Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair Nuits-Saint-Georges Belles Croix 2019
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Jasper
Morris
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
A silky, rounded wine with gorgeous red and black cherry fruit. The clay soil offered round tannins compared to the tight and grippy tannin expected. 50% of whole-bunch adds a sense of elegance.
Professional Ratings
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Jasper Morris
This is the second vintage of Belle Croix, grown on silty clay with stones. 40% whole bunch vinification. Second vintage. Full deep purple, with a gorgeous, heady deep dark raspberry fruit, which continues on to the palate. There is a significant weight of fruit here, leading to a ripe balanced finish with just enough acidity. Fine length.
Barrel Sample: 90-93
This domaine, located in Nuits-Saint-Georges, has been in the Liger-Belair family for 250 years. In 2001, Thibault Liger-Belair took over the vines as the winemaker and created Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair. Prior to joining the family domaine, Thibault studied viticulture and oenology for six years, and worked for a communications firm in Paris where he was able to present and taste wines internationally. In his mid-twenties, Thibault also started an internet company with the idea of discovering and selling high quality wines. But the calling of the vines was still strong, so in 2001, at the age of 26, Thibault decided to jump to the other side of the fence, this time to make wine, his true calling and passion. The year 2002 was the first harvest of the Nuits-Saint-Georges, Nuits-Saint-Georges Charmottes, as well as Vosne-Romanée Aux Reas. In 2003, the domaine enriched its range with Richebourg Grand Cru, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru, Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru Petits Monts, and Bourgogne Rouge. In 2009, the domaine expanded into Beaujolais, and now a Beaujolais-Villages and several Moulin-à-Vent Cru wines are also produced.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
Inhabiting the bottom end of the northern half of the Côte d’Or, Nuits-St-Georges is a busy, market-driven town and home to many of Burgundy’s negociants. It is also the largest town in the Côte d’Or after Beaune and contributes "nuits" to the name of Côte de Nuits (i.e., the northern half of the Côte d’Or).
The appellation itself is divided into two parts, where in the north it directly borders Vosne-Romanée, the southerly end is the commune of Prémeaux. There are no Grands Crus in this village, though it does have a large number of Premiers Crus.
The best Nuits-St-Georges Pinot Noir are layered with cherry, plum, underbrush and sandalwood. The fruit is sweet, the wine energetic, and the finish long and lush.