"Nuits with a Hint of Vosne"
2008 Mugneret-Gibourg Nuits-St-Geroges
1er Cru Les Chaignots
Mugneret-Gibourg's star is officially risen. If the estate had been known as the geeky producer of a cult Clos Vougeot, things have changed.
Burgundy geeks still represent the biggest fan-base for Mugneret-Gibourg, but there's no doubt that now the collectors are also paying attention. At La Paulée last month, their 2008s were, across the board, definitely among the best in the room. (And the room was full of serious, serious Burgundy.)
Jay McInerney's recent Wall Street Journal piece on La Paulée happens to single out today's offer as a "star of La Paulée." (The article, by the way, is definitely worth a read, sporting lines like this: "Burgundy is the source of more heartbreak than country music radio.")
The 2008 Chaignots is special - it very well may be the best they've ever made, though 2005 is obviously another contender. Yet the 2008 is perhaps one of the most elegant, one of the most finessed wines to come out of Nuits-St-Georges; the Mugneret sisters call this bottling "Nuits with a Hint of Vosne."
Nuits-St-Georges is a bit of a schizophrenic commune. Some bottlings are heavy and gritty, with dark muddled fruits and tannins that seem to have claws. Yet, some producers, Chevillon and Gouges most famously, are able to take the weight and density of Nuits, and give it purity, clarity, lift... finesse.
With their 1er Cru Chaignots, the Mugneret sisters somehow do all this and make it supple, velvety, satiny. There is a textural elegance in this wine, a femininity that seems to allude all other Nuits. The famous earth and mineral and meatiness of this village is married to fruit that is incredibly perfumed, with all the rigor and purity and architecture of 2008.
There are no Grand Crus in this village and given the brutish (oafish?) nature of so much Nuits, the village has just never been able to command the prices that the Côte de Nuits demands. It seems almost cruel that Nuits is situated just south of the aristocratic Vosne-Romanée. Bad for Nuits perhaps, but good for value seekers looking to cull some of the deals of the region.
We happened to send out an email on large-format Mugneret-Gibourg the actual day of La Paulée - so while Bobby, Stephen, Chris and myself (and Jay McInerney) were at the Grand Tasting, we were selling the very wines that were so impressing us. A fun little coincidence. In any event, that was hardly our first Mugneret-Gibourg email - this is an estate we're obsessed with and the obsession is spreading.
Given the pricing and the press and the rest... well, we anticipate that this will move quickly.
To order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Ian McFadden
Director, Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits
1er Cru Les Chaignots
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Burghound: "A mélange of natural and wood spice adds nuance to the ripe yet airy and primarily red currant and warm earth aromas that is also reflected by the rich, full and seductively textured middle weight flavors that brim with dry extract on the vibrant finish that is supported by integrated and again, ever-so-slightly rustic tannins that avoid any real sense of coarseness. Fine quality here and worth your consideration."
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