2008 Gevrey-Chambertin, Clos Saint-Jacques, 1er Cru, Domaine Sylvie Esmonin, Burgundy

2008 Gevrey-Chambertin, Clos Saint-Jacques, 1er Cru, Domaine Sylvie Esmonin, Burgundy

Product: 20088000486
 
2008 Gevrey-Chambertin, Clos Saint-Jacques, 1er Cru, Domaine Sylvie Esmonin, Burgundy

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Description

A very rich, solid Gevrey with a lovely smoky, spicy aspect from the inclusion of stems, this bursts with fruit and character; a fine wine from a great vineyard.

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Critics reviews

Wine Advocate93/100
The 2008 Gevrey-Chambertin Clos St. Jacques is wonderfully alive. Layers of fruit flesh out on the palate in this intense, structured Clos St. Jacques. There is a level of sweetness and sheer inner perfume that is hard to capture in words. This is a fabulous effort from Sylvie Esmonin, but it remains decidedly on the young side. The Clos St. Jacques saw 100% new oak. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2028.
Antonio Galloni - 02/05/2011 Read more
Jancis Robinson MW18/20
100% new oak. 70% whole bunch. Racked a month ago. Very deep crimson. Very heady and concentrated – difficult to guess 2008 on the nose! Wonderful energy and balance. Just great intensity and raciness. Like an energy drink, made out of blackberries. Very fine tannins. Lighter than some years but wonderfully long and neat. Circumscribed but great stuff. Wonderful polish - from the vines not excessive winemaking.
(Jancis Robinson - jancisrobinson.com - Jan 10) Read more

About this WINE

Domaine Sylvie Esmonin

Domaine Sylvie Esmonin

Sylvie's grandfather worked for the Comte de Moucheron, former sole owners of the great Clos St Jacques vineyard. When the Comte had to sell up, he bought a portion of the vineyard along with his house. Michel Esmonin, Sylvie's father, helped to develop the domaine, but sold the wines mostly in bulk. Sylvie came back to help her father on the condition that everything was bottled at the domaine, and she is now in sole charge.

No herbicides have been used since 1990 and the domaine is farmed more or less organically, though not systematically so. Sylvie now tends to pick later than her father did and with lower yields. This, combined with a different oak regime in the cellar has noticeably changed the style of wine here since the turn of the millennium. The juice is allowed to start fermenting quickly, with some punching down to break up the whole bunches which are now used for the top cuvees, encouraging the sugars to ferment. Total vatting time is around two weeks, before decanting the wine into barrel, including a high proportion of new wood especially from Dominique Laurent’s cooperage. The wines are extremely stylish with typical Gevrey firmness but displaying also a silky elegance.

Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Wine Director and author of the award-winning Inside Burgundy comprehensive handbook.

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Gevrey-Chambertin

Gevrey-Chambertin

Gevrey-Chambertin is the largest wine-producing village in Burgundy’s Côte d'Or, with its vineyards spilling over into the next door commune of Brochon.

Located in the far north of the Côtes de Nuits above Morey-St Denis, classic Gevrey-Chambertin is typically deeper in colour, firmer in body and more tannic in structure than most red Burgundy. The best can develop into the richest, most complete and long-lived Pinot Noir in the world. This is largely thanks to the iron-rich clay soils, though much depends on whether the vineyard is located on either the steeper slopes (Evocelles, Clos St Jacques) or the flatter, richer soils (Clos Prieur, Combottes).

Whereas in the past there have been numerous underperformers in Gevrey-Chambertin exploiting the reputation of this famous village and its iconic Grands Crus, today there are many fine sources to choose from, and overall quality is higher than ever.

Gevrey-Chambertin’s greatest Grand Cru is named after the field of the monk Bertin (Champ de Bertin). In 1847, Gevrey appended the name of this illustrious vineyard, Chambertin, setting a trend for the other principle villages to follow. Le Chambertin may not be quite as sumptuous as Musigny or Richebourg, or as divinely elegant as La Tâche or Romanée-St Vivant, but it is matched only by the legendary Romanée-Conti for completeness and luscious intensity.

In all, Gevrey boasts an impressive nine Grands Crus, with the name of Chambertin retaining a regal omnipresence throughout its finest vineyard names. The other truly great Grand Cru is Chambertin-Clos de Bèze which has the right to sell its wines simply as ‘Chambertin’, and is the only wine allowed to put the Chambertin name before, rather than after, its own. Situated slightly further up the hill, the wines are fractionally less powerful yet full of sensual charm and finesse.

Quality-wise the next best are generally acknowledged to be Mazis-Chambertin and Latricières-Chambertin. The former is incredibly concentrated and very fine, but its structure is a little less firm than Le Chambertin. Latricières is less about power (although it can be explosively fruity) and more about an entrancing silkiness.

Situated slightly higher up the slope, Ruchottes-Chambertin is impressively rich, stylish and slightly angular. The tiny Griottes-Chambertin, which owes its name to the grill-pan shape of the vineyard rather than the wine’s griotte cherry aroma, is lower down the slope and boasts a velvety texture and rich fruit reminiscent of Chambertin itself. It is generally better than the lighter, although wonderfully fragrant Chapelle-Chambertin and Gevrey’s largest Grand Cru, the pure and seductive (if variable) Charmes-Chambertin.

Gevrey also has some outstanding Premier Crus on the south-east-facing slopes above the town. Les Cazetiers and especially Clos St Jacques produce some exceptional wines. Indeed Armand Rousseau, who pioneered domaine bottling here in the 1930s and is still one of the region’s very best producers, often sells his Clos St Jacques for more than several of his Grand Crus.

Drinking dates for these wines vary, but Grand Crus are generally best from at least 10 to 25 years, Premier Crus from eight to 20 years, and village wines from five to 12 years.

  • 315 hectares of village Gevrey Chambertin
  • 84 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards (20 in all). The foremost vineyards include Clos St Jacques, Lavaux St Jacques, Combottes, Corbeaux, Cherbaudes, Cazetiers.
  • 55 hectares of Grand Cru vineyards: Chambertin, Chambertin Clos de Bèze, Latricières-Chambertin, Ruchottes-Chambertin, Mazis-Chambertin, Charmes-Chambertin, Mazoyères-Chambertin, Chapelle-Chambertin, Griottes-Chambertin..
  • Recommended producers:  Bachelet, Dugat, Esmonin, Mortet, Rossignol Trapet, Rousseau, Serafin, Bernstein
  • Recommended restaurants : Chez Guy (good wine list), Rôtisserie du Chambertin (and Bistro)

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Pinot Noir

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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