2023 Domaine Courbet, Trousseau de la Vallée, AOC Côtes du Jura, France.
Just slightly deeper than the Poulsard, which I reviewed earlier, the Domaine Courbet Trousseau is still delicately pale ruby and a bit cloudy in the glass with a subtle floral and spicy nose and a heavenly light and lingering palate of bright cherry, plum, huckleberry, strawberry and red currant fruits, as well as mineral tones, snappy spices, rose petal and wild fennel notes. Again like the Courbet’s tasty Poulsard, this Trousseau is classic old school earthy Jura wine comes from ancient seabed and limestone soils, all organic vines, that are hand tended and harvested, seeing a natural indigenous yeast fermentation and almost no sulfur. Again as noted in my previous review of the wine here, Courbet’s red grapes are de-stemmed and the Trousseau sees a 24 hour cold soak and then is fermented and then is typically aged a full year exclusively in stainless steel vat, all to produce a wine of purity and crisp detail, as this 2023 vintage perfectly and transparently shows. If you were looking to explore this remote alpine region, between Burgundy and the Savoie, Domaine Courbet would be an informative and delicious place to start.
The all biodynamic Domaine Courbet estate, as mentioned in my last review, flies under the radar, but is one of the oldest and most traditionally natural family estates in the Jura and Château Chalon, which was originally founded in 1869 with vineyards, livestock and grains. Over generations Domaine Courbet gradually evolved to grow only grapes and make wine here for the last 50 years and is now run by the father and son tram of Jean-Marie and Damie Courbet. Their estate is tiny by modern standards at just about 7.5 hectares of vineyards, but with prime parcels in the famed Château-Chalon, as well as plots around Domblans and Menétru. Courbet’s US West Coast importer Beaune Imports says the reds, all farmed Biodynamic since 2005, like their Poulsard, this Trousseau, as well as the Pinot Noir, are grown in light marne soils with some limestone, which contribute to the wines having distinct terroir. I was thrilled to taste through the current releases here at Courbet, courtesy of Beaune Imports and I was very impressed with the whole lineup, with the reds, especially the Trousseau and the Poulsard being standouts. I would recommend Courbet for long time fans of the Jura, as well as the new and curious of this mysterious old world region.
($40 Est.) 92 Points, grapelive