The Wiseman of the Jura
2006 Macle Côtes du Jura
Avoiding the Whims of Wine Fashion, Beautifully
"[Macle's wines] seem to rifle through a repertoire of the natural world as you sniff and sip."
- Andrew Jefford, The New France
Today we present one of the Jura's true greats.
In our opinion, Macle should be included with the traditional wines of Vatan, Verset, and Trollat; benchmark producers who intuitively produce soulful, subtle, and long lasting wines that seem nearly impossible to replicate.
This is our fourth Macle offering - a past Macle bottling (the 2004 Côtes du Jura) was a "Crush Wine of the Year." That's how strongly we believe in these wines. For those who have never experienced traditional winemaking in the Jura, there is nothing else like it. Today we offer thanks. Thanks that there are wines as challenging and inspiring as Macle's lovely creations. Thankful there is still a strong audience for these wines.
Thankful that chicken and morels and Vin Jaune all coexist in this world simultaneously. (Have you not tried this dish???)
Today we focus on the 2006 Côtes du Jura, a Chardonnay/Savagnin blend from a choice plot of vines that was in fact part of Chateau Chalon, until the appellation’s boundaries were redrawn in the 1980s.
 |
For those of you familiar with the Côtes du Jura bottling, the 2006 version is one of the strongest we’ve seen and perhaps more importantly, the most delightful to drink now! In The New France, Andrew Jefford comments that Macle’s wines, "...seem to rifle through a repertoire of the natural world as you sniff and sip."
This they do. Yet what’s striking about Macle’s 06 Côtes du Jura is that it combines all the forest allusions that Jefford mentions with a generous layer of mirabelle plum and Meyer lemon marmalade. Underneath this baby fat is the serious structure we’ve come to expect from Macle along with the signature flavors: Hints of nuts, mushrooms, salt, fresh green moss, pine needles, moist dark earth, pulverized cooking spices and a mountain stream medley of rocks, stones and pebbles. (Buyer beware: As the tasting note above suggests, these are beautiful yet unique wines - there is an oxidative tang to the wines which is very distinct. Try a bottle before you go long!)
What sets Macle apart from nearly all other Jura producers is his ability to both give these incredibly diverse and unique flavors absolute clarity, while also weaving them together into a unified tapestry that has an undeniable mineral-driven elegance. These wines, for all their eccentric quirks, move amazingly across the palate with a calm grace, with a seamless oil-and-mineral infused spine that gives them great direction and focus.
The great whites of the Jura are some of the most complex and ageworthy wines around. The slim prices at which they are available means these bottlings join the ranks of Muscadet and German Riesling as the "best value whites" to cellar and drink over the next 20 years.
The best way to really fall in love with the 2006 Macle is at the dinner table - particularly the winter table set with hearty fare. Chicken with morels and Vin Jaune, the iconic Jura dish, as mentioned above, is simply bonkers good. Or try the recipe for poulet au gratin a la Savoyarde in Elizabeth David’s French Provincial Cooking. Or make the mundane marvelous: A simple roast chicken with a potato puree spiked with walnut oil is great.
The Macles are about as old-school Jura as it gets. Barrels from the 1850s are still in use, only indigenous yeasts are employed. Even in the 1960s and 70s, when there was rampant use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, the Macles followed nearly organic practices. Jean Macle even served as the Mayor of Chateau Chalon; he is the wiseman of Jura wine.
The reputation of Macle in Europe is formidable. For whatever reason, these wines simply aren't imported and we were even told from someone who had inquired at the estate that they were sold out for the next two years! To make matters worse, the Macles own a mere 4 hectares in Chateau Chalon and only 8 hectares in Cotes du Jura and therefore produce but a scant number of bottles.
Those interested in this thrilling example of Jura royalty are encouraged to order now by emailing us at offers@crushwineco.com or calling the store at (212) 980-9463.
Joe Salamone
Stephen Bitterolf
Wine Buyers
Crush Wine & Spirits
Special Bottle Price: $29.95
No compare at pricing is available
Wine is simply not available in the U.S
2006 Macle is in STOCK!
NET | No further discounts