Domaine Thierry Mortet Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru 'Les Beaux Bruns' 2013
‘Les Beaux Bruns’ is a premier cru vineyard on the lower slopes of the eastern part of Chambolle-Musigny, right in the mouth of the Combe de Chambolle. The Domaine Mortet produces about 1200 bottles there a year. This one is slow to age. Buy it for laying down and your patience will be rewarded. ‘Beaux Bruns’ is structure and length, but with great finesse. Suave in its attack, it builds to a powerful finish.
DOMAINE THIERRY MORTET
We first met Thierry Mortet at one of the early editions of the ‘Grands Jours de Bourgogne’ where the theme of the Gevrey-Chambertin tasting was the two distinct village appellation zones on either side of the mouth of the Combe Lavaux. Tasting at Thierry’s stand was a master class in the subject that is as clear today as it was twenty years ago.
Thierry Mortet took over his half of the family domain, Domaine Charles Mortet et Fils in 1992 with 4 hectares of vines. He now oversees 7.3 hectares (just under 17 acres) of production, 6 ha in red and the rest in white, for an annual production of 30-35000 bottles. When he officially converted his domain to organic agriculture in 2007, he was merely codifying practices that he had already been following for years out of respect for the environment and an understanding of the cultural significance of his work.
BURGUNDY 2013 VINTAGE
Burgundy 2013 was yet another small crop. The fourth in as many years. Some of it will be very good, in both red and white. But for some producers it was a disaster. As we always do, let’s start with a run-down of the weather conditions over the growing season (what the locals tellingly call ‘the campaign’).
Winter was wet and hung on stubbornly. March snow gave way to a few spring-like days, and everyone thought the worst was over. But no. April was cold and wet. May was the wettest on record. We posted photos of ducks swimming in the flooded vineyards. And winter gloom and temperatures persisted.
June was better, but just. Flowering started in the early part of the month, but with the cool wet conditions it was erratic and irregular. Lots of coulure and millerandange as a result. These aborted grapes would be one of the reasons for a small 2013 yield, and would come in to play in the final outcome at harvest.
Summer arrived late in the month. But even the warm temperatures and relatively fine weather did little to dispel the feeling of instability. There was nothing consistent to make you feel like you could just settle in to grape growing.
Then in the third week of July, high pressure and high humidity built up to a series of storms, the most violent of which tore out of the Savigny valley on the 23rd. Like a military gunship, the hail storm swept across the Savigny vines, hit Pernand on the west side of the Corton Mountain and headed south across Beaune, Pommard and Volnay. Producers tell us it lasted almost half an hour. It was the second year running that Pommard and Volnay were ravaged.
The humidity continued into August, and producers up and down the Cote nervously watched the sky. The big fear now was that damaged grapes would rot of mildew and odium, so preventive spraying intensified. If there was a bright spot in the growing season, it was the dry spell in mid-August. The damaged grapes shriveled and dropped off the vine, making the inevitable sorting at harvest more manageable.
Yields were tiny, even in the areas not ripped by hail. But the quality of the fruit was good going into September in the Cotes de Nuits and the white wine production south of Beaune, as well as in the Chalonnaise, Maconnais and Chablis.
Most of the harvest came in in the first weeks of October, the latest Burgundy vintages since 1991 and 1978. Maturity arrived at the end. Slowly at first, just like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay like it to be. But that slow maturity turned into a gallop, especially for the whites. From Macon to Chablis, the quality of 2013 whites comes down to crucial decisions about when to pick in the final few days.
Two months prior to harvest, the mood was gloomy. And granted, those poor producers who got slammed in July will suffer for years. (Some say that another small crop in 2014 could force some out of business.) But there is quality in many cellars. The reds will be highly variable, but the best wines (from domains that sorted the harvest carefully as it came to the cuverie) are fresh, deeply colored and beautifully ripe, with balance that seems apt for long aging. As always, you have to know who made the wine. There is more consistent quality in the whites across the board. Some say an excellent exciting year.
CHAMBOLLE-MUSIGNY
COTES DE NUITS
Chambolle-Musigny is a tiny village, and is likely to remain so. Expansion would mean encroaching on some of the best vineyard land in the world. With two superb Grands Crus, Bonnes Mares (which links Chambolle to Morey-Saint-Denis), and Musigny, which overlooks the Clos de Vougeot, the village also has several prestigious premier cru, notably among them Les Amoureuses. Its AOC dates from September 1936, making it one of the first French vineyards to be designated.
Produced in the commune of Chambolle-Musigny, the appellation Chambolle-Musigny includes 24 premiers crus as well as two Grands Crus: Musigny and Bonnes Mares.
Wine
Chambolle-Musigny is Pinot Noir par excellence, and is often regarded as the most elegant wine of the Côte de Nuits. Its intensity is subtle. It tends to be bright ruby and may darken a little over time. Its violet bouquet is one of the most easily recognizable in Burgundy. With aging it tends towards spiced ripe fruits and truffle, underbrush and animal notes. Rich and complex, it is silky and lacy on the one hand, and solid and structured on the other.
Terroirs
The slope faces east at altitudes of 250-300 meters with only a shallow covering of soil overlying the parent rock, but fissures in the hard Jurassic limestone allow the roots to seek dig deep into the complex sub-soil. Gravel in the valley bottom ensures good drainage.
Color
Red wines exclusively - Pinot Noir
Production surface area
1 hectare (ha) = 2.4 acres
152.23 ha (including 56.23 ha premier cru)
Food
With a personality that is both powerful and delicate, the wines of Chambolle call for sophisticated cuisine. Feathered game in sauce, roasted lamb or a free-range capon. Roast veal's subtle texture would work too. Cheeses should be mild : Brillat-Savarin, Reblochon, Cîteaux, Vacherin, Brie de Meaux or Chaource.
Appellations
The following climats are classified as premier cru:
Aux Beaux Bruns
Aux Combottes
Aux Echanges
Derrière la Grange
La Combe d'Orveau
Les Amoureuses
Les Baudes
Les Borniques
Les Carrières
Les Chabiots
Les Charmes
Les Chatelots
Les Combottes
Les Cras
Les Feusselottes (ou « Les Feusselotes »)
Les Fuées
Les Groseilles
Les Gruenchers
Les Hauts Doix
Les Lavrottes
Les Noirots
Les Plantes
Les Sentiers
Les Véroilles
The following climats are village wines from a single vineyard known as a lieu-dit:
Aux Croix
Derrière le Four
La Combe d'Orveau
La Taupev
Le Village
Les Argillières
Les Athets
Les Babillères
Les Barottes
Les Bas Doix
Les Bussières
Les Chardannes
Les clos
Les Clos de l'Orme
Les Condemennes
Les Cras
Les Creux Baissants
Les Danguerrins
Les Drazey
Les Echezeaux
Les Fouchères
Les Fremières
Les Gamaires
Les Guérippes
Les Herbues
Les Jutruots
Les Mal Carrées
Les Maladières
Les Mombies
Les Nazoires
Les Pas de Chat
Les Porlottes
Les Sordes