In case you think that I didn’t have any wine tastings while I was celebrating turning seventy, I did, and will take three articles for the nine wines that I had at The Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan.

The first wine that I had was Domaine Lignier-Michelot Bourgogne Blanc Cuvee Axelle 2022. The Lignier family has cultivated vines in Morey-Saint-Denis since the early Twentieth Century, including Premier Cru and Grand Cru vineyards. They sold their fruit to negociants unti 1992, when they began bottling some of their own wines. The domaine has over eight hectares of vines in their holdings with several plots older than fifty years. Virgile Lignier represents the third generation of his family and took over since the 2000 vintage. No pesticides or herbicides are used and low yields are maintained through vigilant green pruning. This cuvee is based on Chardonnay, and the only white wine produced by the estate and named after his daughter; on a half-hectare plot on clay soil. Grapes are completely destemmed and undergo a five-day cold maceration, followed by naturally occurring fermentation.  It is aged for twelve months with light stirrings, and using thirty percent new French Oak barrels. A very pale golden color wine that offered notes of white fruits, tropical fruits, citrus, and vanilla.  On the palate there were tones of melon, peach, pineapple, lemon, and oak with balanced acidity, and a nice medium finish of fruit, honey, and flint (terroir).

We then had Domaine Lignier-Michelot Bourgogne Rouge 2021. The Lignier family has cultivated vines in Morey-Saint-Denis since the early 20^th Century, including Premier Cru and Grand Cru vineyards.  They sold their fruit to negociants until 1992, when they began bottling some of their own wines.  The domaine has over eight hectares of vines in their holdings with several plots older than fifty years.  Virgile Lignier represents the third generation of his family and took over since the 2000 vintage.  No pesticides or herbicides are used and low yields are maintained through vigilant green pruning.  This wine is from a plot that is just over one hectare of Pinot Noir planted in the 1960’s on deep clay, just outside the limits of their Chambolle-Musigny Village appellation and their Morey-Saint-Denis appellation.  They use organic methods, but have not been certified. The fruit is a mix of destemmed and twenty-five percent whole cluster that undergo cold maceration for five days, followed by indigenous yeast fermentation.  The wine is aged for twelve months, with about thirty percent new French Oak and finished unfiltered.  A dark cherry-red wine that offers notes of red and black fruits, cassis, violets, cedar, and sous-bois.  On the palate a medium-bodied wine that had tones of cherries, strawberries, but blended with more earthy tones of mushrooms, old leather, pepper, and a medium finish of terroir.  

We then followed with Clos du Val Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2022.  Clos du Val is a family-owned estate located in the Stags Leap District AVA, established in 1972 by John Goelet and was one of the wineries that participated in the 1976 Judgement of Paris.  He also has vineyards in Yountville and Carneros, while his Goelet Wine Estates owns the Taltarni and Clover Hill wineries in Australia, and Domaine de Nizas in Languedoc.  The winery is now into its third generation in the family.  A unique personality of his vineyards is that they are not tilled, but have permanent grass planted in the mid-rows.  In 2012, they upgraded their facilities and made changes to their practices to make a more “New World” fruit-forward wine style of wine.  They also began harvesting later, reducing yields, and relying on estate-grown fruit, which reduced their production of Cabernet Sauvignon by almost half.  The wine is a blend of seventy-seven percent Cabernet Sauvignon, twelve percent Merlot, five percent Malbec, four percent Cabernet Franc, and two percent Petit Verdot.  The wine is aged for twelve months, and using thirty percent new French Oak.  The wine is a deep purple-red and offered notes of blackberry, plum, violets, and vanilla spices.  On the palate rich tones of cherry, blackberries and blueberries, cassis, almonds, dark chocolate mixing with good acidity, supple tannins, and a good medium count finish of fruit and spices.