Domaine Jean-Michel Gaunoux 2021
Meursault
$540 per case (1×6) OC (inc GST $y583.20)
A clear Meursault style but with a significant intensity and muscle. White blossom and some honey hints. Markedly mineral and driven for its level. Needs more time to coallesce but has plenty of promise and density.
90-92pts – Matthew Hemming MWFrom four parcels that are normally vinified separately but were done together this year, the 2021 Meursault Village has a clean and pure bouquet with yellow fruit, toasted walnut and faint, dried flower scents. The palate is well balanced with fine extract on the entry and a keen line of acidity. It’s fresh and vibrant with a saline, almost Puligny-like finish. Classy Meursault.
90-92pts – Neal Martin
Meursault 1er Cru Goutte d’Or
$780 per case (1×6) OC (inc GST $842,40)
Intense and spicy, with accompanying sweetness but also a fleshy character and airy brightness. Long, racy and still with plenty of mid-palate density. Has real weight for the vintage.
91-93pts – Matthew Hemming MW
The 2021 Meursault Goutte d’Or 1er Cru has a touch of menthol on the nose, quite complex with fine delineation, orange pith and lemon zest becoming more prominent with aeration. The palate is well-balanced, fairly linear and tensile. There’s a fine line of acidity, but maybe it just needs to “kick on” towards the finish. Instead, it prefers to play it a bit safe compared to other cuvées.
90-92pts – Neal Martin
Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrieres
$960 per case (1×6) OC (inc GST $1036.80)
Many more layers and degrees of complexity than previous wines. Creamy on the mid-palate but still with a tensile frame of mineral structure. Some mint tones on the back end. Cleansing, long and pure.
93-95pts – Matthew Hemming MW
The 2021 Meursault Les Perrières 1er Cru has a lilting bouquet with white peach, honeysuckle and light hazelnut aromas, fine delineation and focus. The palate has a twist of orange rind on the entry, quite tangy and lively, maybe just missing a little mineralité towards the finish in context of the vineyard, yet there is impressive persistence and tension throughout.
92-94pts – Neal Martin
Pommard Les Perrieres
$480 per case (1×6) OC (inc GST $518.40)
Light, lifted and perfumed with crisp berry fruit. In addition to the structure of the Volnay there’s a bit more creaminess and succulence in the middle. Succulent, juicy and fine.
90-92pts – Matthew Hemming MW
The 2021 Pommard Village, which comes from five parcels, has a gorgeous, beautifully defined bouquet with pure red fruit, perhaps more Volnay in style than Pommard? The palate is slightly candied on the entry with blood orange-infused red fruit; it’s quite spicy with a structured and persistent finish. Excellent.
90-92pts – Neal Martin
Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chenes
$600 per case (1×6) OC (inc GST $648)
Has a gentle, briary spice tone. The palate is very slightly brambly with some gently peppery tones coming through on the mid-palate. Holds it very well. Crisp and lifted. Chalky tannins on the finish.
89-91pts – Matthew Hemming MW
The 2021 Volnay Clos des Chênes 1er Cru has a very pure and perfumed strawberry and red cherry-scented nose, lots of Pinoté here. Seductive. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, quite edgy and saline in the mouth, though I just seek a little more complexity on the finish. Still, it should give a decade of drinking pleasure.
87-89pts – Neal Martin