The team at Domaine du Cellier aux Moines has been fanatical in replanting their vineyard over the last decade plus, pulling out old vines, which as owner Philippe Pascal quips, “produced grapes the size of potatoes.” They are replanting with a massale selection, a traditional viticultural practice that propagates a variety of vines from the vineyard instead of using a “Mother” vine or clone. This practice ensures genetic diversity and allows for selection of vines exhibiting favorable traits. In addition, they’ve done an incredibly detailed soil analysis that allowed them to divide the vineyard into parcels, which produce wines with slightly different character. The Les Dessus bottling comes from the upper part of the vineyard that contains different soil, a hard limestone. That soil combined with the massale selected vines that now have some age shines new light on the Givry appellation. The stellar 2023 Les Dessus seamlessly combines an explosive array of dark fruit notes, minerals, and elusive savory elements. Firm, polished tannins provide structure without astringency and impart an alluring texture. As expected from a great youthful wine, additional delights emerge from the glass with time. In the end, you keep asking yourself, “Is this really Givry?” Yes, it is, and the reason behind the question seems to be that no one has previously focused on the appellation’s potential qualities to this degree.
96 Michael Apstein – June 4, 2025