2017 Chambertin Grand Cru

Located in the heart of Morey-Saint-Denis just behind Clos des Lambrays, the domaine has been run by Christophe Perrot-Minot since he took over from his father Henri in 1993. Part of their holdings derive from Christophe’s grandfather, a member of the Merme family, whose descendent Romain Taupenot runs Taupenot-Merme on the opposite side of the road, which is why their holdings resemble each other. Christophe has always been a striking figure with a mane of white hair, unceasingly inquisitive about my immediate reaction to his wines. In past visits I expressed how occasionally I can find the wines a tad over-polished, quirks eradicated to render extremely pure wines that might have lost some terroir expression, simply by caring too much. In recent years, I feel that Christophe has pulled back a little and allowed at least a few imperfections into the vat, although as he was about to explain, he spared no effort in the 2017 growing season.

“We started the harvest on September 7. The most important thing is that we made a crucial green harvest for all the crus. The capacity was too big, in my opinion, so I took the yield down by 25%. I separated plots where I thought a few rows might have suffered hydric stress. For example, in [Gevrey-Chambertin] La Justice I found that the part of that vineyard on chalk soils was stressed, and so that fruit is blended into the Bourgogne Rouge. In the end, I cropped at around 35hl/ha to 40hl/ha. The wines are then matured in 20% new oak across the entire range and utilizing 60% to 70% whole bunches.”

There is a signature style to Perrot-Minot’s wines that I find throughout recent vintages: almost flamboyant and sensual aromatics, often a little confit-like in nature, smooth textures, sumptuous style, ripe, luxuriant finishes. That is no different in 2017. There is something almost ravishing about these wines, which are not the most complex that the domaine has ever produced, yet they are pretty and disarming. Sometimes I would like more lightness and a greater expression of red fruit, but many will find their velvety sheen irresistible. My pick is somewhat predictably the Chambertin Grand Cru, although I find the range particularly strong in the appellation of Nuits Saint-Georges ¬– for example, their “Les Murgers des Cras,” which is a combination of three propitious vineyards.