Hubert Lignier Nuits St. Georges Les Poisets 2012

Les Poisets is one of the more quietly compelling additions to the Lignier range — a village Nuits-Saint-Georges that sits in a privileged position and punches well above its classification. The parcel, purchased in 2010, consists of vines planted in 1947 and sits just below the premier cru Les Cailles — which explains immediately why this wine carries more weight and structure than the typical village Nuits. The clay-limestone terroir here is classic mid-slope Nuits-Saint-Georges: well-drained, mineral-rich, capable of producing wines of genuine depth and ageing potential. Laurent Lignier ages the wine for approximately 18 months with around 15% new oak — a restrained touch that keeps the focus firmly on the fruit and the site. 

Notes of dark berries, blood orange, spice and dark chocolate lead into a sappy, full-bodied wine with great drive and cut, and a firm chassis of classically Nuits tannins — serious raw materials that need time to reveal their full potential. The intense, refined nose opens with aromas of black cherry and blackberry, lifted by a delicate touch of sweet spice and subtle floral nuances — the palate dense and fleshy, carried by ripe, silky tannins, with the mineral backbone of the clay-limestone terroir bringing freshness and length, the finish stretching elegantly on notes of black fruit and subtle oak. This cuvée displays a firm mineral backbone typical of its village of origin, but with a very Lignier sense of drive and freshness that prevents the wine from ever feeling heavy or over-extracted.