VINCENT GIRARDIN, VOLNAY AND SAVIGNY-LES-BEAUNE
BURGUNDY, FRANCE 2019
Why do we love the wines of Vincent Girardin? Because this is an estate that doesn't cut corners, doesn't rush the process, and doesn't cop to trends.
In the words of Forbes, it "goes its own way," and to often delicious result.
Last month we brought you two of our favorite whites of theirs; we're back now with a quartet of their equally excellent reds, including two 1er crus!.
To understand what makes these wines so good, you have to go back to Girardin's "less is more" philosophy, which essentially amounts to a turn-back-the-clock approach. Farming is all-biodynamic, and only manual harvesting is allowed. In the cellar, everything is crushed by hand. Among the biggest changes winemaker Eric Germain introduced, a decade ago, was to drastically reduce the proportion of new barrels used in aging, from a high of 50% to around 10% today, Germain says he hopes to "stay as close as possible to our terroir.” To provide the wines time to open up and express themselves more fully, he has even extended his aging times.
In Burgundy, where tradition reigns supreme, Girardin is sometimes regarded as an eccentric for its methods, which include bottling wines in accordance with the lunar calendar.
More significant to us, and to many other oenophiles as well, at a time when big-bodied wines with a high ABV are more and more the norm around the world, Germain goes the opposite route. His are wines of finesse, subtlety, and elegance.
In the Bourgogne Rouge "Cuvée St. Vincent," we find a wonderful example of Côte de Beaune expression. Sourced from old vine grapes from Volnay and Pommard (45 years and more), it boasts a lively nose, full of Provençal herbs, wild raspberry, stone, and spice. On the palate, it navigates the seam between rusticity and fruitiness, freshness and depth.
Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Cru Marconnets is a medium-bodied wine with no hard edges, and nothing out of balance. In our tastings, we were impressed with its vivid core of fruit, its polished tannins, and its fine finish.
Girardin is widely acknowledged as a master of Volnay, and we have two to share: the Volnay Les Vieilles Vignes, which drinks like a wine of a much older vintage, with an easy-going elegance and length, and the Volnay 1er Cru Santenots, which bowled us over in our tasting by delivering an experience that was across-the-board in its excellence: gorgeous aromatics, complexity and depth on the palate, a superbly rendered structure, and a long, sumptuous finish.
Four beauties, and for seemingly every occasion — their balance and finesse make them especially good with food.
These won't stick around for long, folks, so get yours now!
*Offer NOT valid in-store. This offer is made pre-arrival, with wines estimated to be delivered to your preferred store in Summer 2022. With the supply chain issues that we are seeing globally, there may be some unforeseen delays which could affect the ETA. All sale prices are the lowest available at Total Wine & More and ONLY valid through Concierge Sales. No further discounts or coupons may be applied. Offer not valid in MI, NV, NY, or TN. This offer is for ONE WEEK, or until sold out, and will expire on Sunday, April 10, 2022.
