The commune of Gevrey Chambertin possesses nine Grand Cru vineyards, more than any other in the Cote de Nuits. In the heart of them you will find Chambertin along with Clos de Beze, the two benchmarks of the commune considered by Clive Coates, MW to produce “immaculate and full, firm and rich, concentrated and masculine” wines. Many consider Chambertin to be the King of Burgundy, Musigny the Queen, and along with a handful of Grand Crus from Vosne Romanee, they comprise an elite core of arguably the First Growths of Red Burgundy.
Nicolas Potel began his winemaking career at Domaine de la Pousse d’Or, his family’s place in Volnay. Around the same time as his father’s untimely death in 1997 and the sale of their stake in the Domaine, Nicolas started his own negoce company. Though he sold the Maison to the Cottin brothers of Laboure Roi in 2004, Potel continued to produce some wonderful examples of Red Burgundy for them until his departure in 2009.
“In mid 2009, Nicolas Potel was forced out of the negociant firm that bears his name by the owners of its parent company, Laboure-Roi. Other members of the team responsible for Maison Nicolas Potel wines – including cellarmaster Fabrice Lesne – remain in place. I tasted more than half of their 2008s…and sampled a few of their 2007s: the last collection here that Nicolas Potel guided to bottle; an exceptionally impressive one for its vintage based on what I could taste.” - Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
This was an extremely inspiring comment to read as the previous vintages were covered so strongly in the Advocate, but yet only a handful of the ’07 Grand Crus were reviewed. Thankfully, a couple other reviews were released:
“Medium red. Compelling soil-driven nose combines raspberry, smoked meat, iron, flowers, minerals, botanical herbs and a whiff of peat. Rich and chewy yet light on its feet, with outstanding energy and powerful terroir character to the flavors of iron, graphite, pepper, flowers and minerals. Finishes long and tactile, with no easy sweetness. A very complex expression of this noble site.” - Stephen Tanzer
“Dense and square in profile, this delivers black cherry and plum flavors that are meaty, with a touch of animal. Though balanced, this needs a few years to come together. There's nice chewy grip on the finish.” - Wine Spectator
Wine Spectator’s review from 2010 reveals three other interesting points:
- •best enjoyed from 2015 through 2032
- •the release price was $270
- •only 20 cases were imported into the United States
This past winter, we were offered ten professionally stored cases of this historic bottling and jumped at the opportunity. A little over a week ago, the wine arrived, and we finally had an opportunity to taste. True to the vintage, the wine is overall medium in body, beginning strong up front, yet finishing light like satin or silk. The complexity of the nose slides from the fruit and freshness of a wild raspberry patch, to herbs, sous bois and damp earth. The palate continues the theme but adds plum and black cherry to the fruit, deeper botanicals to the herbs, and a strong iron presence that finishes like a powdery mineral sensation.
I highly suggest grabbing some of what remains of Nicolas Potel’s last namesake example from this regal Grand Cru at $179/bottle. Give the wine a couple hours to decant and pair it this summer with grilled steaks, the winter with stews, or anytime with duck or game birds. Also don’t overlook a handful of other 2007 Nicolas Potel Grand Crus from the same source that all are priced at market lows.