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What We Say 2003 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru 'Les Boudots'
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Mission Codename: Pinot Noir Par Excellence
Operative: Agent White
Objective: Search the Premier Crus for a Pinot Noir Par Excellence
Mission Status: Accomplished!
Current Winery: Domaine Dominique Mugneret
Wine Subject: 2003 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru ‘Les Boudots’
Winemaker: Vincent Mongeard
Backgrounder:
Nothing inspires thoughts of excellent Pinot Noir more than the Crus of the Cote de Nuits in Burgundy. And within the Cote de Nuits, Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru AOC represents wines of dark robust color, profound structure and full-bodied flavors that have made the region famous. ‘Les Boudots’ is a Premier Cru in the Nuits-Saint-George AOC. These wines age well with many known to retain their rich and spicy aromas, bold fruit flavors and subtle earthiness for up to 20 years.
Wine Spies Tasting Profile:
Look – Clear but dark purple and concentrated in color with ruby and garnet hued edges and slow thin legs.
Smell – Bold and spicy tart fruit including cherries, blackcurrants and blackberries with balanced layers of toasted oak, earthy scents, gunpowder and a distinct star-anise component.
Feel – Initially cool, wet, and smooth, then dry and full-bodied, with firm and solid tannic structure. give this wine some time to open after you pop the cork to experience the full elegance if this wine.
Taste – Concentrated and tangy black (blackcurrant and blackberry) and red fruit (cherry) with underpinnings of its distinctly earthy Terroir, star-anise, and gun power.
Finish – Long, clean and tangy fruit with a lingering earthiness that lovers of Pinot will truly appreciate.
Conclusion – The 2003 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru ‘Les Boudots’ is not your typical austere French Burgundy. This wine is bold, robust and full of flavor. Don’t get me wrong though, this wine shows tremendous elegance and is the kind of wine that can be enjoyed all by itself. The color alone will change your perception about French Pinot Noir.
Mission Report:
Just two weeks ago I arrived in France for a whirl-wind tour and to try and catch some of the Tour de France, on of the greatest spectacles in all of sports. The goal was to catch, the start, a few of the notable climbs, in particular the Hautacam and L’Alpe-d’Huez and of course the grand finale on the *Champes Elysees*.
Agent Terroir was to make the specific arrangements and after the fiasco at the start of my trip I was concerned about our ability to get our mission complete. As it usually does for a spy, things work out, not always as planned, but in my case, definitely for the better.
After tasting some great wines from the Alsace, we had a few days to spare before heading to the Depart Fictif in Brest so I suggested that we make a stop in Burgundy. We had some time to spare and I wanted to get a little ‘on the ground’ time before we passed through the area again later in the trip.
Terroir, while not pleased about adding more than a few hours to the drive, obliged my request. South to Dijon, then along the highway south, the plan was to get to Beaune before continuing on. I had hoped to make a couple stops in Gevrey-Chambertin as well. When Agent Terroir continued past Gevrey-Chambertin without even slowing I immediately became agitated.
“I thought we were going to stop!”, I yelled.
_"We don’t have time,“, he barked back. _”The whole point of this side trip is to stop at some of the great Domaines before we head out"_ I interrupted.
“We have an appointment to make, please calm yourself, and trust me it will be worth while”, Terroir continued.
This was Terroir’s M.O. Always keeping me in the dark, it usually worked out, but I hate being at the whim of someone else, without a clue as to our plan. Continuing south, we finally slowed when we arrived in the commune of Nuits-Saint-Georges, about 2/3s of the way down to Beaune. Terroir, pulled off onto a side road whipping the car around wildly and almost flipping us into the rows of well tended vines.
For those who don’t know, the commune of Nuits-Saint-Georges is represents, more than most of the other AOCs in Burgundy, wines of robust flavor and structure and is widely considered among the best appelations in the Cote de Nuits and Hautes-Cotes de Nuits region.
Terroir finally slowed down and pointed out a vineyard of Premier Cru Pinot and said this is what we are tasting and that we were officially late. Upon arriving at the Domaine Dominique Mugneret we were immediately greeted by Dominique who was so excited that he nearly tore Terroir’s shirt pulling him inside.
“Je sais que vous êtes occupé, donc je ne gaspillerai pas n’importe quand”, as he poured a couple glasses.
“Que pensez-vous?” he continued, the dumb-child like grins on our faces was enough to speak volumes.
“Hou là, ceci est exceptionnel, uh, sorry, I mean it’s really good”, Terroir mumbled to me.
“Excellent, voici vos échantillons, maintenant être sur le chemin!” as Dominique handed us a few bottles.
“Merci beaucoup”, I said with a terrible French accent.
Dominique just smiled at me, and growled a bit at Terroir, but then gave him a big hug before we left.
Once again, The Wine Spies were able to secure an exceptional wine. This time, a red Burgundy Par Excellence. If you haven’t had the pleasure of enjoying some of France’s best wines, be sure to pick up a bottle or two. This one is very nice!
Wine Spies Vineyard Check:
The location of the Nuits-Saint-Georges AOC can be seen in this satellite photo.
