Historia
Esmonin is becoming one of the most consistent, high quality producers in Gevrey. They are now using a new bladder-press and have excellent control over the amount of pressure exerted on the grapes, which are picked only when they have reached ideal ripeness. After a short cold maceration gives the wines an extra dimension of fruit, they are aged in carefully selected French oak barrels of Allier and Nevers forest wood made by Radoux and Berthomieu, two of the very best coopers. Wines are aged in barrels of varying age and toast and then blended in order to achieve optimum balance and complexity.
Among a sea of premium Burgundy winemakers, Frédéric Esmonin stands out for me because their wines are quite "pretty" in their infancy. Definitely drinkable and pleasant. Yet, I've also tasted older vintages (e.g. 2002) and it was so well-balanced and aged perfectly. They are also a tremendous value because they are less well-known than the “blue chip” Burgundy producers from the Cote de Nuits.
Domaine Frédéric Esmonin, from Burgundy's Gevrey-Chambertain appellation, is a true family collaboration that consists of Frederic, his father, André, and his mother, Michele. They have been farming their 10-acres of family vineyards for generations and selling their fruit to the likes of Drouhin, Jadot, and Leroy. (In fact, some of the very great wines from Leroy in the 1950's are believed to have come from the Esmonin vineyards.) In 1988 they began to commercialize their own labels and, according to critics, after some learning curve they have been producing consistently high-quality, beautiful wines