Southbound-The Expressive Burgundies of Domaine des Rouges-Queues and Domaine Chevrot

3/15/19 -

I will readily admit to an abiding love for Burgundy. The appellations roll off the tongue: Chambolle-Musigny, Vosne-Romanée, Volnay, Pommard… I’ll also confess to having great affection for less name-brand Burgundies. While not exactly household names, the less famous villages of the Côte d’Or furnish some immensely satisfying and affordable knife-and-fork wines. The interplay between fruit and earth and the cool-toned, sweet but savory character of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay enhance food rather than dominate it. Lively acid and energetic minerality invigorate the palate. As new releases from 2016 arrive, we are delighted by the vintage’s florality, vigor, and structured character. Below are recent arrivals to our Burgundy section from two exciting organic domains.

At the southernmost end of the Côte d'Or is the relatively new (1989) appellation of Maranges, composed of the villages Cheilly, Dezize, and Sampigny. Formerly considered a source of structured blending wine for punching up Côtes-du-Beaune Villages wines, Maranges now produces some affordable Burgundy of great character. Located in the town of Sampigny-lès-Maranges, Isabelle and Jean-Yves Vantey’s Domaine des Rouges Queues produces lovely wines which start with old vines and great farming. The Vanteys have worked the vines without chemicals since 1998 and made the transition to biodynamics from 2008. The vines date from 1960 and 1973 in the premier cru La Fussière and average 60 years old in the village Maranges. Their cellar work is non-interventionist; the fermentation is spontaneous in stainless and open-top wooden fermenters. The aging is in neutral oak and sulfur is used sparingly. The wines display succulent fruit, great freshness, and have detailed minerality. These are sturdy, honest, satisfying wines which should age nicely.

Also located in Maranges, Domaine Chevrot was founded in 1936 and is run by third generation winemakers Pablo and Vincent Chevrot. Farming is in organic conversion with biodynamic methods and limited use of copper and sulfur in the vines. Winemaking is traditional: with some cuvées destemmed and others fermented with some whole clusters. Use of new oak is restrained and the wines are bottled without fining or filtration with a minimum of SO2. The resulting wines are elegant and terroir expressive with none of the rusticity tradtionally associated with Maranges. The pure fruit, soaring aromatics and consistently bright acidity make for compelling drinking and grace the table with aplomb.

   –John McIlwain