1996 Michel Magnien Morey St. Denis Les Millandes Cuvee Unique Reserve

Domaine Michel Magnien has a long and somewhat complicated history typical of the family domaines of Burgundy. Michel Magnien is a fourth-generation producer who worked for decades with his father, sometimes as a tenant farmer. Today his son Frederic, who also has his own domaine, is part of the business, along with Dominique, Michel’s wife. Domaine Michel Magnien owns about 25 acres of Grand Cru, Premier Cru and Villages vineyards and it is based in Morey Saint Denis. There are important parcels in Gevrey-Chambertin, Les Cazetiers, Morey Saint Denis, Clos de la Roche and Clos Saint Denis. Robert M. Parker Jr. has noted that the wines of Michel Magnien possess “a good deal of charm and character.”

Côte de Nuits is the northern part of the Côte d’Or and it includes the most famous vineyards and wine communes in the world. There are more Grand Cru appellations in the Côte de Nuits than anywhere else in Burgundy. Of the fourteen communes, or villages in the Côte de Nuits, six produce Grand Cru wines. They are Gevrey-Chambertin, Morey-St.-Denis, Chambolle-Musigny, Vougeot, Flagey-Échezeaux and Vosne-Romanee. Some of the vineyards within the Côte de Nuits are tiny, which adds to their prestige. The fabled Grand Cru vineyard La Romanee is barely two square acres. Altogether there are twenty-four Grand Cru vineyards. The region takes its name from the village of Nuits-Saint-Georges. Côtes de Nuits produces mostly reds from Pinot Noir, and the wines have been in demand for centuries. During the 18th century King Louis XIV’s physician recommended that for his health the king only drink wines from Nuits-Saint-Georges. Like most of Burgundy, the soils of the Côte de Nuit can vary greatly from one vineyard to another, though most are a base soil of limestone mixed with clay, gravel and sand.

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.