Michel Gros appears on many lists of Burgundy’s finest winemakers. His style is smooth and elegant, with warm, enticing notes of toast, red berries, and a silky texture. Gros’s village level and premier cru wines can be truly extraordinary, but they require (and reward) investment and patience.
Not all of Michel’s wines hail from such exalted zip codes. Gros makes several “petits vins,” which aren’t as complex or long-lived, but offer a chance to sample his brilliance at a more affordable price.
In 2015, a vintage considered among the best in decades, these petits vins are unusually fine. Today’s suggestion is the 2015 “Fontaine St-Martin,” an Hautes-Côtes de Nuits that we think easily competes with village level red Burgundies.
The Fontaine-Saint-Martin vineyard is named for a nearby Cistercian abbey that dates to 1127. The hillside of vines was in production for centuries, and Michel has made wine there for over 40 years. The Fontaine St-Martin plot is indeed special — soil samples revealed the parcel contains the same mix of marl, clay, and limestone found on the Hill of Corton
The 2015 Fontaine-St-Martin punches far above its weight. It’s more impressive than anything we’ve had from the Hautes-Côtes de Nuits, with extremely dense tannins, dark blue fruit, and floral notes of violets and roses. Burghound named this one of the “Top value wines in 2015” for the entire region. Master of Wine Sarah Marsh called it “high performing” and predicted it should age beautifully.
This is a special plot of red Burgundy from a master winemaker in a legendary vintage — all for the price of a business lunch.
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Gros HCDN Fontaine-St-Martin red 2015
bottle price: $39
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