Pressoir.wine Session - 2012 Vintage Recap

Edouard Bourgeois
January 17, 2023

“What do you smell?” or “what food is best with this wine?” are questions I have been asked many times as a sommelier. But the one that might be even more common is “when is the best time to drink this bottle?” That last question, just like the other two, is never easy to answer. Although there is no doubt that some wines are meant for aging and others are deliberately made in a way that suggests early drinking, it remains a matter of personal taste. When it comes to Champagne for example, I like to feel effervescence and a vintage Champagne from the 60’s or even the 70’s is typically not my go-to. I know plenty of people who love these old Champagnes however…

Anyway, I thought that trying to understand how time affects a bottle of wine would be an interesting topic to discuss at a Pressoir Session. So I selected six wines with a decade of age, all from the 2012 vintage and from various regions of France, to see how a similar bottle age affects each wine differently, depending on the grape variety, the region and the winemaking style. And the goal was ultimately to determine which one showed best which turned out to be an engaged and polarized response from the attendees.

2012 was not an easy vintage for most French wine regions.

The damp summer that affected Burgundy gave mildew an ideal terrain to develop, forcing vignerons to drastically sort rotten grapes, resulting in low volumes at harvest. The quality can be very high in some places however, with soft tannins in red and concentrated whites. Champagne fared better and 2012 is recognized as an exceptional vintage with very healthy grapes and it is not surprising that most Champagne houses decided to declare the vintage for their prestige cuvée. The Rhône did good too and the particularity of the year was lower alcohol levels and quite surprisingly lower acidity levels too with some rigidity to Condrieu.

Here is a recap of the wines:

Champagne Pierre Paillard, Les Maillerettes Bouzy Grand Cru 2012

Pierre Paillard owns 11 Ha in Bouzy. Pinot noir 70%, Chardonnay 30%, 25 plots, average 30 years in age

Les Maillerettes (36Ares|0,9 Acre plot) is a single vineyard, single variety (Pinot Noir) and single vintage champagne crafted every year since 2007 and farmed sustainably. It was planted in 1970.

The wines are fermented in oak and aged sur lies for 11 months before bottling. Les Maillerettes then  benefits from extended aging“ sur lie”: 5 years in the 19th century cellars.

Dosage: 2 grams per liter (Extra-Brut) Soil: pure chalk with only 50 centimeters (20in) of clay topsoil.

The wine was incredible and maybe my favorite. Champagne has a long history of aging its wines for an extended period of time.

Domaine Moreau Naudet, Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons 2012

Moreau-Naudet's holdings in Vaillons are around 1.7 hectares of 35-50 year old vines.

Fermentation is always with indigenous yeast, followed by a long maceration on lees (3 months). The wine is then aged for an average of 18 months (varies according to the vintage) on lees in a combination of stainless steel and 600-liter French oak barrels, of which only 20% is new.

Moreau-Naudet's holdings in Vaillons are around 1.7 hectares from Roncière, Séchet (75 year old vines) and Epinottes. In the new winery, the barrel room has a thermal floor that helps kick off fermentations.

The Chablis showed a lot of richness that made me a think of the presence of botrytis perhaps. I was expecting a crisper wine and if I knew how the wines showed, I would have served it after the Mâcon rather than before.

Domaine Olivier Merlin, Macon La Roche Vineuse Les Cras 2012

2.5 hour by car from Chablis, Macon produces 45 million bottles on average each year and many of these bottles can be forgetful and not very impressive.

Olivier Merlin however, is an old-school winemaker who prides himself on crafting non-manipulated wines with low yields in the Mâconnais and Olivier makes serious, long-lived, and delicious wines. Since starting his domaine in 1987 he has worked tirelessly to promote the wines of the region and now, as trends have come and gone, Olivier can be considered one of the region’s benchmark producers.

The majority of the wine is fermented in stainless steel tanks with around 10% going into older Burgundian barrels. The wine goes through malolactic fermentation and is bottled after 15 months of aging without being fined.

Superb bottle that should really help people realize the potential of this overlooked part of Burgundy.

