2001 Domaine Remi Jobard, Meursault “Les Genevrieres” Premier Cru White Burgundy, France.
Remi Jobard, who converted to organic and was certified in 2011, crafts unique expressions of Meursault, while he is going towards more mineral driven, brisk wines as is the trend, he goes further using large tight grained Austrian oak casks that enhance vitality and mineral tones. I was thrilled to try an older vintage of Remi’s wines, thanks to a Dutch friend that gets wines directly from the domaine, this 2001 was remarkably vivid, vibrant and dynamic with fresh acidity, steely mineralite and impressive depth and length, it highlights Genevrieres old vines and clay and limestone terroir to perfection, the wine is made up of mostly of vines that have at least 50 years of age, including one parcel that is over 70 years old. The son of Charles Jobard and nephew of Francis, who’s own son (Antoine) has taken over his winery, Remi ferments cooler and longer than most, sometimes even moving his barrels outside into the cold wintery weather, a two month process that he feels gives the wine a more lively feel and from what I tasted here, I agree, this is a fantastic example and exceptionally pure Chardonnay. The 2001 Remi Jobard Meursault Les Genevrieres is drinking gorgeously fresh with intense minerallity and delicate white flowers, lemon and hazelnut with fine chalk, saline and orchard fruits. Beautifully detailed and vibrant this seductive Meursault hides it’s extract and density in it’s energy and verve. This has expressive textural pleasure, but stays vivid and lifted even with air, adding fine detail and richness with hints of wet stone, golden fig, clove and comes back to citrus blossom elements, while the palate rounds out with apple/pear and delicate peach, though not overly fruity, everything is taught and vigorous, it’s a glorious surprise for a wine of this age and it shows no signs of fading at all, it might go another 10 to 15 years if cellared well, as this bottle was. For those that can’t find or afford Coche or Roulot, which are the best of the best, might want to check Remi’s wines out, they might be a bit shier, but well worth a look. This wine is one of the highlights of a week focusing on Chardonnay, it’s a stunning and pedigreed white Burgundy that put on an utterly beautiful and eye opening masterclass performance, I can’t wait to explore more of Remi’s wines!
($91-175 Est.) 95 Points, grapelive
