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Tasting notes
Golden coloured and intense, slightly unctuous, rich look in the glass. A full, expressive and complex nose with layers of quince, white flowers, luscious honeyed stone fruit and a marine salinity. Intensely rich and generous on the palate underpinned by salty minerality, vibrant acidity and marmalade notes, highlighting fresh notes of pink grapefruit and peach, which carries it through to a persistent mineral finish. Classic Bongran: immensely concentrated but fresh, alive and vivid. Very impressive quality for this often overlooked appellation. Oct 2017, FINE+RARE, Drink: 2017-2030
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
The 2012 Viré-Clessé Cuvée E. J. Thevenet wafts from the glass with rich aromas of honeycomb, crisp white peach and mirabelle. Medium to full-bodied, broad and fleshy, with a rich core of fruit, lively acids and an open, giving profile, it's one of the more evolved vintages of this cuvée in the last decade and is drinking at maturity.
Lightly smoky nose with a really strong lime-candy streak. Lots of energy. Approachable now but this tastes as though it will have a long life. Minerally finish. (JR)
(this wine took a long time to ferment, like the 2004; the average age of these vines is about 50 years, but some are as old as 100, according to Gautier Thévenet): Full yellow with faint gold tinge. Highly distinctive nose melds very ripe yellow fruits and iodiney minerality; this wine from marne blanche will go white-truffley with another five years in the bottle. Very rich and dense, with the firm acidity and supporting minerality to give it a rather dry impression in spite of its 3.9 g/l r.s. Slightly aggressive on the back end. This wine has huge material and underlying structure to support aging but it's not expressive or harmonious today and will require patience.
About the producer
Domaine de la Bongran is no ordinary Mâconnais estate. Since Jean Thévenet took over the domaine in 1972, this Viré-Clessé producer has become a cult name – with Jean a pioneer of organics and minimal intervention, as well as the estate’s unique wine style.