Domaine Bonneau du Martray

DOMAINE BONNEAU DU MARTRAY 2017 VINTAGE, EN PRIMEUR EXCLUSIVE TO CORNEY & BARROW IN THE UK

“In 2017, the sun shone on our vineyards again, offering us a superb CortonCharlemagne.”

THIBAULT JACQUET March 2019

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GIUSEPPE QUINTARELLI

INTRODUCTION Following the acquisition in January 2017 of Domaine Bonneau du Martray by US businessman Stanley Kroenke, the dynamic new management team comprises Armand de Maigret and Thibault Jacquet, previously of Laurent-Perrier in Asia.

In addition to Bonneau du Martray, Armand de Maigret oversees Mr Kroenke’s Californian estates, which include Screaming Eagle, Jonata and The Hilt. Thibault Jacquet is based at the domaine and importantly, the core technical team remains unchanged under the new ownership.

Fabien Esthor has been vineyard manager since 2003 and Emmanuel Hautus winemaker since 2011.

It was announced in May 2018 that 2.8 hectares of the estate’s 9.5 hectares of Corton-Charlemagne were to be leased to Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. This move – surely an excellent one for both domaines – took effect from November 2018 and means that as of the 2019 vintage, Bonneau du Martray’s production of Corton-Charlemagne will be reduced by 25-30%. Both estates are biodynamic and both are managed impeccably, in the case of Bonneau du Martray thanks to the legacy of long-time owner JeanCharles le Bault de la Morinière.

Another development this year is that every bottle leaving the domaine will now have a chip embedded in its front label which can be scanned by smartphones in order to access information about it. This will be particularly relevant to authentication, as well as providing a wealth of technical detail and the date of release from the domaine’s cellars. Innovation is alive and well in Burgundy.

GUY SEDDON April 2019

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HISTORY Bonneau du Martray’s CortonCharlemagne vineyard was gifted by the Emperor Charlemagne to the monks of Saulieu in 775, in compensation for the destruction of their Abbey by the Saracens.

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The Church owned the property for just over a thousand years until the French Revolution, when it was acquired by René Bonneau du Martray’s family, descendants of Nicolas Rolin, who founded the Hospices de Beaune in 1443.

In the 19th Century, the Bonneau du Martray family held almost 24 hectares of vines, including the entirety of the Charlemagne climat in the commune of Pernand.

René Bonneau du Martray, born in 1886, left the estate to his niece, Comtesse Alice le Bault de la Morinière, whose husband Jean took over in 1969. Jean began the estate’s renaissance, enlarging and improving the cuverie and cellars and introducing estate bottling.

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THE VINEYARD Corton-Charlemagne is the only west-facing grand cru in the Côte d’Or, meaning its vines enjoy extended exposure to the afternoon sun.

This unique aspect is accentuated by the heat-reflective white marl soil. The elevated plots allow for excellent drainage whilst cold humid air passes through the valley at the base of the slopes. The hilltop wood buffers the highest parcels from cold winds. These features make for an extremely varied patchwork, conferring complexity on the finished wines.

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Bonneau du Martray’s vines lie in one contiguous plot at the heart of the Charlemagne climat, the appellation’s largest single holding at 11.09 hectares. Following the November 2018 lease to Domaine de la Romanée-Conti of 2.8 hectares of Corton-Charlemagne, the area in domaine production will be 6.7 hectares. However, the 2017 and 2018 vintages have been made from the entire 9.5 hectares, less four blocks which are currently being replanted. The Pinot Noir (Corton) plantings cover 1.59 hectares.

The hill of Corton, with its voluptuous slopes and generous woodland at its crest, some 300 metres above sea level, is composed of a bedrock of limestone, overlain

by Jurassic soil. The parcels can be grouped into three larger sections, named after the families who tended them before Jean le Bault de la Morinière’s time. Each represents roughly a third of the holdings. The upper slopes are dominated by white marl, with the proportion of iron and clay increasing as you descend the slope.

The upper section, of around three hectares, is known as Rollin Haut. The soils here are poor, forming the “spine” of the wine, in Thibault Jacquet’s terminology. This adds mineral tension and acidity to the final blend. The midslope section is called Grande Plante – the “heart” of the wine, conferring a more generous, assertively fruited character. The lower slopes are known at the domaine as Les Latours. These, for Thibault, represent the “flesh” of the wine, contributing density and viscosity.

The lower section tends to be picked first, the upper section last. The 40-strong harvest team typically takes one week to bring in the domaine’s grapes. The three parcels are vinified separately, with sub-cuvées made if Emmanuel Hautus and team so decide. The average age of the vines is over 50 years, although this is set to change as the replanting programme advances. Yields are low, the average being 40 hectolitres per hectare (hl/ha) for the white and under 30 hl/ha for the red.

No herbicides or fertilisers are used and yields, whilst naturally controlled by the age of the vines, are further reduced by severe pruning in the early part of the growing season and by green harvesting when necessary.

Following biodynamic trials on a third of the vineyard from 2005 to 2011, the whole estate was certified biodynamic in 2016. The domaine’s biodynamic supplier is the renowned Pierre Mason.

