Oldest Vines in Burgundy?

I

Ian Fitzsimmons

Ian Fitzsimmons
Browsing some articles on Nicolas Potel's wines, I ran across two that say the 'oldest vines in Burgundy' are in the Beaune Greves vineyard from which Potel sources grapes to make his eponymous wine. If memory serves, one articles says they were planted in 1905, one says they are 80 years old.

This is an interesting Burgundy trivia item and I wonder if it jives with others' knowledge of the region.
 
It's a hip hop thang.

I would hope that the oldest vines in Burgundy weren't under the mediocre control of Potel...
 
Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru La Richemone Cuve Ultra from Perrot-Minot reputedly is made from vines planted in 1904. I've had the 2006.
 
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
Is Potel really so blah? He gets decent press.
Click to expand...

Ian,
I notice he gets pretty nice props in some tasting notes, as well.
I don't often get to taste his stuff but the ones I have all seem generic. Nothing wrong with them just no character.
But that's just me.
Best, Jim
 
I hear a lot of talk of Potel variability but since I've only bought bottlings that were recommended to me I haven't been disappointed yet.
 
Chzeaux's Clos St-Denis are more than 100, I think Potel's Beaune-Grves are claimed to be even older (he now owns the vines, BTW). Roty at one time claimed that his vines dated back to the 19th Century, but if you've ever met Jo (only once for me, never met the son), you know that what he says isn't always convincing. I have nagging in the back of my mind that there are some other people claiming very, very old vines, but I can't recall who right now.
 
originally posted by Florida Jim:
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
Is Potel really so blah? He gets decent press.
Click to expand...

Ian,
I notice he gets pretty nice props in some tasting notes, as well.
I don't often get to taste his stuff but the ones I have all seem generic. Nothing wrong with them just no character.
But that's just me.
Best, Jim
Click to expand...

Agree.
 
Potel has an amazing ability to make an incredible range of wines from different appellations that taste startlingly alike. A benefit for some I suppose. Not generally for me.

I usually find that his most interesting bottles come with bottles labeled Volnay or Pommard, in which villages I think he has benefited from long associations with growers.

Prices are generally fair, and he makes half bottles (not so often met with amongst red burgundy producers).

I used to really like, and in fact poured by the glass in 2 successive vintages, the Potel "Maison Dieu" Bourgogne Rouge Vieilles Vignes. It was good, and you could pour it for less than $15/glass (this was several years ago). He told me a couple of years ago that he no longer makes that bottling, something about the fruit source no longer being available. I believe it was sourced from vines in the area of Pommard.

When meeting him in person in the context of industry tastings, I have been struck by an approach on his part that might be seen as snarky, or might be seen as ironical, or might instead be symptomatic of an onset of boredom with the routine of tastings and the public. But then I guess we've all been there.
 
All this talk about Potel being fairly lackluster (or just not showing 'place' very well) is kinda depressing. I don't have many of his wines, but I did pick up a couple of '05 Charmes-Chambertin from one of those Premier Cru sales a little while back with the idea that they'd be nice down the line. I don't plan on getting to them any time soon, but I hope they end up better than the reports of his wines above.
 
originally posted by lars makie:
Hmmmm....All this talk about Potel being fairly lackluster (or just not showing 'place' very well) is kinda depressing. I don't have many of his wines, but I did pick up a couple of '05 Charmes-Chambertin from one of those Premier Cru sales a little while back with the idea that they'd be nice down the line. I don't plan on getting to them any time soon, but I hope they end up better than the reports of his wines above.
Click to expand...
you have to go wine by wine -- it all depends on the sources. At the beginning, his strongest wines mostly were from Nuits and Vosne, IMO. The last few years that had broadened out quite a bit and the wines had been getting more consistent. But of course, now Nicolas Potel no longer is at Nicolas Potel, so who knows?
 
originally posted by Levi Dalton:

I used to really like, and in fact poured by the glass in 2 successive vintages, the Potel "Maison Dieu" Bourgogne Rouge Vieilles Vignes. It was good, and you could pour it for less than $15/glass (this was several years ago). He told me a couple of years ago that he no longer makes that bottling, something about the fruit source no longer being available. I believe it was sourced from vines in the area of Pommard.
Click to expand...
$15 a glass on a $15 bottle???!!!

I understood that the source was his own vines, which are indeed just below Pommard. The Bourgogne is now called cuve Grard Potel, but I hadn't understood that the source changed.
 
originally posted by Levi Dalton:

When meeting him in person in the context of industry tastings, I have been struck by an approach on his part that might be seen as snarky, or might be seen as ironical, or might instead be symptomatic of an onset of boredom with the routine of tastings and the public. But then I guess we've all been there.
Click to expand...

My impression too. His employees don't think much of him either. The last guy I talked to implied that Potel was on a beach somewhere and didn't care about wine.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top