Its ripe old age adds to the charm of Château Chamirey 2011 Mercurey

It was not my purpose to open this Mercurey Blanc. To be honest, I had forgotten all about it. During a dinner I was so wrapped up in a heated discussion that I took a random bottle from my wine refrigerator. What a surprise!

As I smelled the 2011 Château de Chamirey Mercurey Blanc En Pierrelet to check that the wine wasn’t faulty, I immediately noticed the scent of white flowers followed by a stony, almost flinty minerality, and some oak  aromas contributing notes of vanilla. And, ripe apple, something between fresh and dried apples, pears, ripe citrus fruits, and definitely almond paste.

The flavours of salted butter and citrus matched perfectly with a dish of white fish served with a lemony, butter sauce, and grilled green asparagus. 

Judging by the comments, it shows true that people can feel the energy and pleasure of joyfully good wine and food pairing. Even if it was in this case spontaneously.  Besides the fresh sole, En Pierrelet 2011 will perfectly match with other seafood, spiced white meats, and fresh cheeses as well.

The ageing potential of this wine is said to be 5-7 years, however, the 2011 is still very much alive and kicking. Full bodied and creamy, yet not overly buttery, but still remarkably fresh on the palate, with a long, elegant finish. 2011 is the first harvest to be bottled separately as “En Pierrelet”.

I can remember a time when we used to pinpoint a wine’s origin during a blind tasting.  This Mercurey Blanc would have been easy to detect. Moreover, it shows its identity even better at a ripe old age. 

The 35 years old vines of ‘En Pierrelet’ are planted in the stony, predominant limestone with clay soils of the low south-east facing hillsides behind the chateau.  

Château de Chamirey is situated in France, in Mercurey, in the heart of the Côte Chalonnaise vineyards. It was Mercury the god of trade, profit, and commerce that has lent his name to the village. Apparently, at the time the Romans inhabited Gaul there used to be a Gallo-Roman temple to honor the Roman god Mercurius and its counterpart the Gaulish god Vellaunos.

With well over 600 hectares of vines one can easily say that Mercurey is the largest and most prominent appellation of the Côte Chalonnaise. And, the second largest village appellation in Burgundy.