2014 JJ Morel Bourgogne Blanc "Les Genouvrees" - $26.99 on a 4-pack
2014 JJ Morel Puligny-Montrachet - $47.99 on a 3-pack
One of my favorite paintings in the world is The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli. I remember
gazing at it for almost an hour when I visited the Uffizi. There is something almost transcendent
about it. The painting is at the same time incredibly detailed and realistic, simple and allegorical at the same time. One can focus on many of the beautiful individual aspects of it or just stand back and enjoy it as a whole. There are very few wines that one can enjoy at such a level. Where one can focus on the fruit or the minerality or the aromatics or the structure. Or just sit back and close one's eyes and be astonished by the beauty of the wine. Jean-Jacques Morel makes such wines. I have no idea how he does it. I can say that his 2013 Bourgogne Blanc was one of my favorite white wines that I had in 2015 at any price point. He is a gift to us.
I struggle to describe why they are so great. Part of it is that they are so aromatic. But I think more is that they are so perfectly well made that one can experience an almost zen or out of body moment at times when drinking them.
Morel's wines are about as micro production as it gets in Burgundy, and along with Berlancourt are the two most culty/unicorn like white burg producers that I import. They are completely different from each other, but both achieve the same endpoint which is being wines of contemplation and deliciousness that defy the AOC system that codifies wine by geography. Values are found when winemakers like Jean-Jacques push what can be done in the vineyard (a biodynamic and organic environment is the only way to describe his vineyards) to such an extreme level that the resultant wines are "imprisoned" by their appellation. I don't often bang the drum about biodynamic production but when you taste these wines, you believe the claims that living soil makes great wine. These wines are so complex and delicious that paired with a bowl of Tater Tots, they make a great meal.
But first a word about 2014. It is by far the best vintage since 2010. I might like it better than 2010. Every one I drink blows my mind. The depth, minerality and length are unmatched. Buy these like your life depended on it.
Today I have what is only a Bourgogne Blanc in name but drinks like a brilliant village wine from a great vintage and Jean-Jacques has crafted maybe the best Bourgogne Blanc of his career. The 2014 Jean-Jacques Morel Bourgogne Blanc "Les Genouvrees" can be had for as little as $26.99 a bottle. The nose has a mineral/savory depth that is just so epically clean. The image is of s bubbling brook after fresh rain pouring down some limestone. cliffs. It has purity that is unrivaled at this level. The density and length are extra special and it exudes a fat/acid/mineral richness that only increases as it aerates. There is that savory quality on the palate that just is so dialed in on the 14's. There is a texture akin to terrific gelato almost if that makes sense. It is easy Puligny quality and has a stunning sense of place. Quantities are small and this will have to be allocated in all likelihood. If you don't normally buy expensive white Burgundy, please buy some of this - it will show you what is possible at a fraction of the cost.
Up next is the Jean-Jacques Grand Cru in all but name. And it is the best wine he has made in 2014 and maybe the best wine he has made since his 2008 St. Aubin 1er Cru "Les Combes," which we chatted about on my recent visit, in hushed tones, as that wine is gone from his cellar, and whoever has bottles is very lucky. But this 2014 Jean-Jacques Morel Puligny-Montrachet which can be had for $47.99 a bottle on a 4-pack is about as great a village Puligny as you will have and is another benchmark wine for this estate. The nose is a vivid and classic expression of Puligny, with mineral, iodine and hazelnuts in all of their glory. Clean like you cannot believe as is the theme for Morel's wine and especially his 14's. Very concentrated with excellent purity and lot of hazelnut smokiness that comes through on the elegant midpalate. There is a serious core of fruit here. Big, young, intense and needs a few years. It is palate staining as only the best wines are. The terroir here is more clay than limestone and as Jean-Jacques says "holds flavors and puts them back at you." A great wine and one of the best 2014's I have tasted.
2014 Jean-Jacques Morel Bourgogne "Les Genouvrees" - $28.99
($107.96 4-pack)
2014 Jean-Jacques Morel Puligny-Montrachet - $49.99 ($191.96 4-pack)
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