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Country: | France |
Regions: | Burgundy Maconnais |
Winery: | Guillemot-Michel |
Grape Type: | Chardonnay |
Organic: | Yes |
Vintage: | 2022 |
Bottle Size: | 750 ml |
Guillemot-Michel Vire-Clesse Retour a la Terre is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
This cuvée is produced from grapes planted in the "Champ-Rond" vineyard and vinified in 800-liter amphoras.
The wine displays the estate's typical exotic fruit aromas and ripe citrus fruits with an extra dimension of expression due to the amphora's breathing. Ample and generous in the mouth with fine acidity and fantastic purity.
Guillemot-Michel Vire-Clesse Retour a la Terre is aged in 800-liter amphoras. The small grapes ripen beautifully without a high degree of alcohol - they are picked on the last day of the harvest, and the aging in amphora gives the wine a great purity.
The vines are grafted on "Riparia Gloire de Montpellier" - an old root-stock that was obtained in 1880 - producing very low yields with magnificent small grapes of a deep gold color.
The Domaine Guillemot-Michel Estate
Pierrette and Marc Guillemot took over the Domaine from Pierrette's parents in 1985. Pierrette and Marc are both oenolgists from the school of Beaune and post-graduates from Montpellier. They have applied their studies and have married both scientific and homeopathic principles in their winemaking. The Domaine is located in the commune of Quintaine, adjacent to the village of Clesse, South of Burgundy. Quintaine is recognized as producing some of the finest wines of the Mâconnais, having a special microclimate caused by the close proximity of the Saone river. The winery became biodynamic in 1991. They produce around 3,000 cases yearly and export 85% of the production (UK, USA, Belgium, Swizerland, Germany, Japan, etc)
"A tiny biodynamic estate making highly individual wines; the grapes are picked ripe, resulting in high alcohol levels and viscous textures; residual sugar not uncommon here."
- Anthony Dias Blue's pocket guide to wine 2006
The Domaine Guillemot-Michel Vineyard
This 7-hectare (17.3 acres) vineyard on a clay and limestone based soil has been cultivated through biodynamic and organic methods since 1991 (the Biodynamic method regards the earth as a living organism and strives to renew the soil in order to produce food that is full of vitality and deeply nourishing. Biodynamics notes the interrelationship of all kingdoms - mineral, plant, animal and human - and their intricate correspondence to the rhythms and activities of the larger cosmos). That means they work in harmony with the cycle of the vines and the soil. They don't use any chemicals and prefer mineral and vegetal treatments. They work the soil using manual and mechanical methods but they treat the vines only manually.
The wine is 100% Chardonnay and goes through 100% Malolactic fermentation with no use of oak. The vines average 45 years of age with a typical yield of only 2.5 tons per acre. Marc and Pierrette are constantly experimenting, searching for new ideas, willing to take on board both traditional and modern methods.
Guillemot-Michel Vire-Clesse Charleston is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
This cuvée is produced from hundred-year old vines that the great-grandfather planted after he returned from World War I. The family wanted to honor his memory and vinify these vines the same way he did, in old demi-muids.
Charleston is a deep and complex wine that gently express itself in the glass, offering juicy white fruit flavors and a lengthy finish.
Charleston is vinified and aged for one year in demi-muids of over 10 years old. During the following harvest, the wine is racked and placed in vats for another 6 months of aging before bottling.
Fish in white sauce, poultry in creamy sauce, hard cheeses.
Review:
"The 2019 Viré-Clessé Charleston is brilliant, opening in the glass with notes of buttered citrus fruit, pear, beeswax and vanilla pod. Full-bodied, layered and textural, with huge concentration, lively acids and a seamless, multidimensional profile, it's long and penetrating. It's one of the very best wines I've ever tasted from the domaine. Readers will remember that the Guillemot family's oldest parcel of vines dates back to 1918, and the idea behind this cuvée is to work the vines and make the wine in the same way as their grandfather—who planted them—did. It spends a year in old demi-muids followed by six months in tank on the lees. - William Kelley"
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (August 2021), 94+ pts
Guillemot-Michel Vire-Clesse Charleston is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
This cuvée is produced from hundred-year old vines that the great-grandfather planted after he returned from World War I. The family wanted to honor his memory and vinify these vines the same way he did, in old demi-muids.
Charleston is a deep and complex wine that gently express itself in the glass, offering juicy white fruit flavors and a lengthy finish.
Charleston is vinified and aged for one year in demi-muids of over 10 years old. During the following harvest, the wine is racked and placed in vats for another 6 months of aging before bottling.
Fish in white sauce, poultry in creamy sauce, hard cheeses.
Review:
The 2020 Viré-Clessé Charleston is the most structured, concentrated wine in the range, mingling notions of crisp orchard and stone fruit with scents of clear honey, white flowers, beeswax and mint in an inviting bouquet. Medium to full-bodied ample and satiny, it's layered and multidimensional, with impressive depth at the core, racy acids and chalky grip. Derived from the Guillemot family's oldest parcel of vines (dating back to 1918), it's built to age.
