2002 Mongeard-Mugneret Echezeaux Vieilles Vignes

Mongeard-Mugneret is a 75-acre estate in Vosne-Romanee, in Burgundy’s Cote de Nuits. There were Mongeards making wine in the region in the 19th century and in 1945 Jean Mongeard, whose mother was a Mugneret, began working the family domaine though he was still a teenager. Today the estate is mostly run by Jean’s son Vincent. The domain has Grand Cru parcels in Echezeaux, Grands-Echezeaux, Echezeaux “Vieilles Vignes,” Clos de Vougeot and Richebourg. There are also numerous Premier Crus and villages wines. Domaine Mongeard-Mugneret has parcels in 22 appellations. Robert M. Parker Jr. has written that the domain’s “style of winemaking seems to extract rich, supple, concentrated fruit from the grapes.”

Echezeaux is a 93-acre Grand Cru vineyard on the southern edge of the Cote de Nuits. It up the slope from Clos de Vougeot and Grands Echezeaux and is one of the largest grand crus in Burgundy. The vineyard varies in elevation from 250 to 300 meters, and the terroir includes significant clay as well as thin, rocky soil. The largest proprietors are Domaine de la Romanee Conti, with 11.68 acres; Mongeard-Mugneret with 6.25 acres, and Emmanuel-Rouget, with 3.58 acres. Echezeaux produces red wine.

This red wine is relatively light and can pair with a wide variety of foods. The grape prefers cooler climates and the wine is most often associated with Burgundy, Champagne and the U.S. west coast. Regional differences make it nearly as fickle as it is flexible.