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Tasting notes
The nose of the 2016 Viré-Clessé (previously known as Cuvée Tradition, now Cuvée E.J. Thévenet) is gorgeous. Freshly cut apricots, honey and florals entice, with a generosity of fruit that is instantly alluring. The palate is deliciously creamy in texture, with tighter and more youthful notes of crunchy pears alongside gently stewed apples. There’s the slightest hint of orange zest, with a soft, chalky mineral line that drives to the finish. Versus the tauter, tighter 2015, this is much more open and riper in profile. While drinking well already, this will offer much more if you can exercise restraint and watch it evolve over the coming decade or more.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
Full bottle 1,348 g. Bright gold. Really rich and lip smacking. No hurry to drink this. There's a lovely thread of acidity running through this wine with its hint of botrytis. (JR)
The 2016 Viré-Clessé is the vintage currently on the market, although Guillaume Thevenet suggested that it will benefit from five to seven years in bottle. That’s easier said than done given the irresistible bouquet with gorgeous white peach, nectarine, blood orange and light minerally notes. The palate is very harmonious and smooth with ginger and white pepper notes interlaced with the very subtle tropical fruit of pineapple and a hint of guava. Great linearity and length here, this is only just beginning to show what it can do, so maybe heed Guillaume’s advice!
The 2016 Viré-Clessé Cuvée E. J. Thevenet is showing beautifully, unfurling in the glass with notes of elderflower, beeswax, pear, white flowers and peach. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and precise, it's lively and concentrated, concluding with a saline finish. This is a more elegant, less muscular wine than the 2015, nodding to the style of the lovely 2013. I vividly remember visiting the domaine in October 2016, in pouring rain, when everyone else in the neighborhood had finished picking and Gautier Thevenet hadn't yet begun!
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.