At a recent event for Australia’s First Families of Wine, Robert Hill Smith of Yalumba made the rather absurd suggestion that media types were somehow guilty of a double standard when it came to their criticism of cork closures and praise of screwcaps. Apparently because we all have lots of Burgundy under cork in our cellar we are tacitly endorsing bark seals. Well, I’m not wealthy enough to have lots of Burgundy in my cellar and if given a choice any Burgundy that I put away would be sealed with a screwcap. There’s no double standard at play. Anyway, I hadn’t even heard of Domaine Louis Moreau until I saw their 2010s under screwcap on a retail shelf. The fact that they were sealed that way made me give the wines a go and I’m glad I did.
This has more intensity, more complexity and more length than the Vaillons 1er Cru reviewed last week. There are similarities though. That aniseedy herbal inflection that I so enjoy and those subtle suggestions of richer, riper fruits – difficult to pin down in terms of specific descriptors but perhaps all the more alluring for that reason. Distinct notes of Pink Lady apples and a hint of salinity. Flinty and chalky with a citrus tinged line of acid. An altogether pleasing mouthfeel with nuances of nuts and caramel as it breathes. Captivating gear. 94+
Region: Chablis, France
Alcohol: 13.0%
Closure: Screwcap
Price: $90
Tasted: June 2013
Jeremy,
Moreau are one of the more reliable and ethical producers (using taint free closures across their range). It’s curious they have opted for screwcap – as before this their wines were sealed with DIAM. Perhaps they wanted to telegraph things to the consummer so there was absoultely no doubt at the point of sale. (When will users of DIAM mention this on their back label).
Curiosity and bad habits mean that I am prepared to purchase Burgundy and the like what ever the seal. But if given a choice I would always opt for something taint free.
Thanks for the extra info Ed. I’ll admit a DIAM sealed bottle probably wouldn’t have caught my eye. I’m also not entirely sold on DIAM (a few faulty ones in my experience and some oxygen ingress issues) but I’d be far happier to see wine sealed using that closure rather than cork.
You last remark is precisely why I was so puzzled by Robert Hill Smith’s statement. Yes, I buy Burgundy under cork but so what? Few producers from Burgundy give me the option. If I have a choice I will always choose screwcap. RHS wasn’t making a cogent argument for the superiority of cork as a closure. I really don’t understand what he was thinking…
That’s really the ultimate straw man argument. Far out. So much white Burgundy is rooted by cork. If I had the option to buy Barolo/Barbaresco/Bordeaux under screwcap, I would. That being said, I have more reservations about the suitability of screwcap for those wines than I do for Pinot Noir (from anywhere, esp. Burgundy) and Australian reds.
You can certainly make a case for screwcap on Barolo, Barbaresco and Bordeaux – I’d not necessarily be swayed but I wouldn’t be as confident in my stance. Then there’s the argument Tony Harper has put forward; that when cork does its job well it is superior to any other closure. I’m not as taken with that one (first and foremost because so many bottles, especially whites, are victims of randox let alone TCA that it’s a waste even if I could afford the replacements). Still, it’s an argument. That’s enough to lift it above this “double stsndard” nonsense…which I’m beginning to suspect is nothing more than a red herring.
Harps the old romantic!
Bruce Tyrrell used to forward that argument with HV sems. Best bottles under cork better than SC. No longer does he say that.
No, Bruce was hardcore screwcap at the very same tasting. As were almost all the other families. It was interesting to watch the facial contortions of RHS as the others gave their opinion on closures. Stephen Henschke went into bat for glass stoppers. FWIW the 2004 HoG looked terrific – unsure of closure, suspect cork.