Thibault Jacquet, Commercial Director

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CORTON-CHARLEMAGNE GRAND CRU

CORTON GRAND CRU

Grape Variety Chardonnay

Grape Variety Pinot Noir

Vineyard Holding 2017 9.5 hectares

Vineyard Holding 2017 1.59 hectares

Average Age of Vines 55 Years

Average Age of Vines 53 Years

Average Production 3990 cases

Average Production 500 cases

Average Yield 40 hl/ha

Average Yield 30 hl/ha

2017 VINTAGE NOTES Thibault Jacquet spoke of “three different waves of pressure” in the 2017 season.

The first of these was a frost “reminiscent of the terrible 2016 spring”. This was countered with a spray based on the valerian plant, permitted by biodynamics, the domaine having received biodynamic certification in 2016. This created a cosseting environment around each tender shoot, protecting against the worst of the frost.

The second obstacle was the heavy spring rain, which washed away these treatments almost as quickly as they could be applied, making for a constant battle in the vineyards. The final challenge was the summer heat and drought pressure, which again was combatted successfully using valerian spray, this time to protect the leaves and fruit.

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The Pinot Noir was picked on 30th August. This proved well-timed, as the 31st was rainy. The hardier Chardonnay was then harvested from 1st to 5th September. 2017 was a vintage in which the Bonneau du Martray team had to be constantly alert: a challenge to which it rose spectacularly.

In the cellar, Emmanuel Hautus has been experimenting with a 17 hectolitre concrete conical tank, which he likes for the sense of energy it confers and with a concrete egg-shaped vessel, which gives a flintier, more ‘reductive’ aspect, due to the lees circulating inside the vessel.

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Emmanuel Hautus, Winemaker

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2017 TASTING NOTES CORTON GRAND CRU

CORTON-CHARLEMAGNE GRAND CRU

Brilliantly bright raspberry and red cherry fruit on the nose, which manages to be almost shockingly stark whilst inviting, coaxing you to take a sip. The palate is more voluptuous than any previous vintage I can recall, showing a densely red berried gourmand side hitherto unseen in Bonneau du Martray’s Corton. This, along with finely extracted, perfume-coated tannins and taut acidity, makes for quite a wine – and perhaps a statement of intent for the future direction of the domaine.

Corney & Barrow Score 18 Recommended drinking from 2022 - 2032

This was tasted initially cuvée-by-cuvée, the samples drawn from representative oak blends: a third new oak, a third from one year old barrels and a third from two year-old. The upper blocks provide the tension and acidity, being mineral and more lean, whilst the midslope section is dense and powerful. The lower slopes are toasty and corpulent. Bringing these elements together, the final blend has a fine, chalky mineral-led nose, with white flowers and a promise of weighty white peach fruit. The palate is fine-boned on the entry, with thrilling tension on the mid-palate and a long, rich finish on which pear and honey notes linger. Splendid!

£745/Case of 3 bottles, in bond UK £500/Case of 1 magnum, in bond UK

Corney & Barrow Score 18.5+ Recommended drinking from 2021 - 2028+ £1,055/Case of 6 bottles, in bond UK £1,065/Case of 3 magnums, in bond UK

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Tasting Guide Our tasting notes provide full details but, at your request, we have also introduced a clear and simple marking system.

We hope these guidelines assist you in your selection.

Wines are scored out of 20. Customers seem to like it and it has the benefit of simplicity.

To Order LONDON

020 7265 2430 EDINBURGH

We will often use a range of scores (e.g. 16.5 to 17) to indicate the potential to achieve a higher mark. When a ‘+’ is shown it adds further to that potential. Wines from lesser vintages will, inevitably, show a lower overall score.

Wines are judged, in a very broad sense, against their peers. Why? Well, you cannot easily compare a Ford with an Aston Martin, other than they are both cars and have wheels. It is not that different with wine.

01875 321 921 EMAIL

sales@corneyandbarrow.com PLEASE NOTE These wines are released en primeur.

Delivery dates to be confirmed.

All prices are quoted in bond UK.

A score is a summary only. The devil is in the detail, so please focus on the tasting notes and, as always, speak to our sales team.

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Apiaries at Bonneau du Martray

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RECOMMENDED DRINKING DATES Almost without exception our revised drinking dates are merely a reminder of what we recommended upon original release. We do not say that you cannot drink wines older if you wish, merely that we cannot continue to guarantee them if you ignore our recommendations!

REVISED DRINKING DATES Vintage

Corton-Charlemagne

Corton

2000

Now

Now

2001

Now

Now

2002

Now

Now

2003

Now

Now

2004

Now

Now

2005

Now

Now

2006

Now

Now

2007

Now

Now

2008

See Below

Now

2009

Now

Now

2010

Now - 2020

2016 - 2025

2011

Now - 2020

See Below

2012

2016 - 2021

See Below

2013

See Below

See Below

2014

See Below

See Below

2015

See Below

See Below

2016

See Below

See Below

Vintage

Corton-Charlemagne

Corton

2000

From 2006

From 2005

2001

From 2005/6

From 2005

2002

From 2008

From 2006

2003

From 2007

From 2008

2004

From 2012

—

2005

From 2015

—

2006

From 2014

From 2014

2007

2012 - 2015

2013 - 2015

2008

2014 - 2017

2014 - 2020

2009

2014 - 2018

2014 - 2020

2010

2017 - 2020

2018 - 2025

2011

2016 - 2019

2016 - 2022

2012

2017 - 2020

2017 - 2021

2013

2018 - 2022

2018 - 2022

2014

2019 - 2023

2019 - 2024

2015

2018 - 2022

2020 - 2025

2016

2020 - 2024

2021 - 2026

ORIGINAL DRINKING DATES

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