I really like Jean-Charles le Bault de la Morinière. He is thoughtful, generous, knowledgeable, erudite and a true gentleman. He has a great feel for the land which he farms and is passionate about quality. The Domaine has been slowly moving towards complete biodynamic practices since 2004 and he has invested in machinery that has less compaction of the soils. For all of the investment in producing a wine prior to bottling of the highest of standards it is sad that a piece of bark can ruin all of the hard work. Our first bottle of 2009 Corton-Charlemagne today was ever so slightly corked with the replacement showing as it should. The same thing happened yesterday with a bottle of 2009 Meursault-Blagny ‘Sous le Dos d’Ane’ 1er at Domaine Leflaive. It hasn’t been a good couple of days for cork as a closure as a bottle of 2005 Violot-Guillemard Pommard ‘Clos Blanc’ 1er Cru yesterday was oxidized, gross cork failure many would say, premox most would decry if the wine was white of colour.
We had a healthy discussion with Jean-Charles about cork taint and premature oxidation. He is well aware of the problems of wines being ruined by oxidation and has indeed worked closer with his cork suppliers over the past couple of years to improve cork quality. He has also increased the level of sulphur that the wines are bottled with and thirdly, which is music to my ears, he asked about the acceptance of screwcap and advised that a portion of 2010 was bottled under screwcap as a trial (wish I could buy some).
We worked through the 2009 and 2010’s, only two wines each vintage, only Grand Crus and usually for me the white is a clear step above the reds. In 2010 as fabulous as the Corton-Charlemagne is (and it really is that good) the red is absolutely sensational and well and truly etched in my mind as one of the great wines of this fabulous vintage.
2009 Corton-Charlemagne: The nose offers up notes of honeysuckle, limestone and citrus. It is full rich and round with good intensity and detail. Minerals and chalk burst through the sap and it finishes with good energy.
2010 Corton-Charlemagne: Incredibly fine, linear and a wine with huge dry extract. There’s the usual lemon, mineral and white flower notes one sees in young BdM CC but today I also note spiciness somewhat akin to freshly grated ginger. It has brilliant concentration and intensity and the chalk laden finish drives on along a straight and narrow mineral road.
2009 Corton: The nose is all raspberries, rocks and licorice. It is dense and chewy with a little vintage derived creaminess. There’s a light strand of flora running through ripe cherry fruits and it is sappy and chewy with good underlying structure.
2010 Corton: This was bottled last Friday and performed incredibly well. There’s an intense scent of violets followed by red and black fruits and a little earth. It possesses near perfect balance and is a wine of great rocky detail with sappy fruits and a finish that is precise and intense. It’s going to need a lot of time in the cellar but I’d certainly encourage those with multiple bottles to bust one now and have a ‘squiz’ as it is so harmonious.
Cheers
Jeremy
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