Mercurey 1er Cru "Le Clos du Roy"
The vintage
2021 is a rare vintage. After a classic winter, late March saw much higher temperatures than usual for this period: 27°C! The bud burst took place ten days earlier than anticipated on the 4 April. Then, during the nights of the 5, 6 and 7 April, temperatures fell well below as low as -8 °C. Our Chardonnay vines as well as the whole of the Côte chalonnaise were highly impacted by the frosts. From May through until July the weather was cool and humid. Flowering took place mid-June. The weather was warm and sunny from the 10th of August onwards. The harvests began on the 21 September and drew to a close on the 30 September.
Appellation
descriptionIntroduction
This small parcel, known as a 'clos', formerly belonged to the Kings of France. It was considered as one of the appellation's best parcels and was purchased by the Faiveley family in 1971. This wine could be compared to a Côte de Nuits village in terms of its delicate tannins and length on the palate.
Exposition
South, Sout-West
Soil
Clay-limestone, white marls
Grape Variety
Pinot Noir
Characteristics of our plot
Surface area
2 ha 54 a (6,28 Acres)
Characteristics of our plot
Years the vines were planted
1971, 1982
Winemaking
Winemaking
The grapes are cut harvested and sorted by hand. The proportion of de-stemmed grapes and whole clusters varies depending on the vintage. The wines are pumped over twice daily in order to extract colour, tannins and aromas from the skin of the grapes. After a 15 to 19 day vatting period, the alcoholic fermentation is complete. The free-run wine is run off using a gravity system whilst the marc is pressed slowly and gently in order to extract an exceptionally pure press wine. The wines are aged for 15 months in French oak barrels (30% of which are new oak) which have been selected for their fine grain and moderate toast. The wines are left to age in our cellars at consistent, natural hygrometry and temperature.
Tasting
Tasting
The nose exudes small red fruits combined with notes of oak and spice. The palate offers good balance, rich aromas and delicate tannins resulting in a very distinctive wine with exceptional aromatic persistency.
Serve with
Fillet of beef, lamb chops
Serve at
14°C to 16°C
Cellaring Potential
7 to 10 years
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