Domaine de Montbourgeau L'Etoile Vin Jaune 2017 (620ml)

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Producer	Domaine de Montbourgeau
Country	France
Region	Jura
Subregion	L'Etoile
Varietal	Savagnin
Vintage	2017
Sku	40842
Size	620ml

   

WA

97

Made exclusively from the Savagnin grape, the Vin Jaune of Montbourgeau is always produced from a late harvest. After fermentation the wine is racked into foudres (30 hectoliter size) and then, after six months, racked again into smaller barrels. It is never topped off, the “voile” appears and the wine is left for at least seven years to age in barrel before being declared “Vin Jaune” and being bottled. The “Jaune” of Montbourgeau is more high-toned than the Jaunes of Puffeney and Gahier, less broad perhaps but more fine, a clear reflection of the appellation of L’Etoile.

The domaine’s nine hectares are devoted mostly to Chardonnay with Savagnin sited in 1.7 of those hectares; some Trousseau and Poulsard round out the plantings. The viticulture is organic and the vinification is strictly traditional respecting, in all aspects, the ancient practices of this region.

All grapes are hand-harvested and vinified in the cellars underneath the family home, which is surrounded by the picturesque mountaintops of the Jura. Fermentation occurs in stainless steel cuves but all wines are then racked into a combination of foudres, demi-muids and smaller barrels, virtually none of which are new. The white wines are aged in barrel; they are never racked; they are not topped off. The very special nature of the appellation of L’Etoile produces white wines of exceptional finesse and complexity.

The very young and tender 2017 L'Etoile Vin Jaune comes from a year marked by frost; but there was less frost in l'Etoile than in other places, and the Savagnin suffered less than the Chardonnay. It comes from Les Baudes Haut, planted in 1988 on gray marl and limestone with fossil soils. After the frost, it was fairly warm, and the harvest was quite early. The style of the 2017s is finer and more elegant than the 2018s, a character that also transcends the finest Vin Jaunes, like this one from Montbourgeau. The nose is complex, with a mixture of walnuts, spices, iodine and peat, hints of mushrooms and a balsamic and medicinal touch. It has a lively palate, with vibrant minerality, effervescent acidity and a long, dry and almost salty finish. It's pungent and powerful with 15% alcohol through evaporation during the long aging in barrel but also with concentrated acidity that provides balance and freshness. Only 500 bottles were produced. Anticipated Maturity: 2025-2045