2013 Chandon de Briailles Pernand-Vergelesses Ile des Vergelesses 1er Cru
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Tasting notes
(bottled last June; from vines harvested on October 8): Good medium red. Black cherry, licorice, flint and menthol on the nose. Juicy, youthfully imploded and firm-edged, offering excellent precision to the flavors of dark cherry, bitter chocolate, minerals and spices. Tannins are a bit tough but not dry. Finishes with a saline quality but also a touch more sweetness than I found in the young 2014 version. This should evolve slowly.
Critic scores
Richard Hemming MW, jancisrobinson.com
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
The 2013 Pernand Vergelesses Ile de Vergelesses comes from their 4-hectare parcel (three red and one hectare white). This has a stonier nose than the premier cru Vergelesses, with granite aromas infusing the black fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with a little more succulence than the Vergelesses, nicely judged acidity with a slight hardness on the sappy finish that hopefully will soften by the time of bottling. If that happens then this would be a fine, classic Pernand-Vergelesses.
Sweet fruit on the nose, with succulence and purity. Attractive stemmy note with a black-pepper character that could be easily confused with young cool-climate Syrah. Some sour flashes on the finish. (RH)
(just 5% new oak in 2013, down from a normal 10%): Good deep red. Piquant lift to the aromas of musky minerals, flowers and pepper. Shows a restrained sweetness and a fine-grained texture, along with a touch of flinty minerality. Finishes with smooth tannins but a touch of astringency. This wine only finished its malolactic fermentation the week prior to my visit.