WB Burgundy Appellation Series Week 4: Morey-Saint-Denis

WINE TALK
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The view from Morey Saint Denis 1er Cru “Monts Luisants”

Hello and welcome to Week 4 of our Wine Berserkers Burgundy Appellation Series. This week, we will focus on the wines of Morey-Saint-Denis as well as the Grands Crus of:

Bonnes Mares (if inside the tiny portion attributed to MSD)
Clos de Tart
Clos des Lambrays
Clos Saint Denis
Clos de la Roche

Here are a few random thoughts on Morey Saint Denis:

-More land classed to Premier and Grand Cru than Village
-“Monts Luisants” 1er Cru is the only the only 1er cru vineyard where Aliogté is permitted. (Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are also planted there)
-Historically, the wines of Morey-Saint-Denis were sold by the négociants as either Chambolle-Musigny or Gevrey-Chambertin. This discouraged an identity to be developed.
-One of the last villages in the area to uproot its Gamay
-Roughly half the size of surface area of Chambolle-Musigny

Looking down a row of Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru “Les Genavrières”

The view from the base of Grand Cru Clos St Denis, with Grand Cru Clos de la Roche to the right. Just above these, on the higher mid-slope, you find from left to right; 1er Crus “Les Chaffots”; “Les Genavrières”; and “Monts Luisants”

*Just as with Gevrey-Chambertin, I need to disclose that we produce wine from this village as well. My comments however are legitimate, though it must be said that I absolutely adore this village. As such, my comments above and to follow and written as a consumer, not as a producer.

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Here are some questions that hopefully alot of us can answer as a spring board to lively conversations about this village.

  • What do you think are the essential characteristics of Morey-Saint-Denis Wine?
  • What do you think are some misconceptions regarding the essential characteristics of Morey-Saint-Denis Wine?
  • Who do you think are the top producers of Morey-Saint-Denis wines? (they dont have to live there)
  • Who do you think are some under-the-radar producers that make Morey-Saint-Denis wine? (they dont have to live there)
  • What vineyards do you think are overrated?
  • What vineyards do you think are underrated?
  • What is your most memorable Morey-Saint-Denis wine experience?
  • What other village do you think is most similar in style to the wines of Morey-Saint-Denis
  • Any other thoughts or insights about this village you would want to share?
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- What do you think are the essential characteristics of Morey-Saint-Denis Wine?

Most of my MSD experience is with 1ers, but drinking those the general sense I get is fruity and generous wines.

- What do you think are some misconceptions regarding the essential characteristics of Morey-Saint-Denis Wine?

Can’t think of any.

- Who do you think are the top producers of Morey-Saint-Denis wines? (they dont have to live there)

Dujac is an obvious answer. I would need to try more of the Grand Crus here to have an educated opinion.

- Who do you think are some under-the-radar producers that make Morey-Saint-Denis wine? (they dont have to live there)

Henri Jouan makes wine in a style I really like and I never see him talked about.

- What vineyards do you think are overrated?

Not knowledgable enough for an educated answer

- What vineyards do you think are underrated?

Does Clos Sorbe count?

- What is your most memorable Morey-Saint-Denis wine experience?

I had a remarkable Dujac Clos de la Roche once. Can’t remember the vintage for some reason.

- What other village do you think is most similar in style to the wines of Morey-Saint-Denis

For some reason Beaune comes to mind. Both seem to make delightfully fruit-forward wines with some level of elegance (mostly thinking of the 1er level). Obviously, at the high end, MSD has more serious wines though. Again, my experience is somewhat limited here.

- Any other thoughts or insights about this village you would want to share?

A village I’d like to explore more. Especially at the Grand Cru level.

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Thank you again for this thoughtful questionnaire Berry!

