An exciting find: Aurélien Verdet
Aurélien Verdet is a young vigneron based at Arcenant in the Hautes Côtes de Nuits. Despite only being in his late 20s, Aurélien makes elegant, sophisticated wines that show, to me, a mature considered approach.
Aurélien is the son of Alain Verdet, a pioneer of organic viticulture in Burgundy. Complementing this background is his work with David Duband. Both have clearly had a strong influence.
Two domaine wines are produced, both from the Hautes Côtes de Nuits. More domaine wines will be added in 2009, Aurélien having just purchased 3.5 hectares in Vosne-Romanée and Nuits. Some wines from 2008 and 2007 are sourced from these vineyards.
These were tasted in January 2009:
Hautes Côtes de Nuits rouge 2007 Lifted fruit, floral, very pretty for the appellation. Excellent.
Gevrey-Chambertin 2007 Similar in style, longer and more weight. Deft use of oak. A silky texture in the mouth. The finish is a little disappointing, just a bit short.
Chambolle-Musigny 2007 Darker, richer still. A little cassisy reduction is noticeable but not really a problem. Fine tannins, more heavily emphasised on the finish. Refreshing, mouth watering acid. That said, a little closed at the moment.
Nuits-Saint-Georges 2007 Beautiful nose, not at all what you expect from the appellation. Just something else about it, another dimension: lots of violets, a hint of rhubarb, a clean aroma of beetroot juice. A must buy.
Morey-Saint-Denis 2007 Wow! Is this village? Two parcels, most of it coming from a vineyard on the Route de Vergy. Excellent complexity: the feminine floral fruit from earlier wines but spicier, richer, more concentrated. Structurally excellent. Another must buy.
Vosne-Romanée From an excellent Vosne parcel, Les Barreaux, which borders Cros Parantoux and Les Petits Monts! Spicy but elegant, a sophisticated wine with concentration but not weighty fruit. Long, fine finish. Very good.
Nuits-Saint-Georges Aux Boudots 1er Cru 2007 Elegant for Nuits-Saint-Georges, concentrated black forest fruits and rose petal. Structurally, excellent.
Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Damodes 1er Cru 2007 The vines which provided the fruit for this wine are literally next to those of Aux Boudots but this wine couldn’t be more different: more serious, so much going on, clean, beautiful, could be a Chambolle. An impressively plush wine, must buy.
Nuits-Saint-Georges La Richemone 1er Cru 2007 My first experience of this vineyard and what a wine. The best of the Nuits-Saint-Georges: wild black fruit, real power here. A great combination of the style of the other wines with barely controlled power. Must buy.
Bourgogne Blanc 2007 Precise, minerally, youthful, a little on the unripe side. No artifice: clean, linear, Chablisienne in style.
Hautes Côtes de Nuits Blanc 2007 Better still, excellent balance. Excellent wine for simple enjoyment.
Tasted a few days ago:
Morey-Saint-Denis 2005 Rich black forest fruit, very lifted. Not really showing any development. The palate is powerful, almost forceful. There is a lack of harmony mid palate: the creamy, toasty oak stands apart from the crunchy berry fruit. The finish shows a little bitter tannin. That said, an extremely impressive wine for village level and looking better right now than most 2005s. Give this at least five years I think.