-Wine Advocate 94 Points
Guillemot-Michel Vire-Clesse Charleston is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
This cuvée is produced from hundred-year old vines that the great-grandfather planted after he returned from World War I. The family wanted to honor his memory and vinify these vines the same way he did, in old demi-muids.
Charleston is a deep and complex wine that gently express itself in the glass, offering juicy white fruit flavors and a lengthy finish.
Charleston is vinified and aged for one year in demi-muids of over 10 years old. During the following harvest, the wine is racked and placed in vats for another 6 months of aging before bottling.
Fish in white sauce, poultry in creamy sauce, hard cheeses.
Guillemot-Michel Vire Clesse is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
Beautifully expressive, with yellow fruits, orange blossom, smoke & flint. Thick and saline on entry, then seriously deep in the mid-palate, with suggestions of exotic fruits perfectly countered by strong minerality. This wine strikes a perfect balance between sweet and salty elements, and it shows vibrant acidity. It boasts a thickness that few other northern Mâconnais can match.
Enjoy with fish (such as sole meuniere), seafood, roasted chicken, goat cheese.
Guillemot-Michel Vire Clesse (magnum) is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
Beautifully expressive, with yellow fruits, orange blossom, smoke & flint. Thick and saline on entry, then seriously deep in the mid-palate, with suggestions of exotic fruits perfectly countered by strong minerality. This wine strikes a perfect balance between sweet and salty elements, and it shows vibrant acidity. It boasts a thickness that few other northern Mâconnais can match.
Enjoy with fish (such as sole meuniere), seafood, roasted chicken, goat cheese.
Guillemot-Michel Vire Clesse is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
Beautifully expressive, with yellow fruits, orange blossom, smoke & flint. Thick and saline on entry, then seriously deep in the mid-palate, with suggestions of exotic fruits perfectly countered by strong minerality. This wine strikes a perfect balance between sweet and salty elements, and it shows vibrant acidity. It boasts a thickness that few other northern Mâconnais can match.
Enjoy with fish (such as sole meuniere), seafood, roasted chicken, goat cheese.
Review:
"The 2018 Viré-Clessé Quintaine is showing beautifully, wafting from the glass with a lovely bouquet of honeyed citrus fruit, fresh pastry and orange blossom. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and supple, it's elegantly textural and refined, with a fragrant core of fruit and a long, penetrating finish. Even though it will reward a bit of bottle age, it's slightly finer-boned than the more concentrated, muscular 2017, so I would opt to drink this immensely charming wine before its older sibling. – William Kelley"
- The Wine Advocate (Issue 249, June 30th 2020), 93 pts
Tenuta di Nozzole La Forra Chianti Classico Riserva is made from 100% Sangiovese.
Located north of the village of Greve in the heart of the Chianti Classico region, the Nozzole estate covers a striking, rugged, mountainous area of about 1,000 acres at 984 feet in elevation. In order to obtain concentration and complexity in the wine, yields are kept low. The grapes are hand harvested, destemmed and crushed. Fermentation is initiated on the skins in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks, followed by a maceration period to draw out color and tannins. The wine is racked into stainless steel tanks for malolactic fermentation before aging in oak vats and in bottle before release. The wine is bottled on the estate.
The 2020 vintage was characterized by a basically cold period between April and May and by a generally warm and dry climate until July. The initial slight delay of the vegetative cycle has been recovered since the summer. The sudden increase in temperatures, especially for the later varieties where the fruit set had not yet ended, has favored a production characterized by sparse and light bunches. The stable and sunny climate of the months of August and September allowed the grapes to complete ripening in optimal conditions.
Review:
Attractive on the nose with cherries, red berries, dried herbs and baking spices. It’s medium-bodied with fine tannins. Harmonious and poised with a refined character. Weightless and agile. Polished and succulent finish.
-Wine Enthusiast 93 Points
For our 2018 Napa Valley Quilt Reserve, we tasted the developing wine throughout the fermentation and aging processes, then set aside the very best 2% for this reserve bottling. Our lot selection was based on intensity, complexity and boldness of expression that could withstand a longer aging cycle and heavier use of new French oak.
Tasting Notes
Deep Ruby Red in color with aromas of black currant, bright cherry, toffee, blackberry, marionberry pie and notes of dark chocolate. Rich and satisfying on the palate with flavors of boysenberry jam, black cherry pie filling, and cocoa layered with notes of vanilla and hazelnut. A full-bodied Cabernet with layers of concentrated black fruit, bright acidity and excellent balance. A long, velvety and satisfying finish, enjoy this stellar vintage now and for years to come!
Powerful and rich tasting, this wine from Joseph Wagner is velvety in texture and spicy in aroma. It drips with jammy Port like flavors that are backed by fine-grained tannins that tightened a bit on the finish for a good grip. Best from 2025.
-Tasting Panel 97 Points