What the Winery Says
Domaine Dominique Mugneret
About This Wine:
Opaque ruby/black. Strong toast and reduction make the nose hard to read but the big, robust flavors are rich, full and rather rustic though I like the intensity and punch on the finish. This lacks a little grace but fans of power will enjoy it. – From the BurgHound, Issue 17, January 2005
About The Winery:
The Domain Dominique Mugneret is situated in Coast of Nights to Vosne Romanée. Created in 1940, three generations of wine growers brought to know for them to do to the culture of the vine and to wine elaboration. Of a surface of 6 hectares, the domain products about ten divided up names on four towns. The vines are agées in average of 50 years and produce between 28 and 38 hectoliters to the hectare. The black Pinot covers 95% of the surface, the Aligoté 5% and 5% of Gamay are cultivated for the Passetoutgrain.
Ground work by plowings and fights reasoned are the masters words of the culture of the Domain. Ebourgeonnage and cared for palissage allow a good maturity of the clusters and yield mastery. Harvested to the hand, the grapes are sorted, scratched to 100%, then put some sleeps it off, entire grumes, and cooled to 13°c, during 6 to 8 days. The fermentation alcoholic by natural yeasts lasts 6 to 8 days, with temperature mastery, not exceeding 30°. Uniform Pigeages to décuvage, where the new wine will dredge 48 hours sleeps it off some before of put êrte in oak fûts of which a party in fûts nine (25% for the towns, 50% for the First Swellings and the Big Swellings).
Elevés on fine lions, the new wines will cool themselves naturally in the domain cellars to the approach the winter, which will delay the fermentation malolactique, that will be done during the spring, preserving thus the whole freshness of the flavoring of the wines.
About Nuits-Saint-Goerges:
NUITS-SAINT-GEORGES: AOC “Community Name of the Coast of Nights, in Côte-d’Or. This name behaves 41 classified climates in first swelling. Production towns: Nights-holy-Georges and Premeaux. Names NUITS-SAINT-GEORGES and FIRST RAW NUITS-SAINT-GEORGES can be followed or not of the name of their climate of origin.”
Wine character This vineyard understands two parties, the one of vosne-romanée to the coomb of the Greenhouse, the other towards the Noon. Nuances appear thus among the wines. Under a dress crimson crepuscular, excessive and pulling sometimes on the mauve one, the red one evokes often the rose and the réglisse. Flavoring of youth: cherry, strawberry, blackcurrant. Of maturity: leather, stuff, fur, game. Grades of marinated fruit (prune) complete the bouquet. Vigorous and strong, it has body and of chews it, on a stable and robust structure. Long in mouth, it fully appreciates himself after some years on duty: maturity rounds off it in a manner sensual and distinguished. The rare white one present a dress now sustained. A wine closes and gladly heady, to the bouquet brioche, miellé sometimes on melts white flowers.
Counsels of the Sommelier “Red: strong and powerful, it gives to the Coast of Nights its letters of nobility and his soaked character. Nothing of more normal one than it puts himself to table with meats both flavorful and masculine, roasted lamb, beef coast, duck breast of duck while capturing their fibers in a solid net. Of even for the game to hairs, flattered by the wild flavoring and animals appearing with the bottle age. The gourmets serve it equally with certain fish as a carp in matelotte to the red wine. At last, the cheeses to soft dough and to washed crust of the type époisses, langres or soumaintrain. Service temperature: 15 to 16 °C. White: the rare white wines are distinguished and wealthy, from which their preference for the fish of roasted seas and the roasted or browned shellfish. Service temperature: 12 to 13 °C.”
About This Vintage:
Denis Mugneret officially retired in 2003 and his son Dominique, who has effectively been in charge for some years now, has taken over completely; the name of the domaine has been changed as well. As reported in Issue 13, the domaine has also lost three very important appellations as the lease with a branch of the Liger-Belair (see above) family has expired; the appellations lost were the Richebourg, Clos de Vougeot and Les St. Georges. Mugneret has added a parcel of villages Nuits with the Fleurières and will be actively searching for others though he is hardly alone in the quest to find more vineyard read more…land as well as some Chambolle villages and Charmes-Chambertin. And in 2004 he will have some Romanée St. Vivant. Mugneret, who drives several completely restored WWII US Army vehicles in local parades, told me that in 2003 you had to be equipped to chill or it was easy to have your fermentations get away from you. We started picking on August 29th and thankfully, that’s just at the point where the heat started to ease. We really didn’t have much sorting work to do but even so, we lost 40 to 50%. Heat was part of the problem but the spring frosts were amply responsible as well. I shortened the total cuvaison by 2 days but other than that, I treated the vintage like I usually do. The present plan is to bottle a good deal earlier than usual, which is in November and December rather than April and without fining or filtration. New oak at this address averages 25% for the villages wines, 50% for the 1ers and 75% for the grands crus, which is hardly exceptional in this day and age but the toast levels are high and it seriously marks the wines. In fact, sometimes I find the toast to be so intrusive that I have difficulty recommending some of the wines as a result. – From the BurgHound, Issue 17, January 2005
Technical Analysis:
Winemaker: Vincent Mongeard
Grape Varieties: Pinot Noir
Age of Vines: 25 years
Vineyard Size: 39 ares 0,9 acres
Soil: Clay Limestone
Yield: 43 Hl/Ha
Winemaking process: Harvesting by hand exclusively, fermentation in 35% new oak barrels during
Bottles produced: 2200 bottles
