Mission Codename: Pinot Noir Par Excellence

Operative: Agent White

Objective: Search the Premier Crus for a Pinot Noir Par Excellence

Mission Status: Accomplished!

Current Winery: Domaine Dominique Mugneret

Wine Subject: 2003 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru ‘Les Boudots’

Winemaker: Vincent Mongeard

Backgrounder:

Nothing inspires thoughts of excellent Pinot Noir more than the Crus of the Cote de Nuits in Burgundy. And within the Cote de Nuits, Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru AOC represents wines of dark robust color, profound structure and full-bodied flavors that have made the region famous. ‘Les Boudots’ is a Premier Cru in the Nuits-Saint-George AOC. These wines age well with many known to retain their rich and spicy aromas, bold fruit flavors and subtle earthiness for up to 20 years.

Wine Spies Tasting Profile:

Look – Clear but dark purple and concentrated in color with ruby and garnet hued edges and slow thin legs.

Smell – Bold and spicy tart fruit including cherries, blackcurrants and blackberries with balanced layers of toasted oak, earthy scents, gunpowder and a distinct star-anise component.

Feel – Initially cool, wet, and smooth, then dry and full-bodied, with firm and solid tannic structure. give this wine some time to open after you pop the cork to experience the full elegance if this wine.

Taste – Concentrated and tangy black (blackcurrant and blackberry) and red fruit (cherry) with underpinnings of its distinctly earthy Terroir, star-anise, and gun power.

Finish – Long, clean and tangy fruit with a lingering earthiness that lovers of Pinot will truly appreciate.

Conclusion – The 2003 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru ‘Les Boudots’ is not your typical austere French Burgundy. This wine is bold, robust and full of flavor. Don’t get me wrong though, this wine shows tremendous elegance and is the kind of wine that can be enjoyed all by itself. The color alone will change your perception about French Pinot Noir.

Mission Report:

Just two weeks ago I arrived in France for a whirl-wind tour and to try and catch some of the Tour de France, on of the greatest spectacles in all of sports. The goal was to catch, the start, a few of the notable climbs, in particular the Hautacam and L’Alpe-d’Huez and of course the grand finale on the Champes Elysees.

Agent Terroir was to make the specific arrangements and after the fiasco at the start of my trip I was concerned about our ability to get our mission complete. As it usually does for a spy, things work out, not always as planned, but in my case, definitely for the better.

After tasting some great wines from the Alsace, we had a few days to spare before heading to the Depart Fictif in Brest so I suggested that we make a stop in Burgundy. We had some time to spare and I wanted to get a little ‘on the ground’ time before we passed through the area again later in the trip.

Terroir, while not pleased about adding more than a few hours to the drive, obliged my request. South to Dijon, then along the highway south, the plan was to get to Beaune before continuing on. I had hoped to make a couple stops in Gevrey-Chambertin as well. When Agent Terroir continued past Gevrey-Chambertin without even slowing I immediately became agitated.

”I thought we were going to stop!”, I yelled.

”We don’t have time,”, he barked back. ”The whole point of this side trip is to stop at some of the great Domaines before we head out”_ I interrupted.

”We have an appointment to make, please calm yourself, and trust me it will be worth while”, Terroir continued.

This was Terroir’s M.O. Always keeping me in the dark, it usually worked out, but I hate being at the whim of someone else, without a clue as to our plan. Continuing south, we finally slowed when we arrived in the commune of Nuits-Saint-Georges, about 2/3s of the way down to Beaune. Terroir, pulled off onto a side road whipping the car around wildly and almost flipping us into the rows of well tended vines.

For those who don’t know, the commune of Nuits-Saint-Georges is represents, more than most of the other AOCs in Burgundy, wines of robust flavor and structure and is widely considered among the best appelations in the Cote de Nuits and Hautes-Cotes de Nuits region.

Terroir finally slowed down and pointed out a vineyard of Premier Cru Pinot and said this is what we are tasting and that we were officially late. Upon arriving at the Domaine Dominique Mugneret we were immediately greeted by Dominique who was so excited that he nearly tore Terroir’s shirt pulling him inside.

”Je sais que vous êtes occupé, donc je ne gaspillerai pas n’importe quand”, as he poured a couple glasses.

”Que pensez-vous?” he continued, the dumb-child like grins on our faces was enough to speak volumes.

”Hou là, ceci est exceptionnel, uh, sorry, I mean it’s really good”, Terroir mumbled to me.

”Excellent, voici vos échantillons, maintenant être sur le chemin!” as Dominique handed us a few bottles.

”Merci beaucoup”, I said with a terrible French accent.

Dominique just smiled at me, and growled a bit at Terroir, but then gave him a big hug before we left.

Once again, The Wine Spies were able to secure an exceptional wine. This time, a red Burgundy Par Excellence. If you haven’t had the pleasure of enjoying some of France’s best wines, be sure to pick up a bottle or two. This one is very nice!

Wine Spies Vineyard Check:

The location of the Nuits-Saint-Georges AOC can be seen in this satellite photo.