GRANDES MISES
MOULIN-À-VENT 2018
Grape varietal
Gamay Noir with with juice.
Tasting notes
Intense ruby red colour.
Frank nose with silky mellow woody notes followed by pleasant and varied aromas of black fruits, spicy and floral, chocolate and roasted coffee notes.
Full-bodied on the palate with flavours of black fruit which echo the nose. Elegant hints of oak and real but velevety tannins showing an ample structure and a very nice length.
Serving suggestions
Best decanted and served at a temperature of 14° to 16°C. (57-60°F.) to discover the aromatic intensity of this wine.
Food and wine pairing
It is perfect with red meats, grilled, roasted or even marinated and strong cheeses.
Ageing potential
This wine can be kept for more than 5 years.
Origins
The appellation gets its name from the presence of an old windmill situated in the middle of the vineyard, which was used to mill grain until the mid 19th Century. The Moulin-A-Vent appellation stretches over the communes of Romaneche-Thorins and Chenas.
Terroir
The soil of Moulin-A-Vent is fairly shallow, permeable and rich in mineral elements especially manganese. Composed of pink-coloured brittle granite.
Vine and soil
From a rigorous selection of a single domaine sourcing. The vineyard benefits from all exposures except the North.
Age of vines: 50 years
Yield: 52 hectolitres / hectare
The vines are pruned “en gobelet” with sustainable farming methods.
The shallow, pink-brown soil is sandy and not very clayey, but clearly acidic, on variegated clays beyond 105 cm, then pebbles, then weathered granite.
Vinification and maturing
Handpicked on September 2017, the 6th, the Gamay grapes had exceptional concentration and were fully ripe.
Burgundy-style vinification, the grapes were 100% de-stemmed but not crushed, then placed in vat by gravity.
The fermentation maceration lasted 25 days with cap-punching, over-pumping and racking before pressing at the end of October.
The wine was then placed into 3 to 5 years old barrels for a 24 months ageing on its fine lees.
Bottling in December 2020 after a light filtration.
6 900 bottles produced.
Vintage : 2018
January was mild, but February and March were cold. Then came April, which was hot, dry, and fairly sunny; and May, which was rainy with normal levels of sunshine. June was hot and stormy, but the vines remained miraculously healthy. Summer was very hot and dry.
Despite the drought and high temperatures, the vines withstood the weather very well.
Harvesting began on 27 August in the earlier zones, and on 13 September for later plots.
The 2018 vintage has early been described as incredible and aromatic, dominated by notes of black berries and raspberry, with a touch of spice, and remarkable structure and balance.
