Tag Archives: Mercurey

Domaine du Meix-Foulot Mercurey 1er Cru Clos du Château de Montaigu 2002

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Cheap Burgundy. I can see you shuddering from here.

A lovely orange-red Pinot colour, not especially dense. The nose is really appealing and quite youthful considering the wine’s age and modest status. Prickly mushroom and fresh red fruits, some sap and minerality as well. The whole is laid back, a comforting blanket of nougat oak underlining the fundamentally quiet, almost cuddly aroma profile.

The palate is similarly constructed: light, nimble, pleasing flavours and a distinct lack of aggression. Entry is brightly acidic, flavours starting at red fruit and moving through to a more complex mix on the middle palate, then turning quite savoury through the after palate and finish. It’s a lean flavour profile, focusing on astringency and savouriness rather than fullness of fruit. I like it, but can see that it would puzzle some. Certainly, it would be misleading to call this wine generous in any way, but in a sense that is its strength and charm. It caresses the palate so easily, with such little effort, that its relative lack of stuffing matters very little. Its pleasures are to be found in its ephemeral presence on the tongue, the clarity of its components and the way it never forces any of its points.

A delicious, refreshing Pinot for not a lot of money. I think it has a few years left in it too.

Domaine du Meix Foulot
Price: $A42
Closure: Cork
Source: Retail

Domaine du Meix-Foulot Mercurey 1er Cru Les Saumonts 2002

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First impressions consist of a freshly picked field mushroom tossed on last night’s campfire. Quite a puzzling nose, actually. Pleasantly so, for it’s elusive and smart, like a subtle conversationalist who prefers to hover at the edges of the discussion. I’m trying, a little unsuccessfully, to pick out threads. There’s the aforementioned mushroom and charcoal, but what is most striking after some time in glass is a thrust of minerality that sits right between sour cherry fruit and musk. This wine is making me work and I’m really enjoying it. 

In the mouth, an elaboration of the aroma with some elements filled out. The entry is subtle, consisting more of a sulphur-like prickliness than any sort of substantial flavour. This fans out to a decidedly savoury middle palate. There is fruit of a sort, again in a sour cherry spectrum, yet flavours are so integrated it’s unsatisfying to pick this out as a discrete thread. Rather, there’s a detailed tapestry of elements, all bouncing atop a layer of well textured acid. The whole is light bodied, lacking much in the way of bass notes aside from some vanilla-nougat oak. It tastes marginal, as if ripeness were only just achieved. Raspy tannins rattle along the tongue with increasing presence. Sappy flavours take off on the lifted after palate and persist through a peacock’s tail finish that resonates with attractive flair. 
I like this sort of wine. It never yells yet has so much to say. The way it is building in the glass suggests a happy future. 

Domaine du Meix Foulot
Price: $A41.80
Closure: Cork

Domaine du Meix-Foulot Mercurey Blanc 2006

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I seem to be specialising in cheap Burgundy here at Full Pour, but it’s simply a reflection of what I can afford to drink on a regular basis. I suppose the key question at this end of the market is: am I better off purchasing local wines? And my answer is: it depends. I crave a variety of flavour profiles so, for me, questions of absolute quality aren’t so pressing. On the other hand, if value for money were my sole objective, I’d probably bet my hard earned $30-50 on a local wine, as there are some beautiful wines in this price range.

A tasty aroma profile here, with slightly funky notes overlaying solid citrus and stone fruit. Perhaps some sulfur to, though it may simply be the wine’s natural savouriness expressing itself as a sort of prickly smokiness. It’s an easy wine to like, soothing and soft without falling into the trap of being bland. There’s enough character to draw me back repeatedly, but it’s so inviting that I come away feeling happy rather than challenged.

The palate is a contradiction of sorts, as it presents a very attractive flavour profile and clean structure yet shows a degree of dilution that leaves me slightly frustrated. The flavours here are a repeat of the nose with perhaps the addition of some caramel. So, typical Chardonnay fruit flavours and flashes of savouriness, here coming across as minerality. Mouthfeel is so very approachable and, to its credit, the whole thing is balanced admirably for immediate, pleasurable consumption. The wine’s approachable structure and clingy flavours make me wonder what it could become if there were a notch more intensity, but it’s futile to judge a wine by what it’s not, especially one that is so easy to drink. Falls away a little on the finish, but by that point you’re already smiling.

Not a worldbeater, then, and no doubt better value is obtainable locally, but this wine’s flavour profile is most delicious, and its balance encourages maximum enjoyment over the short term. A fun, easy drinking white Burgundy.

Domaine du Meix-Foulot
Price: $A36
Closure: Cork
Date tasted: November 2008