Wine Advisor
Bonneau du Martray, Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru 2009
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2009 Corton-Charlemagne shows gorgeous balance and overall harmony. The overt, forward fruit is nicely buttressed by the wine’s underlying minerality and crystalline purity. The 2009 is juicy and oily, but without being overwhelming. A clean, vibrant finish rounds things out nicely. It is shaping up to be a jewel of a wine. Anticipated maturity: 2011- 2019. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet, various American importers, including: Atlanta Wholesale Wines, Atlanta, GA; tel. (404) 696-9440; C’Est Vin, District of Columbia; tel. (703) 243-3559, Scott Paul Wines, Oregon; tel. (503) 852-7300, Wines Unlimited, Louisiana; tel. (504) 897-0191
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Bonneau de Martray’s 2009 Corton-Charlemagne is quite a bit richer, deeper, and more voluptuous than the 2010 tasted alongside it. Ripe pears, apples, white flowers and crushed rocks are all woven together in an elegant style that is impossible to resist. This relatively fat, full-bodied wine needs time to fully emerge, but it is shaping up to be a beauty. Layers of fruit build to the intense, generous finish. Anticipated maturity: 2014+. Sometimes I wish Bonneau de Martray made more wines, as my tastings with Jean-Charles le Bault de la Moriniere are always much too brief. Readers will find wines of impeccable polish and class at this small domaine tucked in the hillsides of Pernand-Vergelesses. De la Moriniere told me that he hoped to make the red Corton once again available to the estate’s customers in the US, which is great news, although it hasn’t happened yet. According to de la Moriniere, 2009 was a year unlike any other he has seen for its consistent, uninterrupted good weather. The harvest started on September 9th. Yields came in at 39.4 hectoliters per hectare for the Corton-Charlemagne and 27.05 hectoliters per hectare for the Corton. The Corton-Charlemagne finished its malo in June 2010, while the Corton started its malo in May, 2010 and finished in August. Both of the 2009s were bottled in Spring 2011. By contrast, the 2010s were brought in beginning on September 23, after a year characterized by an irregular flowering that lowered yields and an equally variable summer with periods of rain and heat. Conditions improved markedly during the month of September. Yields of 30.50 hectoliters per hectare for the Corton-Charlemagne and 22 hectoliters per hectare for the Corton were the lowest ever recorded at the domaine with the exception of 2003. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet, various American importers, including: Atlanta Wholesale Wines, Atlanta, GA; tel. (404) 696-9440; C’Est Vin, Arlington, VA; tel. (703) 243-3559, Scott Paul Wines, Oregon; tel. (503) 852-7300, Wines Unlimited, New Orleans, Louisiana; tel. (504) 897-0191
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2009 Corton-Charlemagne shows gorgeous balance and overall harmony. The overt, forward fruit is nicely buttressed by the wine's underlying minerality and crystalline purity. The 2009 is juicy and oily, but without being overwhelming. A clean, vibrant finish rounds things out nicely. The 2009 is shaping up to be a jewel of a wine. Anticipated maturity: 2011- 2019. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet, various American importers, including: Atlanta Wholesale Wines, Atlanta, GA; tel. (404) 696-9440; C'Est Vin, District of Columbia; tel. (703) 243-3559, Scott Paul Wines, Oregon; tel. (503) 852-7300, Wines Unlimited, Louisiana; tel. (504) 897-0191
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
I thought the 2009 Corton-Charlemagne from Bonneau du Martray was simply brilliant. Perhaps it was the magnum format, but the 2009 was fabulous, with all of the signature mineral, slate and citrus notes given a little extra richness by the warmth of the year. What a gorgeous wine.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Bonneau de Martray's 2009 Corton-Charlemagne is quite a bit richer, deeper, and more voluptuous than the 2010 tasted alongside it. Ripe pears, apples, white flowers and crushed rocks are all woven together in an elegant style that is impossible to resist. This relatively fat, full-bodied wine needs time to fully emerge, but it is shaping up to be a beauty. Layers of fruit build to the intense, generous finish.
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
Pale, bright yellow. Reticent nose hints at lemon and baked bread. Rich, powerful and dry, with terrific depth to its lemon, white peach and stone flavors. A densely packed, broad Corton-Charlemagne with serious underlying structure. The classically dry finish saturates the palate with pineapple and crushed stone. Should be long-lived in the context of the year.
About the Producer
Located in Pernand-Vergelesses in the Cote de Beaune region of France, Domaine Bonneau du Martray has a thousand-year-old vineyard and is the only Burgundy winery to produce only Grand Cru wines. The vineyards of Château Matelay currently cover over 11 hectares, of which 9.5 hectares are planted for the production of Chardonnay from Corten-Charlemagne, while the remaining area of the vineyard with more fertile soils is devoted to Pinot Noir, a Corten wine of steadily improving quality. The average age of the vines in the vineyard is 45 years. The owner, Joan Charles, has also introduced asexual propagation in the vineyard to replace the tired vines. Château Martlet produces only two wines, a white wine from the Corten-Charriman vineyard and a red wine from the Corten-Charriman vineyard. The white Chardonnay from the Corten-Charriman vineyard is a rich, thick wine with intense ripe fruit flavours, the best of all Chardonnay whites. The Colten Charlemagne white Chardonnay from Château Matelay is the best of the best. Fortunately, despite the excellent quality of the white wines produced here, they are affordable and offer excellent value for money. These wines are the result of the gift of nature meeting the perseverance of generations.
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