Domaine Matrot, Meursault 1er Cru Les Charmes 2012

The domaine exists since the early 20th century. It went through farming changes to finally embrace organic viticulture along with ploughing, rigorous pruning and debudding in the spring to help control the yields. If necessary, a green harvest is carried out before veraison. The sanitary state, yields, and maturity are carefully observed.

Long and uneventful fermentations for 8-10 weeks are employed, and the quality of the lees is carefully monitored since they accompany the wine during the maturing process.

Bâtonnage (stirring of the lees) is done according to each vintage.

Chaptalization is avoided whenever possible and the alcohol content is never rectified by more than half a degree in order to maintain the natural balance of the grapes. It is important to recognize and respect variability with each vintage, for example, knowing that one year a grape can be ripe at 12 degrees of potential alcohol, and the following year reach ripeness at 14 degrees.

The wines are matured for 11-12 months in oak barrels with a capacity of 228 liters. One- to five-year-old barrels are used for the white wines and 10-20% new barrels for the reds.

When it comes to the climat Charmes, you enter the very best of Meursault. Matrot owns four plots within Charmes, of which 70% are located in Charmes-Dessus. Les Charmes is a well-balanced wine with both the ampleness of the Charmes-Dessous and the minerality and elegance of the Charmes-Dessus.

We all agreed on the classic profile of this deliciously hazelnutty and buttery Meursault. Quite opulent, I would drink this wine now although a few more years wouldn’t hurt.

Domaine Yves Cuilleron, Condrieu Les Chaillets 2012

The Cuilleron family domaine, located in the hamlet of Verlieu (part of the town of Chavanay), was founded several generations ago (1920). Yves Cuilleron’s grandfather was the first to bottle wine for commercial purposes in 1947. Antoine Cuilleron, the uncle and immediate predecessor of Yves, assumed control of the domaine in 1960 and significantly increased the percentage of wine bottled at the estate and extended the scope of the domaine. Yves assumed full ownership and direction of the domaine in 1987 and, since that time, has built an entirely new facility while at the same time acquiring additional vineyard property. The domaine is now (as of 2012) significantly larger in scope with 52 hectares of vineyards that cover multiple appellations, including principally, Condrieu, Saint Joseph Rouge and Blanc, Cote Rotie, Saint Péray and a series of Vin de Pays from the Collines Rhodaniennes.

A large majority of the vineyards are set on terraces which makes most mechanization difficult, if not impossible. Thus, much of the vineyard work continues to be done by hand. To control yields, Cuilleron does extensive debudding and, when necessary, practices a “green harvest”.

In the cave, the grapes (harvested manually) are fermented using indigenous yeasts. The fermentations of the appellation controlée white wines are done in small barrel of one to four years age; malolactic fermentations are done in barrel as well and the elevage continues for nine months before the wines are bottled.

Condrieu Les Chaillets: This cuvée is sourced from the best exposed and the oldest Viognier vines of the domaine (south-southeast exposure, planted on terraces in the commune of Chavanay). Barrel-fermented and barrel-aged with regular batonnage during the nine-month elevage. The whites are lightly filtered before bottling.

Condrieu is a very unique wine and Viognier may find its most exuberant expression in this appellation. Pineapple, pear and mango exploded from the glass. Low acidity.

Domaine Bruno Clair, Gevrey Chambertin 1er Cru Les Cazetiers 2012

The classic domaine farms around 24 hectares in Marsannay la Cote, at the very northern end of the Côte de Nuits.

The vineyard of Cazetiers is 0.9 ha (2.2 ac) and the domaine’s plot was planted in 1958, 1972, 1996. Direct neighbor of the famous Clos St. Jacques, Cazetiers shares its poor marl soil and limestone deposits.

“For a while, people mentioned a derivation of the word castel, in reference to the position of the climat above the castle of Gevrey-Chambertin. According to Françoise Dumas, the more plausible explanation is that Cazetiers was derived from cassis, which would indicate the presence of wild cassis or red currant bushes.”

Bruno Clair points out an interesting difference between Les Cazetiers and Clos Saint Jacques: In his cellar Les Cazetiers always has a higher pH (lower acidity). This translates into the flavors of the wines, with Cazetiers always feeling like blacker fruit, and Clos-Saint-Jacques like redder fruit.

