SOLD OUT! Beaujolais has been discovered, and that’s a good and a bad thing. The bad part is that demand is higher than ever, but supply from the quality oriented producers is still small……..that means prices are creeping up.
The good news is that we’ve been championing these wines since we opened 5 years ago, so we get our fair share of the top producers’ wines. Georges Descombes is one of these top producers, and his 2013 Morgon is a serious staff favorite. If you like good Red Burgundy, but hate paying the price, this is a wine you have to try.
2013 Georges Descombes Morgon
If you love Lapierre and/or Foillard, try this!
SOLD OUT
Farmer, grower, producer Georges Descombes is based in the tiny village of Vermont, near Morgon, in the northern part of the Beaujolais region. The folks at Louis/Dressner Selections refer to him as “the unofficial fifth member of the iconic “Gang of Four” (Marcel Lapierre, Jean Foillard, Jean-Paul Thévenet and Guy Breton).” We agree with this statement 100%, and we would say that Descombes’ Morgon bears a striking resemblance to Marcel Lapierre’s. Being that Marcel is the one who inspired Georges to make wine, that comes as no surprise.
Descombes took over his family’s estate in the late 1980’s and immediately began the conversion to organic viticulture. These days, his vineyards are certified organic by Ecocert. In addition, Georges doesn’t add anything or take anything away from his wine during vinification.
He uses tiny does of sulfur, less than a hundredth of what an organically certified vigneron is legally allowed to use in France! This addition is necessary to preserve and stabilize the wine so that we can enjoy it here. Trust us, if his wine gives you a headache, it’s because you drank too much, and that’s easy to do with a wine as delicious as this.
Rated 91 points by Josh Raynolds of Vinous Media, it is a great introduction to naturally made, small productionn Gamay crafted by a true master. It offers up a ton of complexity and nuance while still maintaining the soulful, joyous character of the grape. Upon pouring, it displays a beautiful ruby-garnet color followed by a nose that shows gorgeous aromas of raspberry and wild strawberry, followed by more complex notes of brown spices, roasted beet, fennel and mineral.
Medium bodied, it lands on the palate with juicy, spice accented red fruits and complex earth/mineral and root notes. Delicious now, this wine has a proven track record for maturing and improving for 5 to 7 years.
Josh Spurling
Owner, Operator, Wine Monger
Table Wine Asheville