95/97

Neal Martin

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate

The 2013 Clos de la Roche Cuvée Vieilles Vignes, from vines planted in 1905, has an inviting, delineated bouquet with vibrant wild strawberry, raspberry preserve and mineral notes. The palate has great tension – so suave and poised with superb symmetry and an effortless finish that I don’t think the Clos Saint Denis has at the moment. Laurent Ponsot did not disguise his enthusiasm for this Grand Cru and I could understand why.Laurent Ponsot was my first visit in Morey-Saint-Denis. As usual he was looking dapper in a suit and shirt, his usual chatty self. Naturally, we touched upon the subject of counterfeits that Laurent has been instrumental in bringing to the courts and meting out some justice to one, if not all, of the perpetrators. I remember speaking to Laurent when the case was just beginning. Now at the other end I felt that he was somewhat fatigued by trips across the Atlantic and giving evidence in court. He's had enough of the limelight. But at least he is one of the few winemakers proactively using technology to monitor where his bottles end up (although I must admit, I find it a bit disconcerting that a red light might go "Ping" if I happened to uncork one of his wines.) The tenets chez Ponsot remain unchanged and have been discussed in detail before, the bottom line being the new oak is an anathema to Laurent. "In 2013 we had low yields," he explained. "It was exactly like in 1983 - around 15hl/ha. We started the harvest around 7 October, quite late, and we allowed the whites four months to rest in tank in order to get rid of any reduction." Laurent's 2013s are seriously fine propositions, in particular a stunning Clos-de-Bèze and Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes, though there is plenty to forage from more modest vineyard sites. There is also a négoçiant range that I did not taste here. Given the "coziness" of his cellar perched overlooking the village of Morey, Laurent has a new facility to handle these excess barrels.