Due to the tiny slices of vineyards that each owner has, there has been a great many “1er Cru” bottlings. While there are an assortment of 1er Crus to be found here of strong character. The practice of bottling a “1er Cru” has also kept these specific liex dits a bit under the radar, and altogether more difficult to pin down on what to expect from them. The truth is that the wines can be very good, which makes it that much more difficult to make sense of separating the lots. Though, I often wonder if I will try a Clos Sorbes 1978…

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I’m excited about the Morey-St-Denis installment. Behind Gevrey and Beaune, this is the most represented village in my cellar.

What do you think are the essential characteristics of Morey-Saint-Denis Wine?
I don’t know about essential, but I think of the wines often having dark fruit profiles, steely/minerally earthiness, and a more masculine structure (with a big exception to Clos des Lambrays). IIRC, Lew had some other nice generalizations about MSD in last year’s appellation series.

Who do you think are the top producers of Morey-Saint-Denis wines?
Truchot, Dujac, Lambrays

Who do you think are some under-the-radar producers that make Morey-Saint-Denis wine?
David Clark - has a few vines in MSD, making some nice quality wine from humble appellations
Pierre Amiot - solidly decent in most vintages, middle of the road style to slightly modern style, decent QPR
Henri Jouan - perhaps, have tried some on a tip (Thanks Berry [wink.gif] ), lighter styled, but a 2002 Clos St Denis seemed shockingly advanced (interestingly, BH review suggested drinking it by 2010! The guy seems to know what he’s talking about.)

What is your most memorable Morey-Saint-Denis wine experience?
A Truchot Clos de la Roche is largely responsible for sending me on this crazy Burgundy journey.

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Hah! I am sort of cheating and drinking his '07 ‘Au Pelson’ which is “only” a BR, but near enough MSD and really delicious stuff. Admittedly, it doesn’t really have MSD-ness which is my mind is associated with violets and iron underlain w/ dark fruit.

What is your most memorable Morey-Saint-Denis wine experience?
A Truchot Clos de la Roche is largely responsible for sending me on this crazy Burgundy journey.

Has Maureen has smacked you?

A.

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Long ago…

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As Ray has pointed out, it is more difficult to discuss the various 1er crus of Morey-Saint-Denis than most communes, because so many are rather small, and so many producers blend them together to make a “MSD 1er Cru” bottling. But never being one to let facts get in the way, here is my interpretation…

First division grand crus (roughly upper half):
Clos de la Roche
Clos Saint-Denis

Other grand crus:
Clos des Lambrays
Clos de Tart

There are no “Quasi-Grand 1er Crus” in Morey that stand with Clos Saint-Jacques from last week (or Les Amoureuses from next week) IMO.

Elite 1er Cru:
Les Chaffots
(Note: this high praise for Chaffots was suggested in last year’s thread by Jeremy Seysses of Domaine Dujac.)

Other 1er Crus = All the rest, 19 or 20 of them I believe, with personal honorable mentions to Ruchots, Faconnieres, and Millandes.

I’d love to hear your thoughts of MSD, as the above is just to get some discussion going. After all, I don’t make my living doing this, so unabashedly admit to some bias and/or lack of intellectual purity… [wink.gif]

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Thanks Lew!
Personally, I’m also a fan of G Roumier’s 1er Cru Monopole “Clos de la Bussière”. This is quite consistently superb year in and year out. Not too expensive considering the producer and quality level imo.

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After giving some love to Les Chaffots in that last post, this seems like a good time to give some love to Ray Walker’s launch of Maison Ilan…

(Note: Reprinted with permission from Burghound.com Issue 41. This was done to honor Ray’s first vintage as well as his participation here on W/B. So please don’t think Burghound is OK with reprinting his notes on the wine board, as permission was limited to this one Burg Series.

Maison Ilan 2009 Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Les Chaffots
Mild reduction knocks down the nose though it’s clear that the fruit is ripe with rich and relatively full-bodied flavors that possess good mid-palate concentration and plenty of buffering extract, all wrapped in a delicious, intense and well-balanced finish. Score 89-92/Drink 2015+.

