Inaugural Vintage from Beaujolais Legend
2009 Roilette Fleurie Griffe du Marquis
Domaine Roilette's Alain Coudert compares the 09 vintage to 1991, a vintage that serves as a benchmark for the estate.
In response to the quality of the vintage, Coudert took a single parcel of vines planted in 1930 and aged them in old barriques. Their famous Tardive, in contrast, is aged in large foudres.
The Griffe du Marquis wasn't poured for me during my visit at Roilette in 2010, but it's hard to believe that it's not very good considering the estate's track record and the high level of their 2009s. (Please see Schkildknect's note below for reference.)
Quantities, as you'd expect, are painfully small. If you're receiving this, it's because you've supported Roilette in the past. We felt that it was only fair to give you first crack at what promises to be a special and elusive bottle.
To order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Joe Salamone
Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits
2009 Roilette Fleurie Griffe du Marquis
David Schildknecht: From a parcel planted in 1930 - as announced on its special label - and representing the contents of a dozen older barriques, Coudert's 2009 Fleurie Griffe du Marquis was rendered in response to this unusually ripe yet potentially structured vintage. Hints of floral as well as dark berry distillates waft from the glass. Concentrated blackberry and dark cherry mingle with licorice, vanilla, and iodine for an at once lightly confitured and medicinal impression. Richly textured and with its tannins refined into the background - yet with its ripeness expressed without superficial sucrosity let alone any sense of stickiness - this finishes with memorably bittersweet intensity. While it is the first of its kind and so escapes any obvious precedent, I can't help but imagine that this will age well for the better part of a decade.