2010 Clos de Vougeot, Grand Cru, Domaine de la Vougeraie, Burgundy
Critics reviews
This exceptionally well-positioned 1 ha parcel is situated directly beneath Les Petits Musigny and is combined with another less well-located .35 ha parcel close to the main road.
This is also quite restrained and brooding with somber aromas of wild red currant, cherry, pungent earth and distinct floral scents. There is plenty of verve and power to the equally brooding, dense, well-muscled flavours with ripe and very firm supporting tannins and outstanding length, though they can't match the Mazoyères for sheer depth.
Drink from 2022 onward
Allen Meadows, Burghound.com (January 2013)
Domaine de la Vougeraie’s 2010 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru is the first wine in this tasting with a noticeable amount of whole clusters, which elicits numerous questions from the audience. Aromatic and silky on the palate, the 2010 has come together beautifully since I tasted it from barrel. This is an especially supple, silky Clos de Vougeot endowed with terrific balance.
The top 2010 Red Burgundies are now virtually impossible to find, so it was a real treat to taste these nine gorgeous, reference-point wines together. The goal of this seminar, which I curated at Pebble Beach Food & Wine, was to highlight a number of Burgundy’s finest terroirs ands most representative producers. I was joined on the panel by Master Sommeliers Larry Stone and Alan Murray, and winemaker Rajat Parr. All of the wines showed exceptionally well in what turned out to be a fabulous morning filled with great Burgundy and equally stimulating conversation.
As Burgundy fans know, the 2010 growing season did not get off to a great start. A devastating winter frost killed a number of vines, especially in the low, flat-lying sectors close to the Route Nationale. Poor weather during flowering caused significant issues with coulure and millerandage. Conditions improved markedly during the last few weeks of the season, always the most critical time of the year. The 2010s combine excellent maturity levels from naturally occurring low yields with lively acidity that is the result of a long, cool growing season. Most importantly of all, the wines are highly site-specific. At their best, the 2010s are stunning wines that capture the essence of what makes Burgundy so thrilling.
Drink 2018 - 2035
Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com (April 2014)
50% whole bunch. Very sweet, smooth, and powdery. Spicy and lip-smacking. Satisfying. Really rather gorgeous.
Drink 2015 - 2027
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com (January 2012)
The 2010 Clos de Vougeot possesses stunning textural depth and richness. Layers of dark red fruit, smoke, licorice and sweet spices are woven together beautifully in the glass. The energy and wiriness of Vougeot is palpable, but there is more than enough fruit to fill out the wines broad shoulders. This is another fabulous effort. The domaine has two parcels in Clos Vougeot: a 1.2 hectare parcel next to the chateau and a second smaller parcel measuring 0.23 hectares on the bottom part of the vineyard by the main road.
Drink 2025 - 2045
Antonio Galloni, Wine Advocate (December 2011)
About this WINE
Domaine de la Vougeraie
Domaine de la Vougeraie is part of our Spotlight on sustainability series. You can view the full range here.
Domaine de la Vougeraie, based in Premeaux just south of Nuits St Georges, was created in 1999 when Jean-Claude Boisset of the Boisset group decided to group together all the vineyard holdings of his various negociant companies acquired over the years. The name comes from the significant holdings – and indeed Jean-Claude Boisset’s home – in the village of Vougeot. The winery is located however in the old Claudine Deschamps (Madame Jean-Claude Boisset) cellars in Prémeaux. The domaine was put together from the various vineyard holdings which had accrued through the Boisset acquisitions of Burgundian houses over the years. Pascal Marchand was put in charge in 1999, with Bernard Zito in the vineyards, which were farmed biodynamically. Pascal produced powerful wines, fairly heavily extracted in his early vintages but clearly was subsequently moving to a softer approach by 2004.
With nearly 40 hectares of vineyard and over 30 different appellations, including six grand crus (Musigny, Bonnes Mares, Clos Vougeot, Charmes Chambertin, Mazoyères, Corton Clos du Roi and Corton Charlemagne), this is one of Burgundy’s leading domaines.