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I have been very favorably impressed with the Hubert Lignier VV MSD 1er cru in 1993 and 2001. One can only hope that Romain’s parents, wife, and kids can sort out their disputes following his tragic death in order to maintain the high quality that this domaine achieved. I know this was a blend of two vineyards (“Les Faconnieres” and “Les Cheneveries”); now I hear “La Riotte” is included as well. Perhaps the fact that three different plots are blended makes this less desirable for the Burgnut who prizes unique terroir over everything else, but I think the wine is a nice ambassador for the flavor profile of MSD wines.

BTW, I for one do not see the resemblance to the wines of Beaune that Berry noted. For my tastes (and speaking very generally), the wines of MSD are very black- or blue-fruited, in comparison to the more red-fruited wines of Beaune.

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Did you get your bottle from winebid? I have one from there but havent opened it yet. I’ll be disapointed if it is over the hill.

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2007 Hubert Lignier Morey St Denis

A glorious nose. Primary pinot. A delicious palate. It is somewhat simple but there is a presence here. Cherry fruit that lingers. Earthy. Nice finish.
I like this better than the Burghound.

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Yes. Bottle and cork seemed to be in great condition though.
It wasn’t bad, just not up to Grand Cru standards, IMO. Strange that it had some fruite left but also seemed to be falling apart a bit.
I’ll find the note for it and post in this thread.

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Thanks

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Agreed on the above. The David Clark offerings I’ve tasted were surprisingly graceful.

How many different Lignier MSD wines are there? Seems from past threads that Lignier-Michelot’s style is a bit divisive.

RT

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2007 Clos des Lambrays

I was privileged to attaend a vertical of Clos des Lambrays at the domaine earlier this month. The wines are clearly on the upswing. The 2007 was so seductive even at this stage - gorgeous Lambrays character of red fruits, sousbois, and that “lightness of being” - this wine remains widely available; I strongly recommend it.

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OK, so I’m curious to hear more about Henri Jouan. Does not seem to be an abundance of information around about this domaine.

Here is my experience so far. From a couple months ago.

2002 Henri Jouan Clos St Denis
Slow-ox for an hour then tasted over 3 hours. Light-medium red with some bricking. Had some secondary development, roasted cherry and tar on the nose. Light-medium body with some gentle acidity remaining. Mid-palate is somewhat lacking in extract/density and complexity although some pretty red fruits peek in. Tannins are mostly resolved and the finish is of medium length. Could be this is an off/cooked bottle, closed, or not aerated properly, but the bottle and cork were in good shape, and it is somewhat consistent with its BH review from barrel suggesting little long-term aging potential.

Would be very interested to hear others’ experiences, and information about the domaine.

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Couple of recent villages Morey St. Denis:

  • 2006 Domaine Lignier-Michelot Morey St. Denis Vieilles Vignes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Morey St. Denis (2/23/2011)
    Pop and pour on a night out at Della Santina. A somewhat reticent nose, which eventually gives up some lovely red fruit and spice. The palate is nicely structured, with red and black fruit (leaning a bit to the black), backed up by a solid mineral core, and well balanced with good acidity. A very nicely put together, and quite lovely, villages wine.
  • 2005 Domaine Ponsot Morey St. Denis Cuvée des Grives - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Morey St. Denis (12/15/2010)
    Took a bottle to share with the guys for our latest CC a few nights ago. I didn’t take any notes, but this was easily my WOTN over a '96 Ogier (nice but just starting to tire a bit), an '06 Lesec CdP which was totally uninspiring and forgettable, and an '07 Pichler Riesling (if I recall correctly it was the Kirchweg Smaragd) which unfortunately was very slightly corked – the underlying material was terrific. The Grives showed juicy, tart red fruit (think sour cherries or maybe pomegranate) and good acidity, it was deeply pitched and solidly structured, and clearly in need of much more time. Infanticide, but it was very good.

Posted from CellarTracker

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Here is a little nugget of info: half his production is bought by Drouhin every year