Of all the wineries I visited in Beaujolais the portfolio at Dominique Piron was the best. There are still questions swirling about how well Gamay can age. These questions were firmly answered with my visit to this winery. Proprieter Julien Revillon opened up a Morgon from 1990 that had not only aged perfectly but still had some gas in the tank. Sixteen wines in total were tasted and there is not a single one I wouldn’t purchase. I can only hope that these wines will make their way to the LCBO at some point but for now a few bottles are available at the SAQ.
2013 Beaujolais Blanc – Beaujolais Blanc is extremely varied in style from full on Buttery Caramel to Light, Crisp and Fruity. This offering leans more towards light and crisp. The flavours show great mineral notes that help round out the palate that offers lots of Citrus flavours. The finish of this wine is clean and crisp but offers just hints of baking spice.
*2013 Beaujolais Villages – The nose on this wine is what the Beaujolaises would call “Presque Pinot” with Spice an Violet aromas dominating everything climbing out of the glass. When it passes your lips the floral aromas make way for Raspberry, and Cherry with a nice clean finish. Just fantastic!
2013 Brouilly – This was the first wine that gave me a thought to aging potential. This was a great fruit driven brouilly with pure Cherry on the nose and on the palate. The tannin on this wine was medium bodied and still quite firm. While the fruit was driving this wine I want to see how this will age with at least a few years to let the tannin relax.
2013 Morgon Grand Cras – Everything about this wine is just fresh… Fresh Cherry and Freshly cracked pepper are on the nose. The flavours are Raspberry and Cherry with a nice peppery finish.
*2013 Morgon Domaine de La Chanaise – Just as fresh as the Grand Cras but an with an intensity that the former didn’t possess. The finish is clean and subtle with very distinct white pepper flavours on the finish.
2013 Fleurie – This is another wine that has some pinot noir qualities. This is soft and elegant feeling like a pillow of cherry in the mouth. The finish has nice acidity but an earthiness tha lingers.
2013 Moulin a Vent – The thing that makes the Moulin A Vent stand out the most is the clean and bright acidity on the finish. The fruit leans more towards Raspberry then Cherry and the pepper notes are on the finish but very subtle.
2013 Regnié (Croix Penet) – The grapes in this bottle come from sixty year old vines. Meaty and Smoky with very intense concentration of flavours. Fresh cherry lead the way with fruit but almost as soon as the fruit is there smoke starts to work it’s way in. A subtle earthiness pokes through on the finish.
2013 Morgon Côte du Py – There is a strong presence of wet stone and fresh cherry on the nose. Cherry and Raspberry with nice pepper notes on the finish.
2013 Chénas (Quartz) – The nose is Raisin, Cherry and Pepper. The flavours are very interesting with Raising and Cherry present from the nose but there are hints of dried apricot in this wine. The fruit really feels dried out but fresh at the same time. The finish is nice and peppery.
It was at this point of the tasting that the education really began. We started tasting some vintages of wines we had just tasted that were only a few years old and started working backwards from there.
*2010 Chénas (Quartz) – This was the first experience in seeing what a few years in bottle will do for Gamay. The nose had already started to show signs of age with Earth and Leather. The flavours are violet and blackberry and the finish is silky smooth and soft.
2009 Morgon – Coming from an exceptional vintage in Beaujolais this was dangerously easy drinking and should you have the means grab a bottle immediately. Vanilla and Ripe Cherry on the nose and in your mouth. The finish was much more than typical black pepper with cinnamon heart making an appearance.
*1995 Morgon Côte du Py – This wine was 19 years old when I tasted it. The nose was showing signs of age with tons of leather and just hints of fresh fruit, but the freshness was definitely buried. However, once you taste this wine the Cherry notes are just starting to dry out and there is lots of freshness left. The finish is very smooth with hints of earth on the finish but with the tannin completely relaxed the fruit lingers on the finish.
*1990 Morgon – I was seven years old when this wine was made. This is the wine that created more questions than answers upon tasting. I had an idea of how long good Gamay would age, but never in my wildest imagination did I think Beaujolais could hold on for 24 years. The nose still had Ripe Red Cherry, but the fruit is starting to dry out and leather is layered over all the fruit. On the mid palate this wine is showing no signs of age with bright and vibrant cherry flavours. The finish is where you start to see signs of age with black licorice and caramel lingering on the finish. How much longer will this wine age? I have no idea. I just hope that I will have the chance to revisit this wine at some point in my lifetime and would open a bottle with great anticipation at ANY point in the future.
(Select Dominique Piron wines are available at the SAQ)
