Description

Faiveley are a large business in Burgundy who own large parcels all over the Cotes, including 70ha in Mercurey – a mostly overlooked region South of the Cote d’Or. From entry level to Grand Cru there is amazing care and attention.

This Clos de la Marechale vineyard is no longer in the hands of Faiveley, this is such a pity because this wine is a stunner. Fruit dense, firm structure, complexity and layers of flavour. Just about the best example of what someone means when they say great old Burgundy tastes ethereal. Drink now for maximum enjoyment.

Nuits-St-Georges

The main trading town of the Cotes de Nuits the wines here are sturdy. And by sturdy I mean tannic. They have some of the biggest tannins of all the reds with some nice fruit cake like characters and a limestone core. There are no Grand Crus here but there is some seriously impressive Premier Cru and Village wine to be had.

Burgundy

The classic part of Burgundy known as the Cote D’Or (the slope of gold) is essentially one vineyard that is 60km long and maybe 5km at its widest. From this limestone ridge some of the most complex, long-lived and aromatic wines are produced from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The Cistercian monks who owned the land codified the entire region and so each small plot has a name.

Pinot Noir

This is the most elusive grape. It is relatively early ripening and extremely sensitive to terroir. Its perfect place on earth is the Cote d’Or in Burgundy. So haunting are great red Burgundy’s charms that growers everywhere try to emulate them. Pinot Noir is not just a one trick pony, it can make great reds, rosé, sparkling and even sweet wines, whites on occasion and I’ve tasted a decent fortified Pinot Noir too.