Charmes-Chambertin “Les Mazoyères” Grand Cru Reviews

The 2014 Charmes-Chambertin les Mazoyères Grand Cru includes 80% whole cluster fruit this year, a high percentage due to the age of the vines planted in 1902. There is fine delineation here, precise black cherry and cranberry scents with a touch of cold granite. It is a nose that demands respect, deservedly so. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, supple black and red fruit, very pure and smooth with a graceful, marmalade-tinged finish that lingers. This should grow up to be a very seductive, comely Charmes-Chambertin with a long future ahead.

SILVER

GOLD

Here there is enough reduction present to recommend decanting your bottle if you plan to try one young in the interest
of “science”. There is excellent size, weight and power to the vibrant flavors that possess excellent mid-palate
concentration and while the supporting tannins are relatively fine there is some of the hallmark rusticity of
Mazoyères present on the otherwise strikingly long finish. This should thoroughly reward mid to longer-term cellaring.

This is also markedly floral though here the undertones
of soil, humus, forest floor and fallen leaves is much stronger on the assorted red berry infused nose. There is a lovely sense
of tension to the detailed but powerful and muscular big-bodied flavors that brim with dry extract on the balanced, intense and
lingering finish where the shaping tannins are quite firm but relatively fine. This too is lovely juice that should reward mid to
longer-term cellaring.
 

Healthy dark red. Black cherry and violet on the expressive nose, plus a complicating hint of musky torrefaction that carries through onto the palate. Tighter and sappier in the mouth than the nose suggests, showing a juicy quality as well as intriguing earth tones to the cherry and coffee flavors (this wine's pH is one of the lowest in the range of '13s here). Finishes very long, with harmonious tannins and stimulating stony minerality.

Vougeraie's 2012 Charmes-Chambertin Les Mazoyères, from 100 year-old vines, is incredibly primary and intense at this stage. A huge core of blue and black fruit, savory herbs and graphite struggle to emerge. The 2012 is broad-shouldered and structured, no

Intense and powerful, but as yet unformed, this starts with fruity layers of black cherry skin then hits a wall of tannins. Heady in its peppery scents and closed off behind those tannins, this is formidable, if difficult to read as young wine. For the cellar.

Don't miss! This is almost exuberantly pinot in basic character with its cool, pure and spicy mix of various red berries combined with a broad array of warm earth and floral nuances. The big-bodied but round and mouth coating flavors are blessed with an abundance of structure-buffering dry extract that imparts a velvety texture to the mid-palate before terminating in a powerful and explosively long finish. Wow, this is very impressive as there is plenty of underlying tension as well as impeccably good balance.

The 2010 Charmes-Chambertin Les Mazoyeres is a kaleidoscopic wine that blossoms on the palate in all directions. Dark red fruit, smoke, incense and white flowers are all woven together in a fabric of nearly indescribable elegance. The Charmes boasts great intensity and fabulous balance all the way through to the finish. This is an utterly breathtaking effort. This parcel was planted in 1902 and is the domaine’s oldest. Vincent used 70% whole clusters on the Charmes and aged the wine in 80% new oak barrels. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2035. This is stunning set of wines from Pierre Vincent and Domaine de la Vougeraie. It is impossible to miss the attention to detail at this impeccably run domaine. No expense is spared. It takes 80 people to work the vineyards during harvest and another 20 in the cellar to take it from there. Production in 2010 was of course down significantly as it was everywhere else. Yields came in at 24 hectoliters per hectare for the Pinot and 29 for the Chardonnay. Vincent used between 30-80% whole bunches, depending on the wine. Readers who want to learn more might want to check out my video interview with Pierre Vincent on www.erobertparker.com. I will report on the domaine’s 2009s in the April issue. For now let me just say the 2009 Musigny is one of the wines of the vintage.

A background application of wood spice is sufficiently subtle to allow the otherwise intensely earthy, fresh, cool and agreeably pure aromas of wild red berries to shine. The reserved and quite powerful flavors are tightly wound, backward and overtly austere with excellent power and mid-palate concentration before terminating in a driving finish that delivers outstanding length. Impressive and the old vines really show.

The 2009 Charmes-Chambertin Les Mazoyeres is stunningly beautiful. It presents great richness and power in its energetic fruit. The aromatics weave through the fruit with notable beauty. This is an exceptionally harmonious wine with great intensity and fabulous overall balance. These 80 year old vines are the estate’s oldest and are used to propagate a selection massale of Pinot fin. The estate used 50% whole clusters and 80% new oak. Tasted from barrel. Anticipated maturity: 2019-2039. Biodynamic farming and non-interventionalist winemaking are at the heart of the approach at Domaine de la Vougeraie. The 2009s saw roughly a 25 days of maceration (including a week of cold soak) with one punch down a day. Once in barrel racking was kept to a bare minimum. A number of wines were bottled in late 2010 and early 2011. I tasted these wines with winemaker Pierre Vincent in March 2011.

50% whole clusters. Almost surprisingly as this is often quite reserved the bright red berry fruit nose cut with kirsch, warm earth, iron and underbrush aromas is exuberantly expressive and the rich, detailed and powerful broad-scaled flavors are firm but not imposingly austere while culminating in a relatively refined and longering finish. This should be excellent in due time, which is to say 12 to 15 years hence. 2021+