Visit – Maison Chantereves – tasting the 2015 reds

On my March trip to Burgundy I had the pleasure to revisit Chantereves- one of the rising stars within the world of micro negociants.

Tomoko explaining about the new wine Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Damodes

Chantereves, Savigny, Rhingau and Japan

Chantereves is a small negociant located in a celler below a modern villa in Savigny-Les-Beaune.

The estate is founded by two talented winemakers … Tomoko Kuriyama and Guillaume Bott, who as wife and husband have joined forces in producing a small selection of wines from grapes bought from different vineyard owners around Burgundy. First vintage was 2010.

Tomoko originates from Japan but has taken her wine education at the famous wine university in Geisenheim Germany. After finishing her education she worked as estate manager at the well known Rheingau estate, Friedrich Altenkirch. Guillame Bott is currently working as winemaker at Domaine Simon Bize also in Savigny-Les-Beaune, and previously he worked at Etienne Sauzet in Puligny-Montrachet.

The Chantereves wines

The 2014 vintage marked an interesting change of vinfication of the reds, as 100% whole cluster grapes are used for the reds in this vintage and the level of SO2 has also been reduced significantly. 

The result was some very expressive and “organic” wines moving stylewise in the direction of both Frederic Cossard and Pacalet … i.e. the combination of low SO2 and a very high percentage of whole cluster.

The 2015s are also made with 100% whole cluster grapes and with a modest levet of SO2. The result is however quite a contrast to the transparent and lightfooted 2014s, as the 2015 vintage has yielded very ripe grapes – that provides more weight and intensity to the wines.

This is the beauty of Burgundy .. the vintages can be quite different, and changes the expression of the wines from year to year. While some prefer the deicate and transparent style of the 2014s, others will welcome the extra concentration of the 2015s. I just enjoy the variations and am happy to notice that the basic qualities of the Chantereves wines – purity, focus and detail are intact even in a rich and generous vintage like 2015.

For the whites there is little change vinification wise … but for me its very early to comment on the whites at this stage. The 2015 vintage is rich and weigthy and clearly cant match the white 2014s quality wise – as the purity, delicacy and balance of the 2014 vintage is quite unique. 

From what I tasted the Chantereves 2015 whites are very good for the vintage, as the estate style is a good match for the character of the vintage. The bourgogne blanc is surprisingly fresh at this stage – and will be very interesting to follow. The Saint-Romain is rather closed an hard to evaluate. I will get back to the 2015 whites if I have the chance later this eyar.

Notes from the tasting in Savigny-Les-Beaune

I tasted 7 wines at Chantereves, three whites and four reds … all from cask. Please note these wines were tasted at a very early stage .. so the notes are merely indicative.

Photo: The 2013 wines tasted in 2015

Chantereves, Bourgogne Rouge 2015
The Bourgogne Rouge 2015 is a lovely expressive wine build on the best qualities of the rich 2015 vintage. The nose is very outgoing with variations of red fruit, hints of cinnamon and allspice – the 100% whole cluster vinification really suits this vintage. On the palate pure fruit, very fine mid-palate weight for this level … quite a contrast to the delicate and lightfooted 2014. This is a bigger wine than the 2014 .. and will most likely have a broader appeal in the market – I like both vintages .. a lovely Bourgogne rouge in the making.

(Drink from 2017) – Good (86 – 87p) – Tasted 25/03/2016

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Chantereves, Pommard 2015
The Pommard 2015 is a beautiful wine – the somewhat sturdy minerality of the appellation really suits this rich vintage. In the nose lovely organic and forward red berry fruit – spiced with cinnamon and brought forward by a quite powerful minerality. On the palate – weighty and intense fruit for this level – its focused and refined for the vintage … normally I would say I prefer the Volnay .. but the Pommard is showing better at this stage. Really like this wine … and with the other 2015 I have tasted in mind … I think its fair to say that at least some producers did very well in Pommard in 2015.

(Drink from 2025) – Very Good (89 – 90p) – Tasted 25/03/2016

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Chantereves, Volnay 2015
The Volnay is a quite serious wine, and while its rich and weighty it has none of the slightly overripe flavors found in some 2015s from Cote de Beaune. The nose is offering fine and intense red and dark fruits – its expressive and spiced with cinnamon and allspice. On the palate rich, focused and quite intense organic fruit – its a quite serious wine that will need some time to unfold. I really like this wine and the change in vinification – low SO2 and 100% whole cluster really pays off in the 2015 vintage. A lovely Volnay in the making … 

(Drink from 2025) – Very Good (89 – 90p) – Tasted 25/03/2016

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Chantereves, Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Damodes 2015
In 2015 Chantereves has expanded the range of wines with the first Cote de Nuits wine – a Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Damodes – from a plot located quite high on the slope. I’m very exited about this new wine, as I think talents like Tomoko and Guillaume should have some top end terroir to work with. The 100% whole cluster vinifcation is in my view a perfect match for a vineyard like Damodes .. so here we go. The nose is offering deep red and dark berry fruit – organic with a lovely selection of spices – violets, cinnamon – and a quite finely grained somewhat stony minerality. On the palate very fine concentration, beautiful core of juicy midpalate fruit, lovely transparency and expression of terroir. A lovely Damodes in the making – and the best red I have tasted from Chantereves so far – highly recommended (as are the others).

(Drink from 2026) – Fine+ (91 – 93p) – Tasted 25/03/2016
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