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What We Say 2005 Gevrey-Chambertin
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Mission Codename: Cruising N74
Operative: Agent White
Objective: Acquire a Delicious 2005 Gevrey-Chambertin Burgundy
Mission Status: Accomplished!
Current Winery: Jean-Claude Boisset
Wine Subject: 2005 Gevrey-Chambertin AOC
Winemaker: Gregory Patriat
Backgrounder:
Perhaps as much as any other village in Burgundy, the name Gevrey-Chambertin inspires thirsty dreams of Grand Cru perfection, but even the regular village AOC wines are exceptional. Located just a few miles south of Dijon along the famed N74 Route de Grand Vin, Gevrey-Chambertin wines are rich, full and known for their silky texture. 2005 was one of the best vintages in recent history so if you are a fan of the great wines of Burgundy, then be sure to pick up a few bottles of today’s delicious selection.
Wine Spies Tasting Profile:
Look – Garnet and ruby red with a clear core and orange-brickish reflections. Ruby red along the edges with clusters of slow fat legs also show reflexes of the wine’s deep color.
Smell – Medium in intensity with a well developed bouquet of ripe black-cherry, exotic spice and earthy notes. Hints of floral violets and a touch of smokey toasted oak round out the nose.
Feel – Medium-bodied, rich and dry with bright acidity and firm tightly etched but fine tannins that support the flavor and body of this wine through to the finish. As this wine begins to breathe the acid and tannins soften considerably becoming silky in character.
Taste – Both tart and juicy ripe black-cherry fruit and earthy components are pleasantly layered over complex spice, classic Burgundian minerality, smoky-toasted oak and a slight hint of herbal horseradish and floral violets.
Finish – Clean and lingering with the wines tangy acid and finely etch tannins carrying its classic Burgundian Pinot Noir flavors through to the finish.
Conclusion – Today’s selection from Jean-Claude Boisset is an exceptional example of why the commune of Gevrey-Chambertin is one of the best loved and the wines of Burgundy are still among the finest expressions of Pinot Noir’s true potential. Perfectly balanced fruit, spice, earth, smoke and oak in the nose and on the palate, well structured and rich but not overpowering, quite simply lots of finesse and elegance at a fantastic price.
Mission Report:
Below is a recap of Agent White’s and Blush’s recent visit to Burgundy.
… December 2008 – East Central France …
We began the day early as we wanted to hit the Route des Grand Crus with lots of time to enjoy the food and especially the wine. Zipping through the back roads from our safe house in Bar Sur Aube(south end of the Champagne region) to Dijon at this hour was fast but just outside of Dijon, we started to hit the normal business day traffic. Thankfully, the GPS devise in my handheld spy communicator quickly re-routed us around and soon we were headed south through some of the finest vineyards in all of Burgundy.
The N74, or Route de Dijon as its known officially but wine aficionados know this as the Route de Grand Crus. We slowed down and started taking it all in. The names of each commune and village familiar to anyone who has spent time in the French section of a good wine shop. The vineyards, this time of year, bare, with a slight fog resting in the lower valleys, and along the tops of the hills to the west. A slight drizzle fell creating an almost surreal experience as the fog and low clouds moved with the weather exposing and then rehiding these prized vineyards.
After our lunch in Beaune, Agent Blush and I had the chance to explore some of the smaller communes that overlooked the valley and in particular, the historic Gevrey-Chambertin with is many Grand and Premier Cru vineyards. Gevrey-Chambertin is located just a few miles south of Dijon. The wines from here are truly representative of the finesse and elegance that Burgundy is known for.
Quite simply, this is the life. While you may not have been able to join us on the Holiday in Beaune, today’s selection from Jean-Claude Boisset will at least give you a small bit of the flavor of the trip!
A votre sante!
Wine Spies Vineyard Check:
The location of Gevrey-Chambertin along N74 can be seen in this satellite photo.
