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Roumier
With a view
Explaining
Burgundy's regional differences can be hard, so STEPHEN BROOK
talks to Christophe Roumier about vines, Vineyards and vinification.
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Burgundy is about nuance, playing down mere fruitiness
and power in favour of delicacy, harmony and sensuality. It
rejoices in subtle distinctions between one plot of vines and
a neighbouring parcel, and this makes demands on its consumers.
Not everyone can be bothered, or can afford, to learn why,
say, Chambertin differs from Clos de Béze, or Musigny
from Bonnes Mares. But since Burgundy is produced, marketed
and priced according to its hierarchy of vineyards, it becomes
necessary to understand those vineyards in order to understand
the wines fully.
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Easier said than done. It's astonishing how often, in response
to my questions about soil types, exposures, and so forth, a
grower will just scratch his head and confess, 'I really don't
know'.
That's not ignorance so much as modesty. Those who snootïly
remark that New World wine producers don't have a clue about
soils, terroir and vineyard characteristics, should reflect
that most Europeans are not much wiser. Yes, they may know that
Vineyard X usually gives richer, or more rustic, or more elegant
wine thanVineyard Y, but ask them why and they'll be stumped.
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Christophe Roumier is a slightly built, youthful man whose
easy charm can sometimes disguise his intensely serious approach
to his craft. As we drove through the vineyards of Chambolle-Musigny,
I began to appreciate how much he does know about his sites.
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Many regard Chambolle-Musigny as quintessential Burgundy, the
most delicate, subtle and refined of them all. The explanation
for this is probably the high proportion of limestone in the
soil. Indeed in parts of the commune there is precious little
soil to start with. The vineyards are remarkably fissured too.
North/south fault lines run through the commune, creating sudden
drops, as though the vineyards were a series of terraces rather
than slopes. This has the effect of providing excellent drainage.
He explained too how the valley, or combe, behind the
village of Chambolle, breaking through the othenwise continuous
slope of the Côte de Nuits, has deposited enormous quantities
of stones onto the vineyards in front of it, affecting crus
such as Beaux Bruns and Les Charmes. 'The combes,' he
went on,'also draw in cold air, and I think this is the reason
why the grands crus are found away from them. This is certainly
the case with Musigny and Bonnes Mares here in Chambolle.'
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Chambolle's vineyards stretch from Musigny and Amoureuses in
the south, overlooking Clos de Vougeot, to Bonnes Mares in the
north, a site shared with the commune of Morey St Denis. Roumier
explained the difference between the two sectors and their grand
crus:'I like to think it's analagous to the Côte Brune
and the Côte Blonde in Côte Rôtie. Musigny
and Amoureuses are Côte Blonde, giving wines of exceptional
finesse.
Bonnes Mares and the other crus to the north such as Les Cras
are more robust. But even Bonnes Mares is anything but uniform.
There are two soil types, red and white. The white is waterretentive
and far from vigorous, so the wines are floral but can be tannic.
The terre rouge is of similar quality, but is more fertile
and more vigorous, so its wines are more rounded with softer
tannins. I usually vinify grapes from the two soils separately
and then blend them.'
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Roumier has four parcels of vines in Bonnes Mares, 1.45 hectares
(ha) in all, but owns a mere 0.l ha in Musigny. He is not alone
in thinking that Musigny's neighbouring vineyard, Les Amoureuses,
is of grand cru quality, despite its premier cru status. In
some vintages it can be his best wine.
The estate was founded by Georges Roumier in 1924; estate-bottling
began in 1945, and over the following decades the domaine was
gradually expanded.The 2.6 ha premier cru Clos de la Bussière,
which lies on natter land in Morey St Denis, was purchased in
1953. Christophe's father acquired parcels in Corton-Charlemagne
(0.2 ha) and Le Musigny in 1978. Although Christophe has been
involved in running the domaine since 1982, he took sole control
in 1990 on his father's retirement. In 1994 Christophe leased
grand cru vineyards in Gevrey-Chambertin: Charmes-Chambertin
(0.3 ha of very old vines) and Ruchottes-Chambertin (0.5 ha);
these are his personal holdings and are bottled under his own
name. In addition there are substantial plots of 3.7 ha of well-placed
Chambolle Villages vines, and 1.75 ha in premier cru Les Cras.
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Like most other young Burgundian vignerons Christophe Roumier
has given intense thought to the cultivation of his vines. 'In
the early 1990s I had turned to organic viticulture, but severe
mildew in 1993 made me reconsider, although that didn't mean
I returned to the use of herbicides, which we abandoned here
in the late 1980s. In any case, we became organic once more
in 1999, as organic treatments against mildew are now available.'
As for biodynamic viticulture, he is not ready to commit himself.
'I am very impressed by what Anne-Claude Leflaive and Dominique
Lafon have achieved in their vineyards using biodynamic methods.
instance, the leaf-roll virus that used infect some of the Leflaive
vines has now vanished. So it's clear that biodynamism can be
very effective, and it seems probable that restoring the soil
to health is also the best way to increase resistance to maladies.
