Climate change is hard to ignore when you’re a farmer. Warmer summers and earlier harvests have provided Burgundian growers with new challenges, as balance and freshness have become trickier to achieve. But in some corners of Burgundy, the warmer weather has been welcome.
For decades the Côte Chalonnaise has produced wine on the margins of adequate ripeness. But the recent sunny turn of events has provided the Côte Chalonnaise reds with ample ripeness and depth. Today the region’s best wines rival the rest of Burgundy for depth and complexity, and often come with seriously good pricing.
Gautier Desvignes arrived back at his family’s domaine in 2015, and has since caught the eye of the wine press. The Wine Advocate’s William Kelley calls the domaine “very much a Côte Chalonnaise address to watch” and a “potential future star.” Vinous calls his wines “excellent,” and “really quite superb.”We’ve enjoyed the Desvignes wines since the 1990s, but we agree with Kelley — the wines are better than they’ve ever been.
Today we’re suggesting the domaine’s finest cuvée: the 2018 Givry 1er cru “Clos Charlé.” It’s the most serious and sophisticated of the lineup — drinks like a red Burgundy from a far fancier neighborhood, and well outperforms its sub-$40 pricetag.
The nose is beautiful and floral, handling its oak with grace and poise — red berry fruits melt into chalky minerality and dried flowers. In the mouth it’s refined and detailed. Drink now with a carafe and a steak, or hold for 3-5 years and watch this turn into a real stunner.
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Desvignes Givry 1er “Clos Charlé” 2018
bottle price: $38
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