waft of cherries. The palate was firm, muscular but brightly balanced with clear acidity running through simple but pleasant flavours of black cherries. There was a touch of glycerol at the back-end, but not enough to really mar the finish. A very direct wine, nothing special, but a decent enough drink.

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• 2010 Huguenot Père & Fils Marsannay Montagne 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Marsannay

  A pretty nice wine - this was rather better than the 2009 that we tried alongside, with pretty notes of raspberries, cherries and flowers on the nose, leading into a clean, bright palate with a snappy expression of juicy cherry fruit balanced by good acidity and pretty fine tannins. Again, this was not a wine pretending to greatness, just a good, honest everyday drinker. Pretty good though.

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• 2010 Huguenot Père & Fils Marsannay Les Champs Perdrix 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Marsannay

  This was the best wine of the line-up, just shading the 2009 Champs Pedrix and underlining the quality of the vineyard amidst its peers in Marsannay. It had a much deeper, more compelling nose than almost all the previous wines, with a touch of blueberries running alongside cherry and violet aromas. On the palate, silky tannins and juicy 2010 acidity underscored crunchy blueberry flavours. A bit simple, but really quite yummy. It had a good, mouthwatering finish too, drifting away with a little hint of earth. This is drinking well young given the ripeness of the 2010 structure and the lovely balance, but it should age well over the next 4-5 years.

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• 2010 Huguenot Père & Fils Fixin 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Fixin

  A pretty good, food-friendly Fixin. Still very tight on the nose with shades of blueberry and earth. The palate was a bit more open, with bright flavours of ripe blackberries and sweet dark cherries framed by fresh acidity and the firmish tannins so typical of the appellation. Simple maybe, but this has everything in the right place - a good wine to go with a nice bit of meat. Should get better over the next 5 or 6 years and beyond too.

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