Santenay

S

Sharon Bowman

Sharon Bowman
Yesterday I bought a 2001 Santenay from a producer I'd never heard of before at the Cave des Abbesses. I asked the owner what it was like, and he said that it was drinking well, but that frankly (I love the old-school Montmartre frankness), pssh, Santenay was always a bit too rustic.

As he was bagging it for me (as I should have said, the price was quite attractive, and I have no prejudices against rusticity, or 2001), he added, "It's like Chassagne."

I replied, "I agree with you, there, I'm no fan of red Chassagne. But more because they seem to lack 'place.' They seem anonymous. That big Morgeot conglomerate...."

He shrugged and made one of those French pursed-lip looks. "What do you expect, growing pinot noir on soil made for white wine?"

Now, I haven't gigantic experience with Santenay of any color, but does one consider it true that that village is better suited to whites than reds?

I was actually there a little over a year ago, for a wedding at the Chteau de Santenay, but the bride and groom wisely opted against the production of the host chteau and brought their own cases of Vosne-Romane and Nuits-Saint-Georges from a small producer they liked well.

End of musing.
 
I think I vaguely recall reading somewhere that Chassagne used to planted mostly to red in some part of its history. Not really an answer to your question, sorry.

How was the Santenay?
 
Sharon -- Santenay reds, like reds from various other less celebrated villages such as Chassagne, Meursault, and Fixin, used to be almost uniformly rustic (Grard Potel's Santenays at Pousse d'Or were the major exception). However, with better viti- and vinicultural techniques, the wines generally are much better in all those villages, and while one can still come across rustic examples, it is increasingly rare. Today, those villages can provide some surprisingly good red wines for the price if you get the right producers.

White wine soil might explain at least parts of Santenay and Chassagne, but again, I think producers have learned how to deal with it. Interestingly, shortly before his death, Potel had planted part of his Santenay-Clos Tavannes over to white.

Ian -- You're right about Chassagne having at one time (in the-not-all-that-distant past) been mostly red wine. Puligny, too! Meursault, OTOH, has always been primarily white, AFAIK.
 
I actually like Santenay, I think it's one of the better lower level appellations, esp. from a good producer like Muzard or B. Morey.
 
Certainly I don't find Santenay whites as good as the reds now, nor do I think they were ever so considered historically. But I am a huge fan of Santenay. Rustic? Eh, maybe in comparison to Chambolle, but we're not exactly talking nero d'avola here - or, for that matter, Pommard, which is way more rustic than Santenay even when the wines are $100 a bottle. Santenay makes very fine pinot noir and I have an early 1900s wine book somewhere that ranks Clos Tavennes and Gravieres at Grand Cru level. I wouldn't go quite that far but they are certainly at the level of premier crus from appellations that get way more respect.
 
I should put you and the caviste in a room and watch it blow up.

Interesting historical data. Can you say more about your thoughts on the whites, though? I have had several interesting ones.
 
originally posted by Keith Levenberg:

But I am a huge fan of Santenay. Rustic? Eh, maybe in comparison to Chambolle, but we're not exactly talking nero d'avola here
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Whole. Other. Can. Of. Worms.

Open.

There is plenty of polished (in a good way) nero d'avola.
 
I'm a lousy ranker, but we got some Pousse d'Or Tavennes a few years ago that was mighty good. Different from but not inferior to more northerly reds.
 
Morgeot used to be dominated by pinot noir vines for a good reason: together with La Boudriotte, of all the Chassagne premiers crus, its soil (reddish, due to the presence of iron elements) is most attuned to red wine production because of its strong marl and clay contents, in addition to the ubiquitous Cte d'Or limestone. But, at least until premox hit, there was a lot more money in whites than in reds, so the replanting was done on a large scale since the mid-1980s. Morgeot and La Boudriotte, BTW, are close to Santenay.
 
Around 1900, Chassagne was solidly red; that's what I've read anyway, I can't speak from personal experience.

So why is it white now? Because they can get more money for white. That's what I've been told anyway, and it's not hard to believe.

To my taste, Santenay and Chassagne are very different. C-M reds can taste like they'd have been better off white. I don't think that of Santenay.
 
originally posted by Chris Weber:

So why is it white now? Because they can get more money for white. That's what I've been told anyway, and it's not hard to believe.
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What I find hard to believe, yet what people in the trade tell me, is that Chassagne is the village most in demand for white. I know that I am not alone in thinking that Puligny is the summit (perhaps with exception for Montrachet, but that's a special case and officially is not Chassagne or Puligny as I've explained elsewhere).
 
originally posted by Thor:
Don't you think it's name recog? Most of the best of Puligny is not "Puligny," is it?
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Not sure what you mean here. If you mean it's grand cru, I'd take issue with you and say that there's still loads of premier cru and village Puligny that is better than most of the corresponding level from other villages.

But you don't like white Burgundy, anyway! :)
 
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