What the Winery Says
Jean-Claude Boisset
Agent White on the Route des Grand Crus, France.
True identity concealed.
Awards & Accolades:
89 Points – Wine Enthusiast – This comes from one of the top ranges of wines produced by the giant Boisset family group. It is an attractively scented wine, with spice and smoky aromas. The taste is rich, juicy, but well balanced, with fresh black cherry flavors and a good thread of dry tannins.
About This Wine:
The name has prestigious overtones, and the place itself is about as noble as they come. To say the least, Gevrey-Chambertin is where the the real Burgundy Grand Crus begin…
Visual Aspect: Average density, with ruby reflections.
Nose: Good aromatic expression, reminiscent of blackcurrants and other small red berries.
Palate: Long and velvety in the mouth, with good acidity.
Food Pairing: With grilled red meat, poultry or cheese.
Aging: This wine can be enjoyed young and for up to ten years with no problems.
Location: Located at the beginning of the Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin is the largest Village appellation area planted to vines: no fewer than 889 acres in production (plus 212 acres of Premier Cru and 146 acres of Grand Cru). Altitude varies between 780 and 910 feet.
Soil: The soils are limestone, with a good proportion of clay marl originating in scree from the Combe de Lavaux, giving concentration and roundness.
Varietal(s): 100% Pinot Noir
Winemaking: Whole grapes are transferred by gravity into vats. No yeasts, enzymes or tannins are added, to avoid altering the precious terroir. The wine is aged in the cask for 16-18 months, and bottled with very light filtration.
About The Winery:
Since 2002, Maison Jean-Claude Boisset has been transformed by Mr. Boisset’s son, Jean-Charles, from a traditional négociant into a viniculturalist, a cross between a viticulturalist and a vinifier. The result is the Jean-Claude Boisset collection of wines – Burgundy through and through.
From one of the best young winemakers emerging in France, Grégory Patriat, each of the appellations is the result of rigorous selection and has been produced in limited quantities. This is the way of things in Burgundy… handcrafted in meticulous detail, according to a philosophy of ‘letting the vine do the work’. A taste reveals our aim of striving for authentic wines in which human intervention has been kept to a bare, discreet minimum; the wines are concentrated, well-rounded, and natually, expressive of their terroirs.
The tale of our father, Jean-Claude Boisset, is unique in Burgundy, and is the foundation of the very spirit of the company itself. His remarkable story began in the early 1960s, in an optimistic, confident France. The son of schoolteachers, he founded his fledgling wine company – next door to Gevrey-Chambertin – at an early age. He had three main things on his side: optimism, tenacity and luck.
These assets were quick to stimulate his sales on the international market; first of all in Britain, followed gradually by Europe and later the United States. Throughout this time, he enjoyed the loving support of our mother.
Customer relationships were forged and grew through friendship and a common bond of wine. Our parents have been there for us throughout each of the important stages of our lives, and today they still remain true to the youthful complicity and single-mindedness which has lasted a lifetime! For each of us, it is an adventure to be lived to the fullest. and the family spirit still underpins everything we do. One generation follows another, yet the essential energy remains the same.
About The Winemaker:
Grégory Patriat has wholeheartedly and uncompromisingly subscribed to our vision for our wines. In 2002, he became Jean-Claude Boisset’s official viniculturalist. This role reconciles the two separate arts of vinification and cultivation, making him a link between the two stages – a kind of ‘midwife’ to the wine.
Grégory has the luxury of being able to choose his own grapes. He enjoys a symbiotic relationship with ‘his’ growers; that is to say, the ones who are willing to accept his drastic selection policy and uncompromising requirements. But Grégory’s own master is the wine itself, whose laws are absolute and tolerate no dissention. Grégory is a quiet, soft-spoken young man with the manner of a student but a maturity beyond his years. Anxious and serious, he makes far-reaching decisions with the casual air of one to whom inflexibility comes naturally.
