JJ Morel is a producer that my partner Matt and I absolutely adore. We drink and taste many wines, in fact all of them that we offer and every time one of us tastes a JJ Morel wine, we excitingly email each other and just start praising him and his wines.Matt: "Can you believe how lucky we are to have him?"
Lyle: "I know. It's insane. Just crazy. The wines have almost too much soul."
Matt: "Hey, that's a good idea for the next offer, write that down!"
Lyle: "Every time I drink one of these it feels like I am learning again what wine is and it feels like I am falling in love with wine all over again."
Matt: "You're such a cheeseball but I get what you are saying."
No one else would try to import these wines. The winemaker doesn't make enough wine to earn a living from this, he does it for the love of wine. And I get a small allocation, not enough to support a normal import portfolio. Honestly, I get so little it barely makes sense for me but everyone who drinks the wines absolutely loves them, so it's worth it to me.
These are wines that you can pretty much dedicate the evening to. The aromatics are so wonderful that you can get an evening of enjoyment just from smelling them. There is something unmistakably distinctive about these wines. Morel just makes them in a way that you can only do with incredibly small lots and you can tell they have that little something "extra." They have a subtle beauty to them is unique and distinctive in my Burgundy portfolio. And the clients who love the wines constantly write me about how terrific they are.
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.
When one thinks of St. Aubin the initials PYCM usually come to mind. He makes an excellent 1er Cru from Chateniere. You know who sells him that fruit? Yup, you guessed it, JJ Morel. This year I have the first time I have offered the 2014 JJ Morel St. Aubin 1er Cru "La Chateniere" for as little as $39.99 on a 4-pack. The Morel can be drunk off the bat and my what drinking it is! The wine is electric and one of the best 14s Morel has crafted. Super great nose. Super minerally and very expressive nose even with what I can only describe as creamed corn. Savory and feral elements that are so fresh they defy explanation. Tolkien is a word that comes to mind. Amazing acidity. I mean that luscious 2014 acidity that coats your mouth and back palate but doesn't sting. What makes 2014 special is its downright succulent acidity. Citrus explosion on the palate with tremendous inner mouth floral complexity. Mouthwatering. Sappy and dense. Nutty, long and intense. Utterly profound. Personally I prefer this to PYCM's Chateniere as the oak is not overt, which makes the wine need 2-6 years to integrate better.
Next up I have one of the most startlingly original reds in my Burgundy portfolio. It is the 2013 JJ Morel St. Aubin Rouge "Le Ban" for as little as $32.99 on a bottle. Super savor and earthy and very mineral nose with gorgeous cherry flowers. It just smells so authentic. Terrific power and concentration. Good forward and very genius red fruit on the palate. I'm talking freakishly fresh cherry fruit with excellent purity. The tension is almost Hitchcockian. Long and structured. This wine has more soul than a James Brown concert.
I recently had one of the 2008 Le Bans and it was stunning. Just perfectly balanced like a Stradivarius. Crazy length. Drank like a wine so far above it's weight class it wasn't funny. While you can drink these young, they definitely become profound with age.
One thing I learned on this recent visit is that St. Aubin, like its neighbor Chassagne Montrachet used to be planted to 100% Pinot Noir. Something I had no idea about but there is a stylistic resemblance between the two. If I had to make a guess on the difference is that I find St. Aubin Rouge to have even more fruit than Chassagne Rouge. Just as rustic and charming and always one of the better value plays in Burgundy.
2014 JJ Morel St. Aubin 1er Cru "Chateniere" - $41.99 ($159.96 4-pack)
2013 JJ Morel St. Aubin Rouge "Le Ban" - $34.99 ($131.96 4-pack)
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