| Review: |
"Aromas of citrus blossom, fresh peach, pears and warm pastry introduce Jeandeau's 2017 Viré-Clessé, a medium to full-bodied, lively and precise wine that's elegantly textural but decidedly incisive by the standards of the appellation. With time in the glass, musky nuances emerge, hinting at the presence of some muscaté selections of Chardonnay; Jeandeau opts to raise these in tank, while the remaining two-thirds are vinified in barrel. Since he didn't produce his cuvée "Hors de Temps" this year, all the juice went into this, the regular cuvée. As I wrote last year, Denis Jeandeau's first vintage was 2006, and despite his still-tender age, he is now firmly established, with a cuverie and cellar opposite Domaine Ferret's winery, and his bottles represented on many of France's best wine lists. The only vines he owns are in Viré-Clessé, but he farms (organically) and harvests all the grapes he purchases himself. Production amounts to some 30,000 bottles per year, including 5,000 of his emblematic Secret Minéral, a striking cuvée that combines rare cut and tension with the depth and concentration of old-vine Pouilly-Fuissé. Vinification is in tank and used barrels, and the wines are bottled without filtration after a year or so on the lees. These are precise, elegant wines that subvert the Mâconnais stereotypes of unctuousness and corpulence, and their classy style will certainly win them many admirers. I encourage readers who haven't encountered this impressive producer's wines to seek them out." |