Wine Reviews

Notions of blackberries, dark chocolate, spices, vine smoke, peonies and licorice introduce the 2020 Morgon Côte du Py, a full-bodied, rich and muscular wine that’s the most brooding, wild wine in the Château des Jacques’ range, with an entirely different personality from the estate’s Moulin-à-Vent bottlings.

Saturated, bright-rimmed ruby. Deep-pitched, smoke-tinged cherry pit, cassis and violet aromas pick up spice and musky earth qualities with air. Densely packed, mineral-driven bitter cherry and dark berry flavors smoothly blend power and energy. The long, chewy finish shows fine delineation and features dusty tannins and emphatic floral and spice notes.

Dark magenta. Expansive red and blue fruit, violet, exotic spice and mineral qualities on the smoky nose. Appealingly sweet black raspberry, boysenberry and floral pastille flavors deepen and take on a spicy aspect as the wine opens up. Shows excellent clarity and solid thrust on an impressively long, subtly chewy finish that features sneaky tannins and lingering blue fruit character.

Opening in the glass with notes of cassis, plums, blackberries and smoke, the 2019 Morgon Côte du Py is medium to full-bodied, layered and seamless, with fine, powdery tannins and lively acids. An elegant rendition of this sometimes overtly muscular cuvée, much of the fruit derives from Javernières.

Lush, spicy and rich, deep berry fruit, smooth and racy, long and stylish.