Thierry Glantenay Pommard 'Rugiens' 1er Cru 2016

SKU
TGPN201616 UCAU
  • This old-vine parcel of 0.19ha always produces one of the domaine's best wines.
  • 91-93 points, Neal Martin
  • It has comparatively graceful tannins, floral red fruits, some whole bunch spice and good supporting acidity.
  • 1 or more bottles
    $240.00
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  • Neal Martin
    91-93 points

Editors notes

Located in what Thierry Glantenay calls the low part of Rugiens Hauts, so right next to the more famous Rugiens Bas, this old-vine parcel of 0.19ha always produces one of the domaine's best wines. Delicate for a wine from the Premier Cru, it has comparatively graceful tannins, floral red fruits, some whole bunch spice and good supporting acidity.

Details

Tasting Profile

  • Light (Light)
    Full (Full)
  • Low Tannin (Low Tannin)
    Tannic (Tannic)
  • Sweet (Sweet)
    Dry (Dry)
  • Low Acidity (Low Acidity)
    High Acidity (High Acidity)
  • Aroma
    • Earthy
    • Herbal
    • Red Fruits
  • Palate
    • Cedar
    • Red Cherry
    • Strawberry

Food Pairings

  • Fish
  • Game
  • Poultry

Critic Scores & reviews

  • Neal Martin

    91-93
    "The 2016 Pommard 1er Cru les Rugiens contains 30% whole-bunch fruit this year, less than the Volnay Caillerets. It is much more backward, reticent on the nose by comparison, tightly wound with attractive undergrowth scents interwoven into the dusky black fruit. It gradually opens but never pulls out the throttle. The palate is very well balanced with a fleshy, silky-textured opening. The stem addition is just right—lending freshness and yet never dominating the flavors, while the finish is very focused with a tang of soy on the aftertaste that urges you to return and take another sip. Excellent. This is a Pommard that should mature well over the next decade and drink over two."

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Locations

France

Wine is being produced throughout France and has been done for over 2,500 years with certain Châteaux dating their history back to Roman times, around 6th Century BC. Ranking second in the world in per-capita consumption and first in total production quantity. More so than the overall quantity of wine is the quantity of truly great wines coming out of France makes the nation the envy of wine-making nations worldwide.

Two concepts pivotal to the higher end French wines, in particular, are the idea of 'terroir' and the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) system. Terroir refers to the way the geography, geology and climate find their way into the glass, telling a story of the origin of the wine. The AOC was set up in 1935 and has the primary goal of protecting the authenticity of the wines and the livelihoods of the producers. Appellation rules strictly define which varieties of grapes and winemaking practices are approved for classification in each of France's several hundred geographically defined appellations, which can cover entire regions, individual villages or in some cases, like in Burgundy even specific vineyards.

Classic wine regions in France include Champagne (home of Champagne), Burgundy (Pinot Noir and Chardonnay), Bordeaux (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot), Alsace (Aromatic varietals), Loire Valley (Chenin Blanc, Crémant) and the Rhône Valley (Syrah, Grenache Mourvedre)

The Bordeaux classification of 1855 is still in use, as is the Sauternes and Barsac Classification of the same year. Wines from certain regions can be bought En Primeur, which is when the wine is sold prior to it being bottled.

Burgundy

Burgundy is undoubtedly the home of the finest Pinot Noir and Chardonnays in the world, where vineyards, or Domaines have been producing wines for over 2000 years. Burgundy is located in the North-east of France, an hours drive from Lyon and 2 hours from Paris. With over 100 appellations, or sub-regions (more than any other wine region) Burgundy is known for being the most terroir-oriented region in the World. The finest red wines of Burgundy are found in the Côte d'Or, a string of villages including Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin, Morey St Denis, Chambolle-Musigny, Vougeot, Vosne-Romanée and Nuits-St Georges.

There are flavours present in great Burgundys that are the envy of Pinot Noir producers worldwide. The elusive peacocks tail finish that goes on and on, and the pretty-elegance backed by Burgundy muscle is the goal of winemakers around the globe. The main levels in the Burgundy classifications, in descending order of quality, are: Grand crus, Premier crus, village appellations, and finally regional appellations. For the Chablis wines, a similar hierarchy of Grand Cru, Premier Cru and Village wines is used, plus Petit Chablis as a level below Village Chablis.

Pommard

Pommard is an appellation village of the Côte de Beaune subregion of the Côte-d’Or in Burgundy, France. It received its appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC) in 1936 – one of the first to do so. It sits between Beaune and Volnay and includes 28 Premiers Crus, including the famed vineyards of Les Rugiens and Les Épenots. The area is renowned for producing exclusively red wines from the Pinot Noir grape. These wines are typically deep red in colour. On the nose, expect powerful aromatics of black and red fruits, such as blackberry, ripe plum, and cherry pit. With age, these aromas concentrate even further, and notes of leather, pepper, and chocolate develop. These wines also boast reasonably high tannin content; with significant ageing, these dense, firm tannins soften and smooth out, resulting in fruit-filled, textural, robust wines.

About the brand Thierry Glantenay

Thierry Glantenay I have following since his 2006 vintage which was just four years after his first vintage solo in 2002. He made 1999-2001 together with his father Bernard Thierry and Marie-Neige have two young daughters and live in the Glantenay family home on the Volnay’s Rue de Vaut which is the highest street in Volnay after the village and has an impressive and expansive view of the appellation below. In fact just below them is the Marquis d’Angerville’s 1er Cru vineyard ‘Clos des Ducs’. The winemaking equipment that Thierry inherited was functional but it was getting old and Thierry, from 2008 invested everything he had into a new press, tanks, peristaltic pumps and two ‘tables de tri’ including a vibrating table to optimise sorting. In late 2015 he built a fully restored cellar underneath his house, the final piece in the puzzle in his quest for quality. He know has the best equipment and a great, functional space to produce wine. My view is that from 2015 and onwards, his wines truly shine.

It is established that the very greatest wines in Burgundy are made by growers not by Negociants. Negociants can't control enough in the vines to reach the real pinnacle and many buy nearly finished wine. Some make excellent wine, it is true, but it because they are talented winemakers.
The greatest Burgundies are made by those who are equally talented winemakers (or perhaps better) but who also own and farm their vines; working hard and with the intuition and counsel of the past generation(s) - it is the genesis of skill both in the vines and in the cellar that produces the best. Thierry is a talented winemaker and farms the family vines; the results are in the glass.

-William Kelley is the new reviewer at the Wine Advocate.

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