The 2012 Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes, which mainly comes from vines around Brochon, has a more extrovert bouquet than some of Thibaut Marion’s other 2012s. The palate is sweet and succulent on the entry with tart red cherries mixed with wild strawberry, complemented by a taut citric seam. The palate is medium-bodied, structure and compact at the moment, the texture a little hard and gritty on the finish that will need a few month to soften.
The small but very welcome expansion of the Seguin-Manuel “empire” continues unabated thanks to Thibaut Marion’s acquisition of a long-term lease of a considerable 1.8-hectares of Vosne-Romanee in “Au Commune”. Furthermore, 2013 will see more Cote de Nuits wines that will include a debut Echezeaux. All Thibaut’s 2012s were matured in cask this year and as he wryly put it, there was not need to retread over the catastrophes that affected his vines, like everybody else’s. As I have mentioned several times ever since this name was resurrected from history, Thibaut is a talented winemaker not just amongst those that enjoy his wines, but respected by many of his peers. They represent good value in the marketplace, even if I decided this time that he really should consider a more modern label. If you are looking for affordable, well-crafted Burgundy, then look no further than here.
(WA 30th Dec 2013)
