WTN: 2004 Jean-Paul Thevenet Morgon Vieilles Vignes

2004 Jean-Paul Thevenet Morgon Vieilles Vignes 13.0%
Lawd, this is great wine! Lovely light crimson, though a bit cloudy in the glass, but so was the previous, excellent bottle from a few weeks ago. Heady aromas of sour strawberry and animale with cloves and an agreeable mustiness (Marcia says cinnamon). Light bodied, yet serious, in a delightfully compatible way. I don't like those cru beaujolais (the Diochon Moulin a Vent comes to mind) that sacrifice pleasure in the name of seriousness, aspiring to the condition of village burgundies. For me, this Morgon raises the beaujolais bar to a beautiful new high. Could sniff and drink all night long.

Thevenet is part of the so-called Gang of Five (the others are Lapierre, Foillard, Breton, and Chamonard) who are stirring the pot in Morgon, picking grapes later, fermenting at cool temperatures without SO2 and using natural yeasts, giving the wines some time in the barrel and bottling without fining or filtration. The lack of SO2 makes these risky propositions for transportation and storage, but the rewards, judging from this bottle, can be considerable. I also picked up an 07 Foillard and an 07 Lapierre, and will be reporting on these soon.

I don't like those cru beaujolais (the Diochon Moulin a Vent comes to mind) that sacrifice pleasure in the name of seriousness, aspiring to the condition of village burgundies..

I think that's also the difference between Morgon and Moulin a Vent. MaV is so structured but Morgon is so much more seductive and sensual which is why it is usually my first (dreamy) thought when I think of Beaujolais. It doesn't hurt that there are so many stellar Morgon producers either..

It doesn't hurt that there are so many stellar Morgon producers either..

Let me know some of your favorites and I'll try to find them...

It doesn't hurt that there are so many stellar Morgon producers either..

Let me know some of your favorites and I'll try to find them...

Foillard, Lapierre, Thevenet and Desvignes have always been my short list. Tonight I'm having a Burgaud Cote du Py for the first time. Others like the domaine, will see how it goes.

It doesn't hurt that there are so many stellar Morgon producers either..

Let me know some of your favorites and I'll try to find them...

Foillard, Lapierre, Thevenet and Desvignes have always been my short list. Tonight I'm having a Burgaud Cote du Py for the first time. Others like the domaine, will see how it goes.

Others like Guy Breton although I have not been as excited about their wines as the other producers.

Thanks, Oswaldo and Rahsaan, for these notes on various Morgons. They make me want to out and snap up some Thévenet and Foillard straight away. I have had mixed experience with one of this gang, Lapierre I think; the bottles were variable with the best being like the two you describe here but the worst being undrinkable; add to that the requirement to keep the bottles below 14°C, which my cellar can only guarantee in deep winter (11° now), and this is not a viable purchase for me.

That is a good point, Oswaldo, about those Beaujolais which masquerade as Bourgogne. Good wines often but not what I want when I am looking for a Beaujolais fix.

[quote="Tim York"]add to that the requirement to keep the bottles below 14°C, which my cellar can only guarantee in deep winter (11° now), and this is not a viable purchase for me./quote]

This issue worries me also, like how much $ are we willing to risk for drinking wine with little or no SO2 added for the supposed extra freshness and flavor. But for what it's worth, the two bottles of 04 Thevenet opened so far (have one more) were in excellent shape (barring the purely cosmetic cloudiness) after travelling from Beaujolais to a wine store in Virginia (with unknown stops in between), then to a friend's house in upstate New York w/o styrofoam, then to me in Manhattan, then down to Brazil in a styrofoam box inside a suitcase... Perhaps they are a little hardier than we fear, though we're not about to take too many chances.

I have had mixed experience with one of this gang, Lapierre I think

From my experience, Breton, Lapierre and Thévenet have been most likely to experience brett blooming, perhaps from the instability of bottling conditions. I have never heard those complaints about Foillard so they must use a bit more SO2. But, all may use more SO2 in recent years and I thought Lapierre had SO2 and non-SO2 cuvees so to some extent this is all a moving target.

That is a good point, Oswaldo, about those Beaujolais which masquerade as Bourgogne. Good wines often but not what I want when I am looking for a Beaujolais fix.

Exactly my point about the Burgaud VV!