Anyone here like Mondeuse?

Had my first one while in the Savoie region last week. It was a cheapie (28 euro in a restaurant), so I’d be surprised if it retails for any more than 15 euro. At that price point (or lower), color me very impressed. Nice cool red fruits, some mineral, low alc., adequate acidity. I’m intrigued.

I’ll let you now after I try my Lagier Meredith

Know

Nice article about Syrah/Mondeuse in today’s SacBee.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/01/02/5085260/dunne-on-wine-resolve-to-try-mondeuse.html

NO. This is one grape I’ve put off my list. Perhaps the only one I’ve really liked was one from Carlisle, about 10 years ago.

Can’t say that I know Mondeuse in general, but several vintages of the Peillot have been good.

yes, i am a mondeuse fan. a couple recent notes of mine:

• 2010 Franck Peillot Vin du Bugey Mondeuse - France, Savoie, Vin du Bugey (12/26/2012)
  Santa Fe Offline (Susan’s House - Santa Fe, NM): Very pretty nose of violets, sweet plum, crushed stones and mushroom. Palate was soft and inviting with lithe violet, and dark cherry tones nicely integrated. Like last time, this didn’t blow me away like other Mondeuse has, but certainly a heck of a value. (88 pts.)
• 1994 Louis Magnin Vin de Savoie Arbin - France, Savoie, Vin de Savoie Arbin (10/29/2012)
  Rose City Jeeb (Cafe Castagna - Portland, OR): This was my first time drinking a Mondeuse with this much age on it and it was really exciting. Its aromatics were delicate and mostly floral, but there was some nice mushroom and autumnal notes to it too. The palate had elegant but had a nice backbone to it. Mostly dark fruits, there was also nice earthiness and meatiness to it. A real treat. (91 pts.)
• 2010 Franck Peillot Vin du Bugey Mondeuse - France, Savoie, Vin du Bugey (9/26/2012)
  Pretty nose of violets, crushed stone, spicy plum and raspberry. Palate has soft floral notes, nice spice notes and some dark fruits. As I drank this I kept wishing and wanting more from it…something exotic, something to stand out. But it never really got to that point. Certainly a nice Mondeuse, but lacked the depth and exoticism that I’ve seen in others.
• 2009 Domaine Jean Vullien Vin de Savoie Vin de Savoie St Jean de la Porte - France, Savoie, Vin de Savoie (2/6/2012)
  Exotic nose of spiced plum, dusty blackberry, dark floral notes and crushed stones. The palate had decent weight to it, but wasn’t overly dense which gave the dark fruit and florals an airiness to them. If I had to guess this blind, I would have thought it to be a feminine styled St. Joseph - lacking the meatiness but with more floral tones. An excellent wine. (89 pts.)
• 2007 Charles Trosset Vin de Savoie Arbin Cuvée Confidentiel - France, Savoie, Vin de Savoie Arbin (2/4/2012)
  Wow this was a real surprise. Admittedly, this is the first wine from Savoie I can remember drinking so I was slightly wary before my first sip. Talk about a wine that would make a Northern Rhone syrah , this wine takes “meaty” to a new level. It was spicy and savory with nice floral notes integrated throughout. Great stuff. (91 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

I had one from Savoie recently (from Vullien, I believe) that was a dead ringer for a syrah – inky and with a lot of black pepper. Quite impressive and good value.

Count me as a fan.

I’m a big fan of Mondeuse myself - especially the Northern Italian versions (where it is labeled Refosco) -

The Italian version is made from a different grape. Though frequently confused, the Italian variety Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso is not the same as Mondeuse. (The confusion presumably stems from the old nomenclature mix-up here in California where the name Refosco was long used as a synonym for Mondeuse.)

Carole

Wonder if Carlisle’s version is Mondeuse? Anyway that is the only one that I have enjoyed, maybe because I’m not a syrah drinker. Still have a few.

Carlisle Mondeuse can be amazing, totally different than the European varities which seem very acidic/herbal and nothing but. But for some reason Carlisle doesn’t seem to make it anymore (or at least I can’t find it). That acidic toughness of the grape provides a counterbalance to the plush richness that Carlisle does so well and overall it is fantastic. I’ve had great bottles and some that are merely good, but at its best it was one of my most memorable wine experiences.

Marcus - you really nailed the description of it. I’ve had 2 years of Carlisle’s Mondeuse, and both times it was an excellent bottle, but Mike never made much of it (50-60 cases I think). The French versions have a dark fruit flatness that many Austrian-Sud Tirol reds have. There are just so many other grapes I would prefer drinking.

