Wine Advisor
Domaine de Montille, Nuits St Georges 1er Cru Aux Thorey 2016
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer
(from 45- to 50-year-old vines planted on limestone; vinified with two-thirds whole clusters): Slightly hazy red. Deep but youthfully stunted aromas of black raspberry and licorice. Very rich and quite dry; less expressive today than most of the estate's 2016s from the Côte de Beaune but conveys subtle saline minerality. Finishes with chalky, fine-grained tannins and lingering notes of red berries and oak spices. (Domaine de Montille did not produced any Nuits-Saint-Georges Aux Saints-Juliens in 2016.)
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2016 Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru Aux Thorey includes two-thirds whole cluster fruit, matured in 50% new oak. It has a fragrant bouquet with hints of crushed violet suffusing the red berry fruit, more blue fruit emerging with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly chalky tannin, maybe a little backward and rigid for this vineyard at the moment, but it will mellow with time in bottle. I admire the terroir expression on the finish here. Give this 4 or 5 years if you can, because this has something up its sleeve and will meliorate in bottle.
About the Producer
Domaine de Montille, located in the Cote de Beaune wine region of Bourgogne, France, is managed by siblings Alix de Montille and Etienne de Montille. It is now managed by two siblings, Alix de Montille and Etienne de Montille. The Montille Family has been living in Creancey since the 17th century, and in the mid-18th century the double Montille winery was officially founded in Volnay under the name Hubert de Montille, which was changed to Château de Montille in 1863 when Etienne's great-grandparents married. This marriage enabled the de Montille family to own estates in both Volnay and Crescentes. At that time, the De Monti family was in financial crisis as they were selling off the best grapes from their vineyards. Hubert de Montille, father of Agnès de Monti and Étienne de Monti, decided to change the business model of the estate. The vineyard was reduced to 3 hectares, and in 1947 Hubert introduced bottling equipment to the estate, which opened up a new chapter in the estate's development. 1950 saw the introduction of the latest vineyard management model in Burgundy. In 1983, Étienne de Montaigne began studying winemaking with his father. In 1995, he began to manage the vineyards using organic viticulture. Since 2002, Ennis and Etienne have been managing the estate together, following in their father's footsteps. Château De Monti currently has a total vineyard area of 20 hectares, with vineyard areas in the first and top growths of the Volnay, Pommard, Beaune, Nuits-Saint-Georges and Vosne-Romanee appellations. The vineyards of Château De Monti are blessed with a unique terroir and are planted with the appropriate grape varieties according to the soil and terroir of each vineyard, and are strictly managed in an ecological way. The red wines of Château de Monti are characterized by their freshness, elegance and full-bodied flavor profiles. The traditional Burgundian winemaking process of aging the wines in oak barrels produces excellent wines that perfectly reflect the unique terroir of the grape variety, such as Beaune Premier Cru "Les Sizies", Volnay Premier Cru "Les Mitans" and Clos-Vougeot Grand Cru. The wines of outstanding quality are very popular among consumers.