Perhaps in five years' time I will have adopted biodynamic viticulture
too, but I still need more time to think about it.'
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He has also given much thought to the planting of clones, which
he prefers to the massal selections made from his own vines.
'New clones are coming out all the time and can be superb. Clones,
after all, are simply different expressions of the same grape
variety.
In the 1960s, growers wanted productive and early-maturing
clones - the exact reverse of what we are looking for today.
Quality derives from a long growing season and late-ripening
vines that will give us phenolic maturity and the typicity of
Burgundy. Now we can choose late-ripening clones. We have to
be equally selective with rootstocks.'
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Christophe is not keen on green-harvesting, which
he sees as a correction of excessive vigour, which could derive
from clones or rootstocks or fertilisation. He would rather control
yields by removing buds, according to the fertility of each vine.
'In years when the flowering is perfect, even a vine pruned really
short can give an excessive crop, as in 1992 and 1996, and that's
when it's essential to green-harvest.' |
Yields are very low at Roumier, with an average over 10 years
of 29 hectolitres per ha. After harvesting, the grapes are mostly
destemmed, although stems are usually retained for Musigny and
Charmes-Chambertin, perhaps because of the small quantity of
grapes from each vineyard. There's a cold soak before fermentation,
and no cultivated yeasts are added. Vinification takes place
in open-top fermenters for up to three weeks, but pigeage
(forcing the cap down into the liquid) is only practiced during
the turbulent part of the fermentation, as Roumier doesn't want
to extract harsh tannins.
When chaptalisation is necessary, it is done gradually in order
to prolong the fermentation. Christophe allows the temperature
to rise as high as 34°c, then reduces it to 30° and completes
the fermentation in barrel, which he believes gives the wine
more glycerol and texture.
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Christophe Roumier takes a conservative line on new oak, using
about 20% for his Villages wine, and 35% for most of the crus.
He does insist on having the staves for his barrels properly
air-dried to his specifications. He is keen on belated malolactic
fermentations, and in April 1999 the 1998s still had not begun
this stage. Malolactic is usually completed by June, at which
point he racks and adds sulphur dioxide for the first time.
Filtration was abandoned in 1988, fining in 1995.
His wines are more robust, less ethereal, than many other
Chambolles, but they still have the quintessential elegance
of the commune. The Bonnes Mares is superbly concentrated and
profound, yet there are years when it is outclassed by the exquisite
Les Amoureuses. Les Cras is intense as well as elegant, while
Clos de la Bussiére is more earthy and rustic. Here on
the natter lands of Morey St Denis, the soil is deeper, richer
and higher in clay content than in Chambolle, and it shows.
Nonetheless Clos de la Bussière is delicious and consistent.
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There have been splendid wines from this domaine throughout
the 1990s, even in difficult years such as 1991 and 1992. The
1993s were particularly successful, but the 1994s lack some
charm, although the Bonnes Mares and Amoureurses are fine. Tasting
the 1994 Musigny with Christophe Roumier in the cellars, I confessed
to a slight disappointment, and he agreed. Perhaps with further
ageing the robust tannins and lean acidity will become more
harmonious. With a production limited to 450 bottles and the
Olympian expectations one brings to any sip of Musigny, any
disappointment is felt keenly. But with total production restricted
to a barrel and a half, there is no way to blend or select,
as can be done with the larger parcels. The 1996s are truly
great, from the humble but delicious Bourgogne to the brilliant
Bonnes Mares, and the 1997s and 1998s look highly promising.
In 1998 Christophe Roumier found that the thick skins of his
grapes resisted rain and rot surprisingly well, and selection
in the vineyard weeded out any mouldy fruit. Potential alcohol
was no higher than 12.2 degrees, so most lots were chaptalised
by up to one degree. I tasted the wines before their malolactic
fermentation, so it took a while for my palate to adjust to
their acidity levels. Nonetheless the vineyard characters came
through, with Les Cras full-bodied and concentrated, Amoureuses
intense and elegant, Ruchottes-Chambertin infused with cherry
aromas, a wine of finesse rather than power, and Musigny more
supple and subtle than Bonnes Mares.
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In style, the Roumier wines stand slightly apart from the other
great Chambolle-Musignys, Domaine de Vogüé, Barthod,
Mugnier and Drouhin: less perfumed than others in their youth
but developing a pure raspberry and cherry tone with age; a
touch richer, fuller-bodied, even dense; accessible young, but
best given a few years in bottle, when they develop the silkiness
and elegance that is a hallmark of Chambolle. Roumier places
great emphasis on texture. 'For me the texture of a wine should
be like a caress,' he says, and he usually achieves it, together
with perfume, harmony and elegance.
Although the domaine has been making excellent
wines for decades, it is under Christophe's direction that the
estate has attained the highest consistency and distinction.
Unlike some other top winemakers in Burgundy, Roumier seems
to instinctively reject any suggestion of cultishness. Success
has not gone to his head, and he remains open-minded and free
of dogma. Constantly evolving and improving in both vineyard
and cellar, Roumier is employing a blend of thoughtfulness,
common sense and a sure, unrushed hand in the cellar, to produce
wines of the highest order.
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