Thanks Carole, and a question:

The SacBee article says that you were “drawn to [Mondeuse Noire] in large part because of its relationship to yrah,” explaining that Mondeuse Blanche is a parent of Syrah, and Mondeuse Noire is closely related to Mondeuse Blanche.

Wikipedia, in its entry on Mondeuse Noire, reports that: “DNA analysis has … shown that, despite similarity in names, Mondeuse Noire and Mondeuse Blanche do not share a close relationship.” Wiki cites to the entry on Mondeuse Blanche Jancis Robinson’s Oxford Companion to Wine (Third Ed. 2006). I do not have that edition, so could not check the reference.

What gives? What is the relationship of Mondeuse Noire to Mondeuse Blance, and thus to Syrah?

TIA. Fascinating stuff.

I hate to pile on to the list of “had ya had” but anyone out there able to contribut more specifically to these notes by commenting on the wines of Prieuré Saint-Christophe?

Mondeuse noire and Mondeuse blanche DO share a close genetic relationship. (Wikipedia–sometimes right, sometimes wrong. This time wrong.) Mondeuse noire is either a progeny or a parent of Mondeuse blanche, which (since MB is a parent of Syrah) means that Mondeuse noire is either a half-sibling or a grandparent of Syrah. More details and explanation can be found in the new Wine Grapes book by Robinson, Harding and Vouillamoz. (Jose Vouillamoz worked with me at UC Davis and I introduced him to Jancis Robinson. The rest is history!)

Carole

Mike’s Mondeuse came out of his TwoAcres vnyd. He only made it a few yrs. I think Mike is pretty confident it’s Mondeuse.
It had that rough/hard/tannic backbone that speaks of Mondeuse when it’s young.
Tom

I received Wine Grapes as a gift over the holidays but had not yet opened it but your post got me to take a look at it. Interesting to see that they say the Carlisle Mondeuse was Calzin which is a cross of Zin and Mondeuse.

Well, as the sole importer of these wines into the USA, I might be able to say a thing or two… To understand the wines one must understand their master, Michel Grisard… Michel and his wife are amazing people and they march to their own drummers. Michel believes in biodynamic wine making and when not busy at his winery, he travels all over Europe attempting to re-introduce indigenous grapes and is one of the founders of Le Centre d’Ampélographie Alpine Pierre Galet . No wonder his Mondeuse and Altesse are not exactly “typical”…

First off, Michel truly believes that Mondeuse is noble grape and with careful vineyard management (reducing yields of these prolific producers), it can rival the finest GCs of Burgundy. In the best vintages, he makes his “prestige” wines - where as the “tradition” wines see stainless and/or ancient barrels, the “prestige” will see recently used barrique. He also uses oak on his Altesse… you know, your “typical” barrel aged Altesse…

I will never forget the night in La Morra when I tasted with him at the home of one of my producers - it was the first time that I knowingly drank Mondeuse/Altesse and I thought it was the greatest thing ever. The whites ('09, '00, '98, '93") were otherworldly - “as if Jura and Mosel had a baby and named it ‘Altesse’” i wrote. Green apples, crushed shells, petrol, honey, full, balanced, delicious… Huge structure and acidity on the wines. These wines are all around 12% except the '09 (a “ripe” vintage in Savoie!) and they all see some oak. Though the best selling of the wines I brought in, Michel admitted to DS of WA that maybe there was a bit too much oak on the '09 and while it is not his intention, he takes what Mother Nature deals him.

The reds are just a wonderful, just as funky. I’ve had the “Prestige” back to '90 and in some vintages they taste like perfectly aged Rhones, in others, they have the fruit, round elegant tannins of a gorgeous pinot. What you first notice about all these wines (both “prestige” and “Tradition”) is just how clear and pure the wines are - some of the cleanest “natural” wines I have ever had…

Jancis’s site has scores, and David Schildknect wrote up an excellent piece on Michel and provided notes on a bunch of vintages in WA #200.

Getting folks to wrap their heads around these wines has not been easy, especially if you haven’t had Michel’s wines with lots of age on it… And they aren’t cheap, at least not when compared to the typical $15-$20 bottle from Savoie…

The good news is that I think I’ll be showing some of these on Thursday, Jan 17th at Biondivino in SF and Sophie at Chambers Street is also looking to bring the wines into NYC very soon…

Again, consider the source (me!), but I hope that was helpful!