Dugat-Py in Gevrey-Chambertin is in many ways a quite extreme producer, with very concentrated and intense wines. Some really adore his style, while others dislike the quite extracted wines he makes.
While the level of extraction have been reduced since the 90s it’s still interesting to see how these more extracted vintages are ageing today.
This weekend I had the chance to taste three older Dugat-Py wines – Petite-Chapelle 1993 + 2002 and Mazis-Chambertin 2000.
Extraction aged …
It was indeed very interesting to taste the three wines as they cover a period of almost 10 years, from the early days in 1993 to the the lovely 02 vintage.
The three wines were all fresh, undeveloped and quite typical for the vintages. But they also share a very strong producer impression – in the bouquet dense and dark raspberry fruit – with sous-bois, tar and truffle notes (especially in the two older wines). The palate offer intense and dense dark berry fruit .. finely focused with a nice expression of terroir. Impressive midpalate weight in all wines … they are somewhat dense and rustic.
The wines were all quite fine … but … and there is in my view a but … they all seems monolithic and undeveloped – all with the same quite youthfull raspberry fruit. The fruit is somehow more impressive than charming – missing a bit of brilliance and nerve. They are fruity but still feel slightly austere and backward.
Drink or Keep?
The Petite-Chapelle is not one of the biggest wines in the Dugat-Py portfolio, and it’s encourageing that the 1993 still is showing well. It will keep as will the 2000 Mazis, but will they ever soften and develop more fruity complexity and charm?
The 2000 Mazis is offering most charm … but it’s still quite fresh with this slightly austere raspberry fruit. Will it improve – perhaps .. but the 1993 doesn’t indicate a rapid change towards a fully matured fruit with complex sweet red berry notes. In my view the 02 is showing most potential for a more charming future … but it certainly still need time in the cellar.
I can understand why some try to avoid these wines – but also appreciate the powerful qualities of the Dugat-Py wines … they are however more impressive than charming and they really need time to develop complexity.
Please note …. the view presented above only apply for older vintages from this producer – I think the style and level of extraction has changed significantly.
- A true vin d’émotion – a Burgundy of passion
- A truly hedonistic wine – lively and enjoyable
- A vivacious wine for pure indulgance
- A Vin Vif - fresh, energetic and with a light appearance