Because of its location, it lies exclusively on stark white, completely decomposed marl, or terres blanches. Here, it has a very hard, cement-like quality, causing the vines to struggle. The topsoil is only about 10 cm deep and consists of up to 45% gravel and up to 10% cobbles. It is followed by a thick layer of laves, followed by a second layer of terres blanches soil before reaching the limestone bedrock.

Despite the fact that Les Cazetiers is more sheltered from the wind from the Combe de Lavaut than Clos Saint Jacques, Bruno says it systematically ripens one week later.

Of all the 2012’s we tasted, this Gevrey seemed the youngest with still grippy tannins and a certain austerity. The fruit was dark and concentrated in the glass. Notes of black pepper and cassis.

As a blind wine, we poured another Gevrey Cazetiers, from the Bruno Clair once again but this time from 2002. A good vintage. Summer was not especially hot, though it was reasonably dry. Sugar levels were boosted in September but some grapes were adversely affected by scattered rains then. Sugar levels were quite respectable in the end and most wines showed their charm at an early stage.

The wine clearly showed more age but probably not ten more years than the 2012. The austerity of the 2012 was well polished here although a hint of volatile acidity could be felt. It didn’t distract too much from the experience as the richness of fruit was in full bloom.

Apero au Beaujolais Recap

by Edouard Bourgeois
April 29, 2022

Those who know me also know my profound love for the wines and the region of Beaujolais, where I was lucky to spend three weeks in September 2017, helping the fabulous team of Domaine Lapierre in Villié-Morgon. The Pressoir team and I were particularly enthusiastic about last night’s “Apéro au Beaujolais”, a perfect way to embrace spring. I was stunned by the diversity of styles among the fifteen wines we presented. I also really wanted to include a few bottles with some age, such as an excellent Fleurie from 2010 and a couple 2016 from top producers such as Foillard and les famous yet excellent Thillardon. Lastly, it was incredible to taste these wines over the course of the event and even after a good three hours of opening. None of them faded over time. In fact, quite the opposite happened as Max, Victoire and I revisited these beautiful Gamay (and one Chardonnay).

Below are a few of our notes. The wines are geographically listed from north to south and it was a quite a treat (and some effort!) to be able to present all ten crus, in addition to a Lantignié bottling and even a more rare Beaujolais Blanc.

Armand Heitz, Juliénas 2019

While typically bolder, Julienas made by Armand Heitz (in the Burgundian way) remains refined without losing its depth. The cru of Juliénas was named after Julius Ceasar and vines are grown on volcanic soils.

Domaine des Billards, Saint Amour 2020

Two distinctive styles can be found in Saint-Amour, making it difficult to describe the appellation in general terms. Some wines can be quite bold while other producers make a much lighter style Gamay. Domaine des Billards, a small five hectare property that ages its wines in cement and work on sandy soils, showed finesse and a rather light structure.

Domaine Thillardon, Chénas “Les Carrières” 2016

I couldn’t contain my enthusiasm for this wine. I believe it became many attendees’ favorite. This "clean natural wine", unfiltered, was the most cloudy of all and the expression “bouquet of flowers in a velvet basket” could not be more appropriate to describe it. Chénas, being the smallest cru, is not easy to come by. The very old granite that defines the land there also contain some silex which gives great tension and minerality.

Thibault Liger Belair, Moulin à Vent “La Roche” 2016

After Armand Heitz, another Burgundian producer from Nuits-st-Georges was represented here. Thibault’s “La Roche” climat is located at the top of the hill where the windmill (Moulin a Vent) is. Here, very old vines are grown. Fruits are 40% destemmed. I really liked this very well made, precise, clean and polished wine.

Domaine Coudert, Fleurie “Cuvée Christal” 2010  

Alain Coudert makes a rather atypical wine for the appellation here. Fleurie is considered to be pretty light on its feet, but the cuvée “Christal” comes from a pretty clay rich vineyard that borders the Moulin a Vent cru. The twelve years of bottle age only added to the wine’s brooding character and a touch of smoke could be sensed.

Domaine de Fa, Fleurie “Roche Guillon” 2019

Domaine de Fa showed a more classic and expected Fleurie style here. Domaine de Fa’s plot is at the highest altitude in the appellation on the steep slopes at the foot of the chapel of la Madone.

