Description
Domaine du Clos des Rocs, Pouilly-Loché “Les Mûres”
Which would you prefer? A bottle of Puligny from a blue-chip domaine that’s undeniably great but shouldn’t be touched for five years, or multiple bottles of a gorgeous Pouilly-Loché that’s raring to go today and in five years? If you’re anything like me, your precious dollars are going to the latter without hesitation. Clos des Rocs’ “Les Mûres” is the layered, ripe, tensely mineral Chardonnay I’ll be reveling in as often as possible while others impatiently wait for their cult collectibles to enter their drinking window.
It might be a new appellation to even the most obsessive Burgundy terroir geeks, but Pouilly-Loché rocketed to the top of our “Côte de Beaune quality at Mâcon prices” list upon tasting this wine. Now, Rocs’ “Les Mûres” is always a fantastic bottling but in the near-perfect 2019 vintage, it’s bursting with creamy orchard fruit and laced with wiry tension—if snuck into a blind lineup alongside bottles of Burgundy costing twice as much, it would easily fool almost any sommelier. I know because it happened to my coworker who, after absorbing its high-toned perfume, intricate texture, and kiss of reduction, confidently shouted out “PULIGNY!” Grab a few to drink now, a few to drink over the coming years, and enjoy true Burgundian greatness!
Olivier Giroux isn’t a household name, but amongst the most Burgundy-addicted sommeliers, he’s a rockstar of the Mâconnais. It’s unlikely he’ll ever gain true mainstream success too, given the tiny quantities of his wine exported to the States. Not to mention his insistence that he do everything himself. From farming to winemaking to marketing, Olivier is a one-man show. He’s passionately dedicated to the Mâcon like few other growers; he was born here, and while he studied viticulture and worked in cellars in the Rhône, the rolling hills of his youth called him home. He purchased the domaine in 2002 and immediately transitioned the vineyards to organics. Loché’s location outside the Burgundian limelight meant Olivier could secure six hectares of supremely great terroir for the price of a few rows in the Côte d’Or.
Pouilly-Loché is located well off Burgundy’s beaten path. The entire appellation covers just 32 hectares (neighboring Pouilly-Fuissé has almost 800), nearly a third of which belong to Olivier. Spread across seven parcels of old-vine Chardonnay with soils rich in coveted limestone, the domaine covers the appellation’s most esteemed lieu-dit. That limestone is in its highest concentration in “Les Mûres,” the parcel considered by locals to be the best in the village. One sip of Olivier’s bottling and you’ll see why. It is an encapsulation of everything that makes this appellation, this domaine, this vintage so thrilling: Generous, open-knitted fruit and floral tones make for irresistible drinking now, with a deeply embedded sense of stoniness and verve that promise years and years of pleasure to come. When these wines first entered the US market six years ago, we immediately took notice. But with the 2019 vintage, Olivier has reached the next level of white Burgundy greatness, a throwback to the region’s golden era.
Hand-harvested from 40-year-old vines, fermented spontaneously, and aged in an even split of steel and neutral barrel, Domaine du Clos des Rocs “Les Mûres” is unabashed in its beauty. It pours a luminous pale yellow with faint flecks of gold. Served at 50 degrees in Burgundy stems, the nose launches out of the glass with creamed apple, Anjou pear, just-ripe white peach, honeysuckle, lime blossom, citrus blossoms, crushed oyster shells, and wet river rocks. The palate is packed to the gills, a high-wire balancing act between boomingly deep concentration and vivifying, acid-driven mineral tension. Citrus and tree fruits dominate on the palate before a wash of classic limestone saltiness cleanses and lifts up the minutes-long finish. Follow our lead and go deep!
