Le Roi Chambertin – Gevrey Galore

Thursday offered the possibility to attend Le Roy Chambertin, a annual tasting held in connection with the Hospice de Beaune auction – in Gevrey Chambertin and by the producers of Gevrey.

Most producers are attending generously providing cask samples of some of their wines – this year the 2016 vintage. Thanks a lot to all the people supporting this and arranging the event.p

It’s a lovely arrangement and the perfect opotunity to taste a wide range of Gevrey.

Finding the new and improving

I use these events to find new and improving producers, rather than trying to make a wide range of tasting notes.

To be honest barrel samples are barrel samples – and the nuances of the wine – and even the balance can change several times before you have the final wine in the bottle.

Always important to remember that tastings at this stage is partly guess work – done based on experience at best.

My priciples are therefore simple – note the postitive impressions – they are there and can stay in the wine. The negative impressions can disappear before you have the finished wine – that being the presence of the oak, reduction ….

So positive selection – find the good stuff … And never disregard a producer or a wine barely on a poor barrel sample.

But if a producer have disappointed many times during the years and this is consistent with the barrel sample – one can conclude no improvement likely.

The positive selection from Le Roi Chambertin

I found many fine wines at Le Roi Chambertin – 2016 is a gorgeous vintage … and I already tasted some of the wines there.

Domaine Marc Roi, Domaine Heresztyn-Mazzini and Domaine Duroché all showed very well – and this confirmed why I have visited these fine estates during the year.

Domaine Denis Mortet was for me the star of the show – oak and extraction very balanced – offering a very fine display of beautiful fruit of the 2016 vintage. Midpalate fruit very energetic and vibrant. I need to try to get a visit at Domaine Denis Mortet.

Domaine Tawse – lovely wines – not all showing perfectly, the Mazis was quite reduced – but otherwiser showing fine potential. I like the style and this is on the agenda for 2018 hopefully – very talented people.

Domaine Bruno Clair showed some elegant wines made with a very light hand. I find the style appealing and interesting.

Domaine Perot-Minot is now made with a lighter hand, and the wines were elegant and balanced – making me want to explore the wines further – great terroirs the do have.

In the rather unknown end Jane et Sylvain showed a lovely Gevrey-Chambertin village with lovely energy and flavours – offering a fine genuine Gevrey feeling.

Domaine Cecile Tremblay offered a taste of the Chapelle-Chambertin – needless to say … lovely wine in the making – if only I could visit this estate in 2018.

As I’m writing this during my morning coffee on my way to Domaine Trapet and then Geneva – sorry for the typos!