Gevrey-Chambertin is the most powerful of the great Cote de Nuits villages, and Domaine Gerard Raphet farm a slice of it alongside their holdings at home in Morey-Saint-Denis. This village bottling shows what the commune does when nobody tries to force it.
Colour is characteristically light for the domaine, which tends to disguise how much is going on. There is dark and red cherry, blackcurrant leaf, liquorice and violet, with the earthy, faintly gamey depth that marks out good Gevrey. The palate is firm but never rough, tannins fine and well knit, acidity carrying a long, savoury, stony finish.
The estate dates to the 1920s and is now in its fourth generation, with Gerard working alongside his daughter Marion. Vines are old, some over a century, and the cellar work is minimal: light extraction, around fifteen per cent new oak, strict yields, no fining, no filtration. Serve with beef, lamb, game or a well aged cheese.
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