With regard to Pernot’s Santenay, if every bottle of his red wine were as good as the best ones they would be up among the greats. Unfortunately they are wildly inconsistent(and I’m talking bottle to bottle as much as wine to wine) even taking into account the exceptionally reasonable prices.
Though I’d not quite say they shame many a CdN 1er, I’d definitely agree that the reds can stand toe to toe with many. Of the 2010 lineup, the Beaurepaire was my favorite. The whites were less memorable at this stage, to me.
Howard,
Seek out Jean-Marc Pillots range of chassagne red - very nice wines.
Re Santenays:-
last night I cracked a 2008 JM Vincent Santenay "Gravieres’ 1er
earthy, briary, with a very intense savoury palate that has great length and resonance. Still young and a bit burly, but so much material. Find me a better buy in Burgundy?
Spent a little bit of time in Santenay in Spring 2012; visited Lequin-Colin and Paul Pillot’s estates. Yves Girardin I think also has a Santenay but I did not taste.
I developed a new appreciation for this appellation and red Chassagne as well. A wonderful way to appreciate Burgundy without thinking about your wallet first.
Disclaimer: I have sold wines from both of those estates at retail.
A couple of Santenay shots I took (someone will correct me if it is not, LOL); one toward the village and one the opposite direction.
Santenays - together with Savigny- and Chorey-lès-Beaune - were among the first Burgundy Pinot Noirs I bought and drank as they were and are very affordable. I keep buying and drinking Santenay. This year I was very impressed with the Santenays from David Moreau (formerly Jean Moreau). They seemed more on the opulent and rich side for me (at least in relation to other producers’ Santenays), but I found them very nuanced as well. I very much liked the 2011 Clos Rousseau at this stage, but in the long run, the 2011 Clos des Mouches could be the better wine. Has anyone had older vintages of Jean/David Moreau’s wines?
I always thought you were a man of impeccable tastes Martin. We import the wines of Jean-Marc Vincent to Australia and there is always room on our table for his Santenays.
Drank a 1990 Drouhin Santenay 1er Beaurepaire last night with Dan Rosenheck. It had that 1990 roasted fruit thing, combined with old wine aromas (he calls it soy sauce) and a relatively straightforward palate, made for an okay experience, but nothing special or memorable. C+
I’ve been impressed by the Pousse Tavannes in years past, like everyone else, but it’s hard to find for under $50 now. I’ve been trying to winkle out which other Santenay vignerons are good to try/buy.
I also had a good white Santanay many years ago; can’t remember the maker. Jadot makes both colors.
Ray (and others) any thoughts on the Morey bros. wines, both Thomas and Vincent (& Sophie)? These, both Chassagne and Santenay (as well as maranges, the only I’ve had) are available at very reasonable prices. I bought quite a few of Thomas’ wines at rock bottom prices. Some showed real promise, others were tough but could still come around. I recall trying Bernard Morey Chassagne Rouge that were similarly tough young but I thought showed promise.
Michael: I’ve opened two bottles of the Vincent and Sophie 08 Gravieres, one last spring, one this summer. I thought they showed good promise, especially at about $20, though they’re obviously still quite young. Norman’s Burgundy book profiles this vigneron, btw, showing the Graviere as a young-vine cuvée.
Yes. My only problem with this thread is I am not sure that in the US all the wines are as good a value as Ray seems to be finding in Burgundy. Red Chassagne in particular is hard to find here and when you do it is not all that cheap. And, as you said Ian, the best known Santenay in these parts is no longer cheap.
For me, here, some of the best values in red Burgundy come from Beaune, in particular producers like Jadot, Bouchard and Michael Gaunoux.
Also, I love the wines from Chandon de Briailles from Pernand Vergelesses.
Price creep on Pousse Tavannes has indeed been unfortunate. It was $30 for me in 2005 and I bought a bunch. After that it somehow turned into a $50 wine. However, Premier Cru offered the '09 on several weekend sales over the last few months for $36.99, and at that tab it was definitely worthwhile.
We had a lovely, understated Pavelot Pernand a couple of weeks ago, and Savigny continues to vie as a good value source. As you’ve mentioned in a parallel thread, Corton can also be a surprisingly good buy, if you’re both alert and patient. Though (as Dan Kravitz wrote in the same thread) it’s harder and harder to find affordable Cote de Nuits wines, perhaps Fixin is the counterpart there to Santenay.
But, sticking to Ray’s topic, it would be terrific to find other good Santenay vignerons, whose wines are still well-priced.
I’m intrigued by the Jean-Marc Vincent recommendations as I know zero about them - which sites do they do best?
The two premier crus that I purchase are the Gravieres and the Beaurepaires. The Gravieres is more ‘rustic’ in a good way, while the Beaurepaires is more suave. I like both for their differing personalities.
I drink a good amount of Santenay. I recently found some '08 Pousse d’Or Tavannes for under $35 per bottle. A great deal. Here is a list of my regular buys:
Pousse d’Or Santenay Clos Tavannes
Lucien Muzard Santenay Gravieres and Lucien Muzard Santenay Maladiere
Vincent and Sophie Santenay Gravieres
Marc Colin Santenay Vieilles Vignes
And I also seek out Maranges as well, especially Bachelet-Monnot 1er Crus.
Just had a Gravieres Premier Cru today from him. Stunning. I need to take my brother to Santenay tomorrow. Really lovely village as mentioned earlier in the thread.
What the heck are you doing up at 3:30 am?!
Keith,
Jean-Marc Vincent makes three 1er Cru reds from Santenay, Le Beaurepaire, LesGravières and Le Passetemps as well as two 1er Cru whites Le Beaurepaire and Les Gravières. His Santenay Rouge V.V is also very good. Jean-Marc spends countless hours in the vineyard and he trellises the vines quite high. He encourages growth of natural grasses and his vines are some of the healthiest looking in the Cote d’Or.
He uses quite a bit of whole bunch and the reds have that lovely cool floral spicy lift. Chassin is his cooper of choice, aiming for minimal oak flavour impact in his wines. The whites are pure and vibrant with good detail and intensity.
Best Regards
Jeremy