Domaine Jacques-Frederic Mugnier "The Lovers", Chambolle Musigny 1st growth, 2008
Tasting
Brilliant, vibrant, airy, floral, spiritual… Magical! A wine of exceptional aromatic intensity.
Food and wine pairings
Braised duck with peas, veal shank with small vegetables, roasted stuffed goose, lobster in red wine, partridges, sweetbreads with morels, roasted quail, duck fillets, beef bourguignon, roasted woodcock, stew, lobster with coral sauce, spring veal chop, royal hare, matured rib of beef.
Aging potential
Give it at least 7 years. But if you are patient, the aging potential exceeds 50 years in some years.
About the cuvée
"The name of this 'climat' encourages all fantasies. No one today has proposed an explanation that can truly convince us. Camille Rodier stated in 1948 that 'a wine that has love is an expression used in Burgundy to describe a great wine that is floral, full of fire and sap.' Fair enough. Let’s just say that this name admirably suits the feminine and brilliant style of this wine.
The soil consists of a red clay layer 30 to 50 cm deep resting on a barely cracked compact limestone slab, into which the roots manage to penetrate with an impressive force. The complexity of the wine clearly reflects the dual nature of this soil.
Les Amoureuses is indisputably the greatest of the first crus of Chambolle-Musigny. It easily rivals many of the grand crus of Côte d’Or.
For us, Les Amoureuses even represents the essence of Burgundy, the most Burgundian of Burgundy wines. No other wine in the world presents this paradoxical alliance between exceptional richness (aromatic intensity, deep texture, length on the palate) and an airy delicacy. The nose is a bouquet of flowers and small red fruits.
If a wine can move you, it’s Les Amoureuses…
Technical characteristics
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Domaine : Domaine Jacques-Frederic Mugnier
- Cuvée : Chambolle Musigny 1er cru Les Amoureuses
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Country: France
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Region: Burgundy
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Sub-region: Côte de Nuits
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Appellation : AOC Chambolle Musigny 1er cru Les Amoureuses
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Color: Red wine
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Type: dry, still
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Vintage: 2008
- Average age of the vines: 60 years
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Grape variety: 100% Pinot Noir
- Harvest: manual
- Annual production: between 900 and 2700 bottles
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Format: Bottle 75 CL
Age of the Vines
"Our plot of Amoureuses occupies 52 ares 85 ca. The oldest part is over sixty years old, the youngest was planted in 1966, and the largest part in 1954 and 1956."
Annual production varies between 900 and 2700 bottles approximately.
The work in the vineyard
"The vines are managed in almost organic ways – no herbicides since 1991, no pesticides since 1997, and now only two treatments per year (against mildew) that are not organic. However, Frédéric is not a fan of biodynamics. A hint of his philosophy appears on his website where he draws a parallel between the mature Glenn Gould finding “too much piano” in his early works and the obvious overworked winemaking in some Burgundies today."
The grapes are carefully sorted by the harvesters before arriving at the cellar in small crates. 100% are destemmed and the whole berries are then transported to tanks. The wines are bottled after a second winter in barrel without fining or filtration. The wines are rarely of deep color but are brilliantly fragrant in bouquet and very persistent in finish.
I once mentioned during a tasting at the estate that his wines had a sense of harmony. “That’s the nicest thing you can say about my wines,” replied Frédéric.
Jasper Morris MW, director of Burgundy wines and author of the award-winning complete guide Inside Burgundy.
History of the domaine
Founded in 1863 by Frédéric MUGNIER, a liquorist in Dijon, the estate included nearly twenty hectares in Chambolle-Musigny and Nuits-saint-Georges at the beginning of the 20th century. It was operated, along with the liqueur factory, by the sons and grandsons of Frédéric until 1949. Before the creation of the appellations of origin, as early as 1878, the wines of the estate were sold under labels bearing the sole mention “Château Chambolle-Musigny,” following the Bordeaux example.
In 1950, Jacques-Frédéric MUGNIER, great-grandson of Frédéric, born in 1923, sold the liqueur business, which had been severely weakened by the war and economic difficulties, and leased the vineyard, reduced over the years by inheritance, to a large wine house in Nuits-saint-Georges.
Jacques-Frédéric MUGNIER took over the direct management of the Chambolle vineyards from 1978 until his death, and in 1985, Frédéric MUGNIER, son of Jacques-Frédéric, took full responsibility for the family estate.
Today, around Jocelyne and Frédéric Mugnier, the permanent team of the Domaine: Adeline, Audrey, Damien, Fabien, Guillaume, Patrick, and Philippe, pays attention day after day to every detail so that, from vine to cellar, and up to your glass, nothing is lost of the best of nature.
Source : Domaine