Tasting Notes
The quality here should not surprise, given the quality of the vineyards Guffens farms in Pouilly-Fuissé. From up to seventy-year-old vines rooted in some of the most mineral soils of the region, Guffens works with parcels covering both northerly and southerly exposures. The 1er Cru Les Roches is an idyllic, high-altitude site on the softer incline of the rock, while Les Crays is another beautifully located vineyard, sitting mid-slope on the steep belly of La Roche de Vergisson. The Carmentrant terroir shares many similarities with its neighbour Les Crays, including its high altitude (around 350 meters). For its part, the terroir of La Côte—which sits directly below the majestic rock—faces northeast and offers high, balancing acidity and cool, mineral line. Finally, there is also a cameo from Guffens’ vines in Sûr La Roche, Les Croux, and Les Petits Croux. No press wine was included in this vintage, only free run, or what Guffens calls “1er jus”. Interestingly, to boost the wine’s power, Guffen’s included some super-ripe fruit, picked as it began to turn colour (known as “levroutée” in Mâconnais).
This has tremendous finesse and is a far smokier, more reductive wine than the two above. It is much more tightly wound and more mineral. Expect a fine, juicy wine with a cord-like structure, white florals, nectarine and struck match notes, and a long, saline close. Superb. - Importer Note
Over the decades Jean-Marie Guffen’s predisposition for ruffling feathers may have, at times, overshadowed the significance of his many triumphs. Today I think people simply accept that Guffen’s straight-shooting style simply comes with the territory. Indeed, the bullshit-free universe that Guffens inhabits may in fact be one of the key reasons why he has become such an important and influential grower in Burgundy. Trying to make better-than-Grand Cru whites in the Mâconnais? What kind of personality would try such a thing? Only an iconoclast, able to see through the cultural straight jacket of his times and recognise things as they might be in an alternative universe.
There is still a great deal of poor viticulture in the Cote d’Or and there are many great and historic terroirs in them Mâcon. If you work to the highest possible standards in these latter terroirs, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be able to achieve greatness. Guffens saw this and he was right. Now others are following his lead. There’s no doubt that when the stars align, as they so often do here, Domaine Guffens-Heynen is nigh on untouchable.
| Product Type | Wine White Chardonnay |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Country | France |
| Region | Burgundy |
| Sub Region | Macon |
| Winemaking Practices | Minimal Intervention |
| Vineyard Practices | Organic/Biodynamic |