2021 Ludovic Montginot, Morgon “Les Charmes” Cru Beaujolais, France.
Ludovic Montginot’s beautifully pure and ruby hued 2021 Morgon is from the prized and intense Les Charmes vineyard, the highest altitude lieu-dit in the Morgon appellation, with its mature Gamay vines that are set on granite, schist and manganese soils. Even in a so so vintage, Montginot, who was all new to me, really got the best out of it and this traditionally or Burgundy style de-stemmed and macerated Gamay shows off pretty floral aromatics and a fine medium bodied palate of dark berry, plum, strawberry and tangy cranberry/currant fruits, which are accented by cinnamon, walnut, a touch of cedar, wild herb, anise and mineral tones. This well made, precisely detailed and charming Les Charmes cru Morgon reminds me of some the non-carbonic Anne-Sophie Dubois wines, for my own reference point and a huge compliment to Ludovic Montginot’s effort here and I look forward to following this label going forward, and suggest Gamay fans keep an eye for these Montginot wines, especially this one. I’m usually in the other camp and really go for the old school whole-cluster, crunchy, fruit driven Cru Beaujolais, with Foillard, Dutraive, Thevenet, Sunier and Lapierre being my go to wines, but this one certainly is delicious and shows off an impressive intensity in a refined, pure and appealing fashion, and the price is excellent.
Known as a self styled artisan winemaker, Ludovic Montginot, who’s importer H. Mercer says, works with the patience of a spider and pays careful attention to the nature of his place and is a soil and vine whisperer. He is passionate about applying holistic methods in the vineyards and believes, as many do, that this leads to a better and more expressive end product in the bottles. His commitment has paid off in his latest efforts, as seen here in this Les Charmes Morgon, which shows supple tannin, lively focus and distinctive terroir influences. The H. Mercer guys say they are not a fan of carbonic, bubble gum and candied versions of Beaujolais and were looking for a well balanced and austere producer, which led them to Ludovic, who 100% de-stems and open top ferments his Gamay and does daily hand punch-downs, after which he ages his Morgon in used Burgundy barrels. His ambition is to create a quality Morgon with an organic approach where his vines are expressed not by winemaking, but by their sense of place, which he believes, cannot be substituted. Ludovic wants his wines to drink with the energy of his vines naturally possesses, and that he is faithful to his three hectares. He says it is ultra important to honor the ancestral way of harmonizing with the rhythm of the soil and working with the moon cycles that guide his actions throughout the seasons, both In the cellar as in the vineyard. So far so good here and I recommend this unique Cru Beaujolais, which is a savvy bargain.
($23 Est.) 91 Points, grapelive