Domaine Chapel, Chiroubles 2020

The young and dynamic couple Michele Smith and David Chapel went from successful sommeliers in fine dining restaurants to meticulous winemakers in Beaujolais. They released their first vintage with the 2016 harvest with the help from the Lapierre family. Their Chiroubles plot is 2 hectares and they started producing it since 2018. At 400 meters altitude and planted in high density, it is the epitome of the Chiroubles appellation, the highest altitude cru with a peak at 1,500 feet, offering a long growing season and usually the last to be harvested. This is also a very labor-intensive vineyard where work by hand is the only option.

Domaine Foillard, Morgon “Eponym’ “ 2016

Jean and Agnes took over this domaine in 1980. Today, with 14 hectares, they belong to the top five producers of Beaujolais. The Eponym’ bottling comes from the Lieu Dit “Charmes” at the highest altitude in the appellation. 

Morgon is second largest appellation after Brouilly, and its six climats makes it one of the most famous crus. It is also known for its "rotten rocks" locally called gore (decomposed schist)

Domaine Lapierre, Morgon 2019

For the sake of comparison and to show the diversity Morgon has to offer, I wanted to show this excellent bottle from Lapierre. The late Marcel took over from his dad in 1973. He rapidly became a model in the region and was known for his generosity and commitment to working without synthetic chemicals, harvesting ripe so chaptalization could be avoided. His mentor was known to be scientist and winemaker Jules Chauvet. I am always impressed with the consistency and high quality of these Morgon, year after year. The wines are fleshy but not flashy and offer great aromatic complexity with multi layers and are simply delicious on any occasion.

Prunelle de Navacelle, Beaujolais Lantignié 2019

Lantignie is one of the 38 villages allowed in the Beaujolais Villages appellation. Neighbor of Villie-Morgon, Lanitgnie has been pushing to get its own appellation to become its own cru, the eleventh one. The land is quite pristine there and diverse too, with rolling hills, some flat lands and many underground streams.

Domaine Les Capréoles, Régnié “Diaclase” 2019

The Diaclase cuvée comes from the oldest vines of the domaine, grown on sandy soils. Regnié is the newest cru and home to many organic producers, such as Les Capréoles, who has been working in such a way since 2014. That particular wine showed some austerity at first and it took a couple hours to loosen up.

A. Pegaz, Brouilly 2019

Brouilly is the largest appellation and slightly warmer because of its southern location. Brouilly became very popular in the Parisian market in the 18th century and soon after, when the railway system developed. Brouilly offers a quite unique geological situation with blue volcanic rocks locally called “diorite”.

Domaine de la Voûte des Crozes, Côte de Brouilly 2019

Cote de Brouilly is for Brouilly what Hermitage is for Crozes Hermitage. Picture the hill with higher quality hillside vineyards surrounded by vines planted on the flat lands…

Cote de Brouilly typically boasts more mineral notes than Brouilly.

Winemaker Nicole Chanrion of Domaine de la Voûte des Crozes is nicknamed “the boss of the hill”.

Laura Lardy, Beaujolais Village Blanc Chardonnay 2019

There is no question Chardonnay performs better further north in the Cote d’Or, where limestone gives it its irresistible minerality. But if granite is Gamay’s best friend, Chardonnay can offer an interesting performance on that type of soil. Young Laura Lardy, who works organically since she took over in 2017, makes an excellent red wine but we wanted to present her Chardonnay, which she vinifies in neutral oak foudres of 600 liters.

Yvon Métras, Beaujolais “Deuxieme Mise” 2018  

We wanted to finish the lineup with the legendary Yvon Métras. Special thanks to Raj who shared this bottle from his own cellar. It is as difficult to visit Yvon as it is to find his wines. Now joined by his son Jules, Yvon started the domaine in 1988. Today, he still makes a very distinctive wine from the five hectares he tends like a garden. This Beaujolais showed the expected rusticity that characterized the producer. Not everyone loved this bottle, understandably so. I found it to be a quite intellectual experience that proved the wines of Beaujolais are not only the delicious thirst quenching juice we can think of.