No expense has been spared in production terms. The premier and grand cru vineyards are all farmed biodynamically with carefully limited yields. The cellar has been equipped with a battery of new or renovated wooden fermentation vats, a state of the art sorting table and a new model of the old fashioned vertical press which is thought to be the best option for red wines. The wines were made by Pascal Marchand of Comte Armand in Pommard, from 1999 to 2005 and subsequently by Pierre Vincent who has maintained the more delicate approach. The grapes are sorted on one of the longest tables de tri I have seen, before being given a cool pre-maceration. During fermentation Pierre punches down only once a day, much less than Pascal used to. The temperature is maintained at 26º-28ºC/79-81ºF after fermentation to polymerise the tannins and fix the colour. The Musigny is destemmed by hand. Starting in 2008 he has begun to experiment with some whole bunch fermentation, though only for a proportion of a given cuvée.
Vougeot
Most of the wine produced in this small village comes from a single, walled Grand Cru vineyard, the famous Clos de Vougeot. The vineyard in its present form dates from 1336 (when it was first planted by monks of Cîteaux), although it was not until the following century that it was entirely enclosed by stone walls.
Clos de Vougeot is both the smallest commune and the largest Clos in the Cote d’Or. It consists of 50 hectares of vineyards shared among 82 owners, with six soil types. There is quite a difference in quality between the upper (best) and lower (least fine) parts of the vineyard, though in medieval times a blend from all sectors was considered optimum.Le Domaine de la Vougeraie makes a very fine white wine from Le Clos Blanc de Vougeot, first picked out by the monks of Cîteaux as being suitable ground for white grapes in the year 1110.
- Five hectares of village Vougeot
- 12 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards (four in all): Les Cras, Les Petits-Vougeots, Clos de la Perrière and Clos Blanc de Vougeot
- 51 hectares of Grand Cru vineyard – Clos de Vougeot
- Recommended producers: Domaine de la Vougeraie, Domaine Bertagna, Engel, Anne Gros, Grivot, Liger-Belair, Meo-Camuzet.
Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is probably the most frustrating, and at times infuriating, wine grape in the world. However when it is successful, it can produce some of the most sublime wines known to man. This thin-skinned grape which grows in small, tight bunches performs well on well-drained, deepish limestone based subsoils as are found on Burgundy's Côte d'Or.
Pinot Noir is more susceptible than other varieties to over cropping - concentration and varietal character disappear rapidly if yields are excessive and yields as little as 25hl/ha are the norm for some climats of the Côte d`Or.
Because of the thinness of the skins, Pinot Noir wines are lighter in colour, body and tannins. However the best wines have grip, complexity and an intensity of fruit seldom found in wine from other grapes. Young Pinot Noir can smell almost sweet, redolent with freshly crushed raspberries, cherries and redcurrants. When mature, the best wines develop a sensuous, silky mouth feel with the fruit flavours deepening and gamey "sous-bois" nuances emerging.
The best examples are still found in Burgundy, although Pinot Noir`s key role in Champagne should not be forgotten. It is grown throughout the world with notable success in the Carneros and Russian River Valley districts of California, and the Martinborough and Central Otago regions of New Zealand.
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Description
This bright purple Clos de Vougeot wine is a blend from two holdings, one near the top of the Clos and the other lower down. The fruit is a little reticent on the nose at first but develops strongly to the back of the palate. A deep, rich, complex, and spicy finish envelopes the palate, with a noteworthy structure also in evidence.
Two recent trends that winemaker Pierre Vincent has continued here are a slight reduction in the amount of new oak, which now mostly comes from the local forest of Cîteaux, and a slight increase in the use of stems during vinification. The latter is subtly judged, though, as there is rarely any outright feel of the stems in the bouquet or palate. 2010 is a tiny crop, averaging 24 hl/ha across the cellar, but the wines are magically concentrated.
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