Christophe Pacalet Chenas 2019
Background
Not so long ago, we were putting together a wine package and really wanted to do our best to try and source some wines from the lineage of the Gang of Four. Marcel LaPierre’s family still produces wine under his name (he died in 2010), but getting our hands on it proved impossible. It’s available in Ontario in very small quantities and sells out almost immediately. The easiest solution was to source wine from Pacalet, Lapierre’s nephew, and a great maker in his own right.
Christophe Pacalet
Pacalet set up shop in 1999 with the help of his famous uncle and began operating as a negociant, buying grapes from local farmers and making the wine himself. This is a fairly common practice, especially in Burgundy, but what sets Pacalet apart is his quality standards. He doesn’t just wait for a truck to show up with whatever grapes. He employs his own harvest team to go into vineyards and literally get ‘first pick’ of the best fruit on the vine. By sorting at harvest, instead of in the cellar, Pacalet can maintain the highest quality standards.
Tasting Notes
This wine shows like a really good Syrah. Tasting these wines made us think back to all the times we’ve mistaken Cru Beaujolais for Northern Rhone in blind tastings. Lots of savoury roasted spice on the nose. Aromas like smoked paprika and dried ancho chilies. The fruit remains in the background until the wine hits the palate. An explosion of dark brambly berries then yields, revealing a little bit of sweet black liquorice. Chenas may be the smallest of the Crus, but the wines from this village certainly pack a punch.
Food Pairing
Southwestern Cuisine. As much as the producers would want us to pair everything with French food (the French are a little proud of their gastronomy, have you heard?), we think the peppery spice of this Chenas would be great with the roasted chilies and cumin that you find in Mexico and the southwestern States. You could go high-brow with a dry-rubbed, roasted beef with a salsa verde, or low-brow with your family’s taco Tuesday. This wine will highlight roasted and spiced flavours, and there’s enough acidity to handle a little heat.
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