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Wine Description
The Story
For centuries Pommard has been considered the typical burgundy : deep red in colour, powerfully aromatic, solid and trustworthy. The very name Pommard has a generous ring to it and fills the mouth as it fills the glass. Pommard with its smiling vineyards lies between Beaune and Volnay where the Côte de Beaune makes a slight turn towards Autun. These lands formerly belonged to the Dukes of Burgundy, to religious houses including the abbey of Cîteaux, or to old families such as the Marey-Monge family. As early as the Middle Ages, Pommard was thought of as the flower of Burgundy wines - the wine to which all others were compared. The appellation, one of the first AOC to be so designated (1936), grows only red wines from the Pinot Noir grape.
On the lower ground the soil is ancient alluvium. Mid-slope, the clay-limestone soils are well drained thanks to the inclusion of rock debris. Higher still are Jurassic (Oxfordian) marls, brown calcic soils, and brown limestone soils. In places, the soil is reddened by the presence of iron. Exposure : south or east. Altitudes : 250 to 330 metres.
Beware of preconceived notions. The fame of Pommard in the 19th century earned it the image of a wine that is both forceful and virile. In reality, time, terroir and methods of vinification have all combined to create a more subtle reality, a wine that is both richer and more sensitive. Its colour is the deep, dark red with mauve highlights which caused Victor Hugo to speak of it as «night in combat with day». Its aromas are redolent of blackberry, bilberry, or gooseberry, cherry pit and ripe plum. Often, wild and feline notes develop with age. At full maturity, it tends towards leather, chocolate and pepper. It needs to be given time to open up to its fullest extent and to display its mouth-filling texture, its firm but delicate structure, its fruit-filled mouth, and its chewy tannins, which by then will be properly smoothed down. A « rich » wine ? Certainly.
This illustrious representative of the Côte de Beaune with its dense and massive tannins revels in furred or feathered game, braised or roasted, which will find in Pommard (and especially in the Premiers Crus) an invaluable collaborator. Thick cut beefsteak, lamb, or stewed poultry will respond to its firm-textured tannins and concentrated aromas. It is a natural partner for cheeses with well-developed flavours : Époisses, Langres and Soumaintrain, but also Comté.
Serving temperature : 14 to 16 °C.
Vintage 2002
2002 VINTAGE in Burgundy
A Great Year
The trade is unanimous: the harvest was exceptional and 2002 is destined to be a great vintage for Burgundy. A dry summer, a sunny September, splendid grapes with highly concentrated sugars - everything came together to produce structured and complex wines with outstanding aromatic potential.
As early as the beginning of September, the sugar content in the grapes was often at exceptionally high levels and they had attained a degree of maturity indicative of a good balance between sugar and acidity in both the Chardonnay and the Pinot Noir, as well as in the Gamay and Aligoté.
Well-matured grapes have produced - on the evidence of early tastings - deeply-coloured red wines with a garnet tint, and with really well-structured tannins. Depending on degree of maturity, the wines evoke sustained aromas of red and black fruits. Thanks to yield control and careful harvesting, they present a wide diversity of expression.
The white wines are intense and heady, richly fragrant in their blend of fruit and mineral components. They are rounded, long in the mouth, balanced and harmonious.
Both reds and whites of the 2002 vintage fully express their respective terroirs and promise fine ageing potential.
As Hubert Camus, President of the Interprofession and himself a wine-grower at Gevrey-Chambertin, puts it: "In 2002, Burgundy's growers and négociants have every prospect of obtaining remarkable wines."
Growing conditions during the year were characterised by low rainfall. Maturation took place in warm and sunny weather punctuated by occasional rainstorms. These weather conditions aided concentration in the grapes and kept them healthy. The harvest period enjoyed an ideal combination of sunshine and cool temperatures.