Mercurey 1er Cru 'Clos du Roy'
2016
Founded in 1825, Domaine Faiveley is one of Burgundy's greatest domaines. Originally the company was a classic negotiant business, based in Nuits St. Georges and engaged in the buying and selling of wine but not the production of it. After seven generations of steadily acquiring properties throughout the Cotes de Nuits, the Cotes de Beaune, Cotes Chalonnaise and now Chablis, the Faiveley family have established themselves as the most important vineyard owners in Burgundy, with 125 hectares of...
See the FAIVELEY detail page for more information on this brand
The climatic conditions were very mixed in 2016. The harvests took place later than usual in order to allow the grapes to reach their optimum ripeness levels. The wines present fruity aromas and have a smooth and fleshy mouth-feel. This is a very distinct vintage.
The grapes are harvested and sorted by hand. The wines are pumped over twice daily in order to extract colour, tannins and aromas from the skin of the grapes. Alcoholic fermentation is complete after a 15-19 day vatting period. The free-run wine is run off using a gravity system and is pressed slowly and gently in order to extract an exceptionally pure press wine. he wines are aged for 15 months in French oak barrels (30% new).
The nose exudes small red fruits combined with notes of oak and spice. The palate offers good balance, rich aromas and delicate tannins resulting in a very distinctive wine with exceptional aromatic persistency.
Although this is quite shy on the nose on the palate, you could mistake this highly structured wine for a Côte de Nuits 1er Cru. It starts off quite sleek, but then the minerality and the finely etched dry tannins charge through on the long finish. Long aging potential, but you could try it in 2021.
See detailed press review
Discreet wood sets off slightly riper yet still fresh aromas of plum, earth, spice and black cherry that offer even better complexity. Here too the mouth feel of the medium-bodied flavors is sleek and vibrant while possessing excellent complexity, balance and persistence. This is a very good value play and recommended.
See detailed press review
This is actually aromatically similar to the Framboisière with just a touch more elegance. By contrast there is more volume and power to the rich and well-detailed medium weight flavors that offer both more depth and persistence on the somewhat more structured finale. This mineral and earth-inflected effort also offers very fine quality and is worth considering.
See detailed press review
(tasted from tank; from south-facing vines on white soil): Moderately saturated dark red. Aromas of black raspberry, minerals and spices are lifted by a violet topnote. Dark and youthfully imploded, with its black cherry and licorice flavors complicated by an herbal element. More taut than the Clos des Myglands but with no shortage of fruit ripeness. This solidly structured Mercurey finishes with serious dusty tannins and firm minerality.
See detailed press review