Domaine Bruno Clair

I am not in the habit on drooling too much over my own imports, so I´ll try to keep it tidy.
I really needed some decent Burgundy in my portfolio, partly because of interest and partly because of the need of some of my customers.
I did some extensive tasting before choosing this one. There were major dissapointments especially when it came to the lower priced stuff. Tasting 20 different Bourgogne Rouges side by side was quite an ordeal, and I was surprised by the difference, and the number uf unsuccesful bottles. And mind you, these are low-priced for Burgundy, but not cheap. To be fair there was also a good amount of fine wines among these. I began looking at the known "good Value" appellations like Givry, Cote Chalonaise, Savigny and Marsannay. And there is a lot of really good Burgundy to be found here for sure. Actually, I am quite positively surprised by the level of quality here.
The wines from Bruno Clair was a small revelation to me. I am not that experienced into Burgundy, but know what I like, and that tends to be rather expensive. I had been in contact with both the Australian importer and the former American importer to learn more about style, winemaking etc. and they both gave Bruno Clair the highest acclaim possible.
The Marsannay´s soon proved to be the most interesting in fact. "Les Longeroies" 2002 is made from vines as old as 70 years. It showed a very intense and surprisingly deep nose, much more black-fruited and spicy than I expected, quite broad and certainly medium-bodied, and ever so pure, crisp, with a finale the sort of backfires. While having considerable strenght, it struck me how elegant, and light on it´s feet the wine was. We finished the bottle in 20 minutes, wanting more. A lot of Kiwi stars would have a hard time in comparison here, including the ones I sell myself....hmmm
Very Gevrey in nature but with the elegance and purity of Vivant. Very pure and distinct Pinot Noir with style and terroir that is hard to come by anywhere else to my taste.

"Les Vaudenelles" 2003, is influenced by the vintage, but i a good way I think. Clair was one of the very last winemakers to pick and his 2003 harvest is considered to be one of the most succesful, given the hard circumstances. "Les Vaudenelles" is more concentrated, packed with fruit than in previous vintages, but with a fine acidity, and minerality that leaves the impression of a balanced and complete wine. As easy to drink as "Les longeroies", but a bit more straight-forward, this should be a crowdpleaser and a fine entry-level wine for Clair.

Clos st. Jacques 2000 was great. Great, open and complex nose with impressive depth, balanced and elegant, fine concentration, extreme length and the structure to develop for many more years. One of the most structured and promising of the 2000´s I have tasted in a while. Not as powerful as Rousseaus or Fourriers for example, but to my taste equally seducing, and perhaps a tad more elegant and refined.

Savigny 1er Cru "La Dominode" 2000 is made from 104 year old vines, and it shows. Flamboyant, "slutty" style, excellent concentration, good definition and a great finale, this must be one of the best from this appelation along with Jadot, Pavelot and Leroy. While not cheap, this was a great glass of wine.
Finding my preferrable style from Burgundy have been a lot of hits and misses, and I suspect that it goes for most winelovers, and a good thing too. Diversity in style is a great thing, and to often missed, in my opinion.

The tastings, and the overall experience was great because of the distinct style of Clair´s wines, the difference between the wines, and the overall impression of pureness and elegance.