2018 Domaine Denis Mortet Gevrey-Chambertin Lavaux St Jacques Premier Cru

A man of the vineyards, Arnaud Mortet is driven to produce perfect Pinot fruit from meticulously tended vineyards. He is without question one of the finest growers of the entire Côte and as great wines are the products of great fruit, it is no coincidence that he is producing some of the finest wines in Burgundy today. There is no doubt that the wines are more refined than those produced while his father was alive, yet they share the same intensity and potential longevity. Arnaud is continuing Denis' dream of producing more refined wines, openly getting closer stylistically to the wines of his uncle, Charles Rousseau, without sacrificing depth and intensity or consistency across the range.

Blended from five parcels across 1.2 hectares of terroir, this wine is certainly the benchmark Lavaux and the signature cuvée of the Mortet Estate. It is also usually the most mineral wine released by the Domaine. Lavaux is always the last Mortet site to be harvested due to the vineyard’s cool location: even if it is immediately next door to Clos St-Jacques, it does not have the protection of the high walls, and instead sits in the direct path of the northern airstreams that flow down from the valley (Combe de Lavaux). Mortet has been using more and more whole bunches, and now, more hand-destemmed berries, as he searches for ever-greater finesse.

Other Reviews....
A distinctly cool and restrained nose offers up ripe and ultra-fresh aromas of red and dark currant, pungent earth and plenty of forest floor character. The equally sleek, intense and tautly muscular flavors also exude an abundance of minerality on the impressively persistent, compact and youthfully austere finish. This markedly firm effort needs to add depth but it's very promising. Drink 2033+.
91-94 points
Allen Meadows - Burghound

The 2018 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Lavaux Saint-Jacques is elegant and perfumed this year, bursting with aromas of peonies, orange rind, wild berries and cassis. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied and fine-boned, less lavishly textural and more introverted than the Champeaux this year, structured around supple, powdery tannins and succulent acids.
93-95 points
William Kelley - Wine Advocate (Jan 2020)

The 2018 Gevrey-Chambertin Lavaux Saint-Jacques 1er Cru is completely de-stemmed and raised in 70% new oak. It has a very well-defined bouquet of raspberry and wild strawberry scents, plus pressed rose petal and a touch of orange pith. The palate is very well defined with supple tannins, a perfect line of acidity and a slight confit-like finish. Understated and refined, this will give two decades of drinking pleasure. Drink 2022 - 2044.
93-95 points
Neal Martin - Vinous

Entirely destemmed in contrast to the Arnaud Mortet label of Lavaux. 70% new wood. A lively glowing purple with a very exuberant nose. Perfume and some fresh oak, typical of the cooler sites which really thrive in 2018. Perfect fruit weight behind, deep red raspberry with a long sweet follow through.
93-96 points
Jasper Morris - Inside Burgundy