Lignier-Michelot ‘En la Rue de Vergy’ Morey Saint Denis 2019
The Lignier family have deep roots in the village of Morey Saint Denis and own 10.5 hectares of some of the very best vineyard sites in this village, and also in the 2 neighbouring villages Chambolle Musigny and Gevrey Chambertin. Virgile’s father and grand-father had always produced wine and sold it to negotiants until Virgile started working with his father in the early 1990’s and he decided to sell the wines himself. Now with almost 20 vintages of experience Virgile has moved the domaine to fully organic viticulture and is producing what many believe to be the best wines of this prestigious village.
In the last 10 years Virgile has modified his wine-making using whole-bunch vinification ranging from 30-100% depending on the vintage and the vineyard and he has also reduced the percentage of new oak (mostly Seguin-Moreau and Francois freres) for maturation with most wines seeing around 30% making its effect seamless in the final wines. He also completed a new winery in time for the 2013 vintage that now enables him to work with temperature control and to gain a very gentle extraction of tannins for all his wines. This results in wines showing great precision and energy with remarkable perfume and also beautiful fine tannins and very silky structure. They are wines which are often very seductive at a young age which also clearly have the potential for ageing superbly. This very young domaine is now regarded among the very best in the Cotes de Nuits.
2019 Morey Saint Denis rouge “En la rue de Vergy”
This tiny vineyard of just over 3 hectares borders directly on to 3 Grand cru vineyards (Bonnes Mares, Clos de Tart and Clos des Lambrays) and Virgile owns 1.9 ha of vines planted 1975 bordering on to those Grand cru’s. Situated quite high on the slope just above Clos de Tart where the limestone is quite close to the surface similar to the highest vineyards in Chambolle Musigny which it borders on the southern side. A stunning village site and from his fabulous holding this wine looks closer to Premier cru standard than village in intensity and detail. in 2019 this cuvee has 70% whole bunches in the ferment which lasted for 3 weeks with the final week at 30-31c lightly covered with a little CO2.
The 2019 Morey-Saint-Denis En La Rue de Vergy, comes from 50-year-old vines and is blended with 70% whole bunches. It has an intense nose, a mélange of red/black fruit, hints of kirsch and rose petals. The palate is medium-bodied with shimmering red berry fruit, a fine bead of acidity, silky smooth with a surfeit of tension on the finish.
