2019 Domaine Mongeard-Mugeret, Vosne-Romanée “En Orveaux” Premier Cru Red Burgundy, France.
The Domaine Mongeard-Mugeret, who is a highly regarded winery and admired for some fabulous Premier Cru and Grand Cru bottlings, with their Echézeaux Grand Cru being one of best in their lineup, along with this stellar Vosne-Romanée “En Orveaux” Premier Cru, which I just tried recently. Mongeard-Mugeret was one of the first wineries I got into when I started in the wine business and I’ve enjoyed many vintages of their excellent Burgundies, so it was great for me to sample this more recent release, which did not disappoint. The deeply garnet/ruby hued 2019 Mongeard-Mugeret “En Orveaux” delivers lovely aromatics and a rich medium bodied palate of black cherry, raspberry, tangy blueberry and plum fruits, along with touch of earth, spice and an elegant smoky/creamy oak framing. Delicate notes of violets, graphite, vanilla and fig add to this wine’s pleasure and complexity, as well as having ripe, silken tannins and a touch of mineral, making for a serious and rewarding terroir driven Pinot Noir, that could only be from the Vosne-Romanée region.
One of the elite wineries in the Vosne-Romanée area for more than eight generations, the Mongeard family was first established in Vosne-Romanée back in the year 1620, though the modern winery (label) just goes back to 1945, with Vincent Mongeard now in charge here. The village of Vosne-Romanée lies between Dijon and Beaune in the heart of the Côte de Nuits region, near the prestigious Château du Clos Vougeot, and is famed for the Pinot Noir wines. The wonderful exposure enjoyed by the Vosne Romanée Premier Cru “En Orveaux” vineyards endows these wines with a deep ruby color and aromas of red fruits, blackcurrants and raspberries typically. Mongeard-Mugeret is known for robust and richly perfumed wines with, as they note, a character that is both silky elegant and rustically charming. Their En Orveaux parcel combines sensuous viscosity and savory tones that make it a step above most other Vosne-Romanée offerings. Coming from 20 to 50 year old vines set on a shallow layer of fertile alluvial soils on top of classic limestone, the carefully selected grapes for Mongeard-Mugeret’s Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru “En Orveaux” is fermented 100% de-stemmed and macerated in traditional fashion, after which it is aged close to 18 months, depending on the vintage, in 30 to 40% new oak barrels. As mentioned, I’ve been a long time fan of Mongeard-Mugeret and I highly recommend these Burgundies, which are not cheap, but still excellent values.
($179 Est.) 94 Points, grapelive