Domaine RODOLPHE DEMOUGEOTMeursault
Although based in Meursault it is Rodolphe’s reds which first caught our imagination. They are perfumed and pure, with clearly defined fruit and structure.
Background
Rodolphe is a great friend of Francois Buisson, which is how we came to know this domaine Rodolphe has built his domaine from the small operation he inherited from his grandparents into the 8ha he has today, spread over Pommard, Beaune, and Auxey-Duresses. He uses no chemicals in the vineyard, follows aspects of the biodynamic calander and green harvests early in the season to reduce yields in the pursuit of quality over quantity. He uses a horse to plough in many of his plots. He is beginning to build his reputation so do buy these while they remain such good value!
These are silky wines combining sumptuous, perfumed fruit with a fine grain of tannin. I wish there was a single word for ‘perfume in the mouth’, the beguiling sense of fruit and flowers which seems to rise from the throat upon swallowing. Of course, this is part of a wines finish, but in some cases, Rodolphe’s being one, this is accentuated until it almost becomes a different sensation. On a recent visit Rodolphe opened a Pommard ‘Vignots’ 2005 for us, it was drinking beautifully, not at all old, but beginning to show its complexity and depth. Still lots of primary fruit, lots more to come, really shows what these wines are capable of when well cellared.
Current Vintages
| White Wines | Vintage |
|---|---|
| Beaune Clos Saint Desiree | 2017 |
| Red Wines | Vintage |
|---|---|
| Bourgogne Côtes d'Or Vieilles Vignes [Read More] This wine comes from good land lying below Chassagne Morgeot which Rodolphe farms biodynamically. The vines, planted in 1961, grow in clay with a good quantity of iron above limestone bedrock. | 2019 |
| Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune [Read More] A vineyard beyond Pommard, over the top of the cote, on the higher wine country of the Hautes-Cotes. This is always amongst the last of Rodolphe’s vineyards to be harvested, the conditions are cooler here. | 2018 |
| Monthelie La Combe Danay [Read More] The planting here runs over a dip in the slope, giving some vines an almost northerly aspect, the rest face south. Gives a tension between coolness and ripeness and adds another dimension to the wine. | 2017 |
| Savigny Les Beaune Les Bourgeots [Read More] Les Bourgeots sits on a sandy and gravelly patch below the 1er Cru Les Dominodes. Really old vines here, some planted in 1949. It gets the sun and is recognised as a top village site. Very interesting to taste the Savigny ‘les Bourgeots’ and Monthélie ‘La Combe Danay’ beside each other, the Savigny is light and filigree, Aerian, the Monthélie richer, earthier, Terrean. | 2017 |
| Savigny Les Beaux 1er Cru Les Peuillets | 2015 |
| Pommard | 2015 |
| Pommard ‘Vignots’ [Read More] From a south facing site, high up the slope and looking at Volnay and Meursault, 36 year-old vines which Rodolphe says sit in a slight hollow, giving shelter from the wind. The soil here is very thin and this is a tender, relatively delicate Pommard. Always perfumed, sweet dark cherry and a mint note. Fine if firm tannins and fresh acidity is here to support the ripe fruit and this finishes with a sense of cherries and their stones | 2016 |
| Pommard 1er Cru Charmots ‘le Coeur des dames’ [Read More] A heart shaped vineyard within the 1er Cru Charmots, known for supple, accessible Pommard. Enclosed by a limestone wall, and well protected from the elements, Rodolphe uses a horse here, which avoids compacting the soil. Shows a little more richness and firmness than the Vignots, though they are both made in exactly the same manner, but it is still very much in the mould of tender finesse rather than muscle. There’s a sense of harmony here, the elements working together, and a finish which is so perfumed, with waves of raspberry, cherry, violets and rose. Should cellar well, but a bottle drunk young and cool will also impress. | 2016 |
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