Rully 1er Cru Rabourcé 2003, Domaine Marc Morey
11th January 2008
Suppose you are a sucker for white Burgundy. Suppose also that the subprime loan crisis has left you bust. The days when you could afford Montrachet are over. Meursault is beyond your reach. The New World alternatives are pleasant enough, but they lack the finesse you are accustomed to. What are you to do?
First, expect no sympathy. The world is full of envious Calibans enraged by the mere idea of expensive wine. Advertise your plight to them and they will only sneer.
Second, consider the Côte Chalonnaise. This is still Burgundy, but it is less well known, and it offers bargains.
A brief explanation may be needed. The best-known Burgundies, red and white, come from the Côte de Nuits and the Côte de Beaune, south of the city of Dijon. These areas, together known as the Côte d’Or, make some of the greatest wines known to mankind. They charge accordingly.
The Côte Chalonnaise, named after the city of Chalon-sur-Saône, lies just to the south of the Côte d’Or. But its wines - Bouzeron, Givry, Montagny, Mercurey and Rully - do not enjoy the same repute. Most lack the sheer opulence and complexity of their northern cousins. But they are still classed as Burgundy, and this is reasonable, for there is a clear family resemblance.
To be sure, one must be careful with Chalonnais wines. Too many have been given premier cru status without deserving it. Too many are lazily made. But some are of Côte d’Or standard at well below the Côte d’Or price. A case in point is this offering from the Domaine Marc Morey.
The Domaine is actually a Côte d’Or house, best known for a highly regarded Chassagne-Montrachet. But some years ago its owners also became negociants, merchants who blend and bottle wine grown elsewhere. This Rully is one of their better negociant wines, a full and creamy premier cru offering a nose of wet hay, flavours of peach and apple, and a long butterscotch finish. It costs around $35 in the US, £18 in the UK, and should offer some consolation to anyone pining for their lost Puligny. From what I gather, this Domaine’s non-cru Rully is also pretty good.
