Although the English traditionally love claret (Bordeaux), we thought Kate and William should spread their territorial wings a bit as young oenophiles, so Terry is here today to introduce them, and you, to the wonderful Burgundian wines of Domaine de Montille.
I am delighted to share with you a recent evening full of Burgundy wines and vines. Etienne de Montille of the very famous Domaine de Montille, was at the house last weekend to serve us a wonderful evening of his wines and paired foods.
Pictured above are Etienne and his sister Alix in Burgundy at their winery where they produce a wine called “Deux Montille” named for brother and sister. Alix also happens to be married to Jean-Marc Roulot of the famed Domaine Roulot family in Meursault.
Located in Volnay, just south of Beaune, this winery boasts some of the most prized red wine producing vineyards of the Côte de Beaune. From their holdings in Volnay and Pommard, Hubert and Etienne de Montille (father & son) have crafted some of the most sought after Pinot Noirs in all of Burgundy. In fact, their wines can be found on the lists of virtually every three star restaurant in France. In 1993 they acquired a little more than a hectare of the prestigious Puligny-Montrachet Le Cailleret vineyard. This prized vineyard is located adjacent to the famed Montrachet. In just a few short years, this wine has become one of the most sought after whites from the region. In 2003 there were more additions to the Volnays and Pommards. They were able to purchase over two hectares in the prime Beaune Premier Cru vineyards and 2004 saw yet another addition. This will be the domaine’s first Grand Cru vineyards. One hectare located in the famed Corton-Charlemagne vineyard was added in 2004. It is planted half in red and half in white.
Stylistically, their wines tend to be different than those of the other well-known names of Volnay and Pommard. The emphasis here is on concentration and purity of fruit, firm structure, and above all, the ability to improve and become more complex with aging. In addition, their philosophy is that the potential alcohol level should never rise above 12%. This approach to vinification came about by accident during the 1959 vintage, when Hubert (below) miscalculated the amount of sugar needed for his cuvée of Volnay “Taillepieds.”
The resulting alcohol level reached only 11.5%, and to his great surprise, the 1959 Taillepieds ended up being more complex and having a greater purity of fruit than his other cuvées from the same vintage. The tasting of this wine 25 years later, proved that its lack of alcohol had in no way impeded its ability to age with grace into a fine old bottle of burgundy. Consequently, one will never experience the alcohol “burn,” ever-present in modern young red burgundies, from the nose of these wines. Because of their moderate alcohol levels, the wines tend to be shy during their first couple of years in the bottle. It is after this time, that they flesh out and provide an abundance of the fascinating aromas and flavors which we seek in great red burgundy.
The above were the wines that we showed for the event and I must say stylistically they were correct to the vintage. As the 2007 has the higher acidity levels which was constant in the 2007, especially the whites, the 2008 was bright, clean and certainly needs much more time to come around.
The 1997 Volnay Taillepieds stole the show and was everything you would ever want in a wine.
I served a beautiful rack of lamb and assorted roasted vegetables, a grilled salmon with a white wine and beurre blanc sauce for the whites. (note from Q. – um – YUM!!) A little vegetable lasagna also worked well with the richness in the Volnay and Pommard. The mashed potatoes I finished in the oven mixed with delicious French cheeses to marry well with the whites and reds.
Thanks Terry – what an amazing evening for the tastebuds!! So what do you think – a case of each for the royal newlyweds?!
I’m not sure what wine they should be drinking, but I think I might want some of this when I watch the big event on Friday. I’m also not sure why I haven’t come across your blog before but am very glad to have done so now. I especially loved your post on Provence. Regards Sharon (South Africa)
Will and Kate would love it! How interesting that they keep so strictly to the alcohol concentration limit!
xoxo,
Chic ‘n Cheap Living
Your dishes pared with the wine sounds wonderful. I love a nice rich full bodied wine and will have to have a look around our shop for some. Funny but my husband keeps wondering where I find out about all the new wines we’ve been trying lately, thaanks for this Wednesday post!
sounds like fabulous wine…I’ve been purposely searching out less alcohol content wines for other reasons, but now I can add that the lack of excessive amount add to the quality of the wine later after maturity…
great post…
maureen
We love large robust red wines. On the weekends we sip on a glass throughout the day (especially when I am cooking). Such memories you bring back. When our daughter was 1, we travelled all along the Burgundy wine route. We stayed in Beaune and had an incredible time tasting Pouilly-Fuisse, Pouligny-Montrachet, and Nuits St. Georges. This was the first time we had really ever tasted reds. The uncommercialized family run no nonsense vineyards fooled us and we had NO idea we were tasting such world class wines. What a wonderful party you organized and the meal looks super.
Oh, I need to wait 7 more months to have my next glass of wine! But I’m loving reading this post, Q.
Well done!
Have a fun day!
xo
Luciane at HomeBunch.com
What a interesting post and I loved reading all about those wines. Have a fantastic day, my dear
Kisses
Ps: I’m hosting an awesome swimming suit GIVEAWAY later today! Just in time for summer!
Um, yum, indeed! That Rack of Lamb looks perfect. Burgundies–both white and red–are some of my very favorites, so I would be happy to share a case of each with Will and Kate! Thanks for bringing us another great Wine Wednesday, and thanks to Terry for always teaching me a little something new!
Happy Wine Wednesday to both of you!
Jeanne
I hope Kate and Will are as happy with their wine selection as we were with Etienne de Montille. Also, Pol Roger became their champagne of choice for the Royal Wedding. Christian Pol Roger, my friend who is really a poet at heart, said to me “Terry, Rose Champagne is the inner massage for the body” I just about fell over after hearing that – Of course we were tasting his Rose Champagne
LOVE this!!! My kind of man!
I love your Wednesday wine selections. Your helping me fill my tiny little wine room. this is so much fun. Mona
Any advice that I can give you for your wine cellar would be my pleasure; just email me at hneckwine@aol.com
Oh my…the rack of lamb looks fabulous – I always love hearing about your new Wednesday wines!!
The lamb was exceptional and I also make a mixture of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, nancys mustard, worchester sauce, framboise, onion, garlic and chili powder add bread crumbs and make it in to a paste and cover the lamb. It keeps the moisture in while roasting and in the bottom of the pan I use a container of vegetable broth, two bottles of beer and some white wine and that becomes the sauce – which after roasting I reduce on the stove and taste and add a little more mustard
Sounds wonderful, q. Maybe I will have a glass of this wine instead of a bloody mary during the wedding, haha. Can’t wait.
Thanks for sharing! Hope all is well with you.
Teresa
Teresa – that is why we were given two hands – one for champagne or wine and the other for that wonderful bloody mary you want!!
Enjoy
Terry
Terry – love the way you think !!! :-)
There is nothing I enjoy
more than a fun wine tasting
evening! Mom and I are
tossing around the idea of
a cooking-wine tasting trip
to Napa or Sonoma next
year for my annual b-day trip : )
These sound delicious and I
loved the science lesson behind
their yumminess!
xx Suzanne
Such a lovely informative post. I had to come by and thank you for all of your visits and kind comments you leave on my blog post. You always bring a smile to my face!! xo kathysue
Um, what was your question again?:-). i’m sorry, but your rack of lamb and assorted roasted vegetables meal has my mind clouded with only thoughts of what that would taste like in my mouth right now. Oh, it looks so delicious!
PS. When i saw the home that i posted today, i really thought of you since you’re in CT. I wasn’t surprised that you immediately recognized the designer and the home, plus you’re so ” in the know.” XX