Tasting Notes
Robert Parker 93-95
The 2014 Echezeaux Grand Cru comes from the usual two parcels in the vineyard that are harvested on the same day as usual and co-fermented. The 80% new oak is beautifully integrated with ebullient red cherry, raspberry and vanilla scents — a bewitching bouquet. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, the fruit effortlessly soaking up the new oak, leaving you with an intense, mineral-rich finish with a saline tang on the aftertaste. A divine Echezeaux. If I scored wines according to amenity of winemaker, then Domaine Mugneret-Gibourg’s wines would all be 100-points, maybe 100 and a star, two stars maybe. Winemakers can sometimes be as egotistical, self-righteous and paranoid as wine writers. Marie-Christine Teillaud and Marie-Andree Nauleau are just…normal…and nice. They seem totally unaffected by the fact that in my opinion at least, their wines epitomize everything one could desire in Pinot Noir. It is as if their amiability rubs off on their fermented grape juice. And as usual, visiting the winery in the heart of Vosne, next door to Francois Lamarche, both ladies were there to welcome me down into the capacious cellars bedecked in a thick black layer of mold, frozen in time.
Anticipated maturity: 2017-2032
Vinous 92
Good full red Reticent aromas of redcurrant, tobacco, dried rose and musky minerality complemented by a touch of smoky, spicy oak The oak element builds in the mouth, which is less sweet and filled in today than the Feusselottes Hints of dried flowers and menthol currently dominate the wine’s red berry flavors A touch tart-edged on the finish, with the tannins showing a slightly granular quality I don’t find the same consistent ripeness here that the estate’s two other grand crus display
Anticipated maturity: 2022-2032
