Vinum Exclusivity: Thibault Liger-Belair's 2019 vintage

To kick off a special series of Burgundy offers – full details of that to follow! – I’m delighted to make our first offer of the fantastic 2019 vintage from Thibault Liger-Belair.  As is our custom, we do not offer Thibault’s wines en primeur but ship them in order to launch a bottled vintage that is in Singapore and ready for immediate delivery.

2019 is one of my favourite recent vintages and, although young, is already starting to deliver on all the early promise it showed from barrel.  The reds, in particular, can be outstanding and this is fast becoming a benchmark year for Burgundy Pinot Noir.

Thibault Liger-Belair will be familiar to Vinum customers – both from our long history of importing his wines and from his frequent visits to Singapore.  Earlier this year he visited, with our mutual friend Jean-Michel Chartron, and we took them for lunch at a Hawker Centre to pair their wines with local food! 

The warmth and generosity which shines through when Thibault pours his wines in Singapore is truly infectious.  This is one of our most cherished relationships in the Cote d’Or and that has won his wines a special places in our hearts and those of our customers.  From Moulin a Vent to Richebourg – via his Grand Cru-in waiting, 1er Cru Les Saint Georges – these are soulful, expressive wines worthy of space in the grandest of cellars.

The Offer:
Limited quantities available.  Offered subject to allocation and remaining unsold. Immediately available from our Singapore cellars. 
Where balanced orders are requested, as a guide, ‘balance’ can be approximated to one case of non-allocated wine to each allocated line on the order.

Bourgogne Blanc Les Charmes 2019

$270 per case (1×6) OC (w/ GST $291.60)

An overtly citrus-infused nose speaks mostly of apple and pear elements. The delicious, forward and easy-going flavors exude an inviting salinity on the acceptably complex and persistent finish. To enjoy young.

86-88pts – Allen Meadows / Burghound

Bourgogne Aligote Clos des Perrieres la Combe 2019

$300 per case (1×6) OC (w/ GST $324)

Thibault has given this revolutionary Aligoté 6 days of skin contact, then pressed the pulp for 7 hours, before vinifying in normal sized barrels, using older wood. I love the bouquet here. Aligoté now gives a sense of zest without ripping the enamel from one’s teeth. Softer than some years, but still with good acidity, the sensual sensation carries through to a very long finish.

88-90pts – 5-star wine – Jasper Morris MW / Inside Burgundy

*****

Bourgogne Gamay Les Deux Terres 2019

$270 per case (1×6) OC (w/ GST $291.60)

There is a touch of barnyard character to the ripe dark berry aromas that lead to nicely rich, round and voluminous flavors that exhibit a touch of rusticity on the lightly structured finale. The nose is not for me.

85-87pts – Allen Meadows

Bourgogne Rouges Les Grands Chaillots 2019

$330 per case (1×6) OC (w/ GST $356.40)

Bourgogne vineyards below Nuits and Chambolle. 20% whole bunch. Fresh pink purple, lovely perfumed pinot, really very classy, scented cherries, prettily ripe red fruits with good acidity. No punch down here, just turn the cap and give a light pump over. Very long finish for a Bourgogne.

87-88pts – Jasper Morris MW

Moulin a Vent Vieilles Vignes 2019

$300 per case (1×6) OC (w/ GST $324)

The 2019 Moulin-à-Vent Vieilles Vignes was reduced by 60% in quantity by frost. A mix of six parcels with 40% whole cluster, it offers quite earthy red berry fruit on the nose. The palate is medium-bodied with fleshy red fruit, fine grip and sour cherry toward the finish. Give this a year in bottle.

86-88pts – Neal Martin / Vinous

Nuits Saint Georges La Charmotte 2019

$570 per case (1×6) OC (w/ GST $615.60)

40% whole bunch vinification and 3 new barrels out of the 6. Medium purple, bright, with deliberately very light extraction. Ripe, deep raspberries here, on the one hand deep and lush, on the other strict and with some wood tannins. Good length and very satisfying wine.

91-93pts – Jasper Morris MW

Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru Les St Georges 2019

$1,380 per case (1×6) OC (w/ GST $1,490.40)

** Maximum purchase, 1 case per customer as part of a balanced order **

Now we get serious as the big NSG enters the room: the mighty Les Saint-Georges, and I actually I feel Thibault is talking to me through this intense yet delicate wine. It is floral, with peony and rose gracing the relatively powerful terroir, yet it remains light-footed and effortless with a delicate feel – airy and organically rounded with plenty of detail. The inclusion of 40% whole clusters brings the wine home, and the result lights the way towards hedonistic grace. This is a highly enjoyable glass, showing both the greatness of the terroir and the filigreed side of 2019.

93-95pts – Steen Öhman / Winehog

Corton Les Renardes Grand Cru 2019

$250 per bottle (w/ GST $270)

** Maximum purchase, 3 bottles per customer as part of a balanced order **

The rows run from top to bottom of the vineyard so this wine should show the whole expression of Renardes. There’s more soil at the top than bottom. 40% whole bunch, much more than usual. Rich dark raspberry fruit here, dark chocolate notes too but scarcely interfering with the stricter structure of Corton, very good length. Good wine.

92-95pts – Jasper Morris MW

Clos Vougeot Grand Cru 2019

$250 per bottle (w/ GST $270)

** Maximum purchase, 3 bottles per customer as part of a balanced order **

An overtly floral nose with touches of herbal tea is composed by ultra-fresh aromas of dark berries and a hint of warm earth. There is very good size, weight and punch to the relatively large-scaled flavors that flash good power on the delicious yet decidedly austere finish that is also quite firmly structured. Promising.

91-94pts – Allen Meadows

Charmes Chambertin Grand Cru 2019

$300 per bottle (w/ GST $324)

** Maximum purchase, 3 bottles per customer as part of a balanced order **

100% new wood, 70% whole bunch, but with the top of the stalks removed. Dense purple, almost black in the centre. Heady, uncompromising, dark fruit. Startling in its style, and I think it works. The dark plum and raspberry fruit has a little dusting of chocolate, but stays light on its feet.

94-96pts – Jasper Morris MW

Richebourg Grand Cru 2019

$990 per bottle (w/ GST $1,069.20)

** Maximum purchase, 1 bottle per customer as part of a balanced order **

This is an old boy, from vines planted in 1931 and 1934 in the upper core of the Richebourg vineyard. It is floral, with 30% specially sorted whole clusters (the main stem only of the cluster is removed) giving a nuanced, yet not so stemmy feel. This technique brings out the more perfumed. delicate notes of pink roses and peonies, and it it is refined with greatness only found in a big Richebourg. Still, this is not about power, rather about seduction and refinement. A rare bird!

95-96pts – Steen Öhman

Terms & Conditions:

Offer ends on Friday 21st July 2023 l No further discount l Immediate payment required l Delivery fees ($32.40) waived for purchases above $500 before GST excluding airports | Cancellation of orders not allowed l Order/s to be collected/delivered within 1 month upon stock availability l Offered Ex-Singapore & subject to remaining unsold