OK, to be honest, I am waaaay behind on my wine writing just lately. As I am packing to get ready for a trip up to New Joisey, I realized that I had not yet even written up my notes from a real treat of an evening back on 10 March. The event was a winemaker dinner held by highly-esteemed wine importer Bobby Kacher and featuring guests of honor Xavier Monnot of Domaine Xavier Monnot and Herve Gantier of Domaine Sainte-Eugenie. The venue was Marcel's, where a selection of the restaurant's signature culinary treats were paired with several entries from Monnot's Burgundian lineup as well as Domaine Sainte-Eugenie's reserve red.
Herve Gantier mingling with guests
Monnot is a 11th generation Burgundy winemaker who owns about 17ha of vineyards spread throughout Burgundy, meaning he makes a variety of different wines but each mostly only in small quantities. As with most Burgundy wine, small quantities equals higher prices. Gantier, on the other hand, lives in Burgundy but, with a partner, chose to start a winery in the Languedoc. He is also one of the most jovial and friendly folks anyone is likely to ever meet. It was a pleasure meeting both of these gentlemen, as well as Bobby Kacher and Antoine Songy, president of Robert Kacher Selections.
The wines paired with various courses were:
2005 Xavier Monnot Bourgogne Blanc (~$29)
2004 Xavier Monnot Puligny-Montrachet “Folatieres” (~$83)
2004 Xavier Monnot Mersault “Les Charmes” (~$80)
2005 Xavier Monnot Beaune “Les Toussaints” (~$50)
2005 Xavier Monnot Volnay “Clos de Chenes” (~$70)
2004 Domaine Sainte Eugenie “La Riserve” (~$15)
The first wine of the evening, the Bourgogne Blanc, has a very rich smokey caramel nose. It is assertive on the tongue, more mineral-driven than fruit and was just a little too boozy. Continuing with the whites, both the Puligny-Montrachet and the Mersault brought serious barnyard but I found the Mersault to be the better of the two, offering slightly more complexity and less overt oak notes.
Moving onto the Monnot's reds, the Beaune was honestly as much a miss for me as a hit. It was a little tight, with strawberry and cherry and smoke, transitioning to strawberry and stones on the tongue and a warm, spicy finish that did pair nicely with the boudin blanc. The Volnay offered a substantial change of pace with a nose of crushed fall leaves and herbal notes and a touch of barnyard. Spicy and warm on the tongue with an element that reminded me of the flavor of celery salt.
Moving onto the Monnot's reds, the Beaune was honestly as much a miss for me as a hit. It was a little tight, with strawberry and cherry and smoke, transitioning to strawberry and stones on the tongue and a warm, spicy finish that did pair nicely with the boudin blanc. The Volnay offered a substantial change of pace with a nose of crushed fall leaves and herbal notes and a touch of barnyard. Spicy and warm on the tongue with an element that reminded me of the flavor of celery salt.
Xavier Monnot, Michelle, Herve Gantier, Bobby Kacher and yours truly
While not on the official tasting roster, there were a couple of bottles of Monnot's 2005 Beaune Cent Vignes and I was fortunate to be seated at a table where one bottle was passed around. This wine was more rustic than the other reds along with ample black cherry and spices. It is a little brooding and powerful and was quite delicious and, I would have to say, was my favorite wine of the evening.
The 2004 Domaine Sainte Eugenie “La Riserve” is a little jammy with a slight medicinal note with a very Bordeaux-esque black cherry nose with toasty notes and a pleasant ferrous quality. It really is quite a solid wine and very interesting and certainly a very solid QPR at its $15 price point. This wine forms another stone in the mountain of evidence supporting the contention that southern France is producing some of the best buys in the wine world right now, weak U.S. dollar or otherwise.
The 2004 Domaine Sainte Eugenie “La Riserve” is a little jammy with a slight medicinal note with a very Bordeaux-esque black cherry nose with toasty notes and a pleasant ferrous quality. It really is quite a solid wine and very interesting and certainly a very solid QPR at its $15 price point. This wine forms another stone in the mountain of evidence supporting the contention that southern France is producing some of the best buys in the wine world right now, weak U.S. dollar or otherwise.
Antoine Songy and Xavier Monnot
I really can't say enough good things about the food that Marcel's chef/proprietor Robert Wiedmaier and chef Paul Stearman provided for the event. This was most assuredly one of the best meals I have ever had and I look forward to bringing the wife back to this Washington D.C. eatery in the very near future. If you are in the area and want to experience delicious Belgian-French cuisine, meticulous service and classic atmosphere, be sure to give Marcel's a try.
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