2018 Clos de Tart, Grand Cru, Clos de Tart, Burgundy
Critics reviews
55% whole cluster
Absolutely bursting with blue and red fruits, the concentration is deceptive here, as it starts out juicy and full of air, but after a few minutes in the glass you start to feel the weight and the texture, and this turns into an extremely serious wine with real tannic hold. Gorgeous savoury finish, as you get so often in the best Burgundies, where weightlessness is such a brilliant veil to the power behind.
Drink 2020 - 2032
Jane Anson, Decanter.com (February 2020)
Dense purple. Succulent ripe fruit, rich cherries, seductive yet not quite too much of a good thing. More oak emerges but in harness with a hugely impressive weight of fruit. This is an absolute baby. A few stems support the profile and while they add a lightly drying touch, this is a monumental wine for the very long term future.
Drink from 2035
Jasper Morris MW, InsideBurgundy.com (September 2022)
Tasted blind at the Burgfest 2018 red tasting.
The 2018 Clos de Tart Grand Cru was wonderful from barrel, but now it seems to have gone up another level. It has an exquisite bouquet with wonderful mineralité infusing the brambly red fruit. Wonderful focus and quite profound complexity. You could nose this forever. The palate is medium-bodied with finely chiselled tannins married with a killer line of natural acidity. Everything is perfectly proportioned in this wine. It is very persistent, with layers of dark berry fruit laced with white pepper and tea leaf on the finish. It is immense.
Drink 2030 - 2065
Neal Martin, Vinous.com (November 2022)
55% whole bunch. Cask sample.
Very dark crimson. Not the freshest nose—perhaps because of the slightly elevated serving temperature? But majestic in terms of build and really complex, with an array of wildflowers on the nose (a biodynamic effect?). Really, pretty smart! There’s glamour and density here, as well as sweetness, digestive biscuits, and orange liqueur. Exciting wine.
Drink 2030 - 2053
Jane Anson, Decanter.com (July 2021)
The 2018 Clos de Tart demonstrates the superior nature of great terroir and mature vines. This is still a big year with very ripe fruit, but there is more elegance to the grand cru than La Forge de Tarte, the premier cru, and a sophistication that is lacking in the lesser wine. Ripe black cherry and plum fruit with a bit more oak, and some additional mineral nuance, lead gracefully to the powerful but fine-grained texture, impressive density and marvellously balanced finish. Although this does not have the elegance of 2019, it shows how great the '18s can be with a sensitive hand.
Drink 2027 - 2060
Charles Curtis MW, Decanter.com (October 2020)
Jacques Devauges may have jumped the wall and moved to the Clos des Lambrays next door, but the wine he made at this historic property is still current. And what a wine it is: combining seven different parcels of the Grand Cru to make a fine, floral, complex, subtly reductive wine of considerable distinction and savoury grip, framed by 80% new wood. Let's hope the new team carries on the great work, which amounted to a radical change of style.
Drink 2026 - 2036
Tim Atkin MW, Decanter.com (October 2019)
About this WINE
Domaine Clos de Tart
Located in Morey-St Denis, Clos de Tart is the largest of Burgundy’s five Grand Cru monopole vineyards. The vineyard dates to at least 1141 and has had just four owners in that time. Today, it is part of François Pinault’s Artémis Domaines, alongside Ch. Latour, Domaine d’Eugénie and more.
The largest of Burgundy’s five Grand Cru monopole vineyards, Clos de Tart occupies some of the greatest terroir in Morey-St Denis. The vineyard dates to at least 1141, when it was purchased by the Cistercian nuns of Notre Dame de Tart. There have been just four owners in that time, and today it is part of François Pinault’s Artémis Domaines, alongside Ch. Latour, Domaine d’Eugénie, Eisele Vineyard and more.
The 7.52-hectare clos is situated at the south end of Morey-St Denis, bordering Bonnes Mares to the south and Clos des Lambrays in the north. The vineyard has been divided into 13 plots.
The cellars have seen considerable renovation in recent years, with a new vat room inaugurated in time for the 2019 vintage. Director and winemaker Alessandro Noli now works with 15 wooden vats of varying sizes (20 hectolitres to 40 hectolitres) to enable plot-by-plot vinification
Clos de Tart has since 2015 been farmed organically, with organic certification as of the ’18 vintage. Biodynamic practices were adopted in ’16, with certification from the ’19 vintage. The estate maintains a vine nursery in Morey-St Denis.
Morey-Saint-Denis
Morey is sometimes ignored between its two famous neighbours, Chambolle-Musigny and Gevrey-Chambertin, but its wines are of equal class, combining elegance and structure. Morey-St Denis, being that little bit less famous, can often provide excellent value.
The four main Grand Cru vineyards continue in a line from those of Gevrey-Chambertin, with Clos St Denis and Clos de la Roche the most widely available. Clos des Lambrays (almost) and Clos de Tart (entirely) are monopolies of the domains which bear the same names.
Domaine Dujac and Domaine Ponsot also make rare white wines in Morey-St Denis.
- 64 hectares of village Morey-St Denis
- 33 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards (20 in all). Best vineyards include Les Charmes, Les Millandes, Clos de la Bussière, Les Monts Luisants
- 40 hectares of Grand Cru vineyard. Clos de Tart, Clos des Lambrays, Clos de la Roche, Clos St Denis and a tiny part of Bonnes Mares
- Recommended Producers: Dujac, Ponsot, Clos de Tart, Domaine des Lambrays
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.
Buying options
Add to wishlist
Description
Tasted blind at the Burgfest 2018 red tasting.
The 2018 Clos de Tart Grand Cru was wonderful from barrel, but now it seems to have gone up another level. It has an exquisite bouquet with wonderful mineralité infusing the brambly red fruit. Wonderful focus and quite profound complexity. You could nose this forever. The palate is medium-bodied with finely chiselled tannins married with a killer line of natural acidity. Everything is perfectly proportioned in this wine. It is very persistent, with layers of dark berry fruit laced with white pepper and tea leaf on the finish. It is immense.
Drink 2030 - 2065
Neal Martin, Vinous.com (November 2022)
wine at a glance
Delivery and quality guarantee