Maison M.Chapoutier
About Maison M.Chapoutier
Established in 1808, M. Chapoutier is one of the oldest producers in the Rhône Valley. But its current worldwide fame - and the quality of its wines today - can be credited to the arrival of Michel Chapoutier in 1990. His willingness to change established practices - plus his determination to reflect the full potential of individual terroirs - has cemented his reputation as one of the greatest winemakers in the world.
The seventh-generation bearing the Chapoutier name to craft wines within the Rhône, it is reasonable to say that Michel Chapoutier is one of the most important figures not only within his native region, but the whole of France given his impact on the world’s fine wine scene.
Travelling extensively throughout both the Old and New wine producing worlds in his youth, Michel returned to the Northern Rhône with both vigorous passion for his craft as well as extensive knowledge gathered from hundreds of traditional and revolutionary vignerons from around the globe. The most important, lasting lesson learnt was the importance of terroir and the expression of nature’s nuances – a principle clearly evident throughout the modern Chapoutier offerings.
Setting about purchasing shares in his family company until he possessed a managing control, the first act of this masterful figure at the helm of Chapoutier was a revolutionary conversion of the entire estate to biodynamic principles in order to respect and encourage the terroir. An unprecedented move considered to be extraordinarily risky at the time, today many of its peers are merely playing catch-up to this imperious producer at the very height of its powers.
Product Name | Region | Qty | Score | Price | |||||
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Roussillon | 1 | - | HK$3,150.00 | |||||
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Rhone | 1 | 100 (RP) | HK$12,360.00 | |||||
Wine Advocate - Robert Parker (100)The 2011 Ermitage Cuvee de l’Oree comes from a lieu-dit known as Les Murets planted with 80- to 90-year-old Marsanne vines. The bouquet offers up scents of Asian spices, lychee nuts, white currant liqueur and peach and apricot marmalade. This stunning, honeyed, flamboyant white is perfection in a glass. Drink it over the next half century. |
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Rhone | 1 | 100 (RP) | HK$11,000.00 | |||||
Wine Advocate - Robert Parker (100)The 2011 Ermitage Cuvee de l’Oree comes from a lieu-dit known as Les Murets planted with 80- to 90-year-old Marsanne vines. The bouquet offers up scents of Asian spices, lychee nuts, white currant liqueur and peach and apricot marmalade. This stunning, honeyed, flamboyant white is perfection in a glass. Drink it over the next half century. |
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Rhone | 3 | 98+ (WA) | HK$12,370.00 | |||||
Wine Advocate (98+)As expected, the 2011 Ermitage l’Ermite, which comes from the lieu-dit of the same name, is more backward and focused, with a slightly closed, tight profile. Slowly giving up ample cassis and black raspberry fruit, graphite, licorice and edgy minerality, it is full-bodied, deeply concentrated and tannic, yet still never puts a foot wrong and is perfectly balanced and seamless. Give it 3-4 years in the cellar and enjoy over the following two decades or more. |
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Rhone | 3 | 98 (WA) | HK$10,005.00 | |||||
Wine Advocate (98)Similar to the '12 and showing the generosity and warmth of this site, the 2011 Ermitage le Meal is another sexy wine that's just hard to resist. Full-bodied and concentrated, it's slightly more red fruit-driven with black raspberries, crushed flowers, sweet spice and roasted herb aromas and flavors all emerging from the glass. One of the denser, more concentrated 2011s out there, it still shows the 2011 extroverted and straight-up hedonistic character and will drink well for another 20+ years. |
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Rhone | 1 | 99 (WA) | HK$10,115.00 | |||||
Wine Advocate (99)Surprisingly, I preferred the 2011 Ermitage le Meal Blanc over the 2012 on this occasion and it showed a more flamboyant, sexy style in its caramelized pineapple, tropical, honeyed and floral personality. Big, rich and decadent, with fabulous fruit intensity and length, this rock star flirts with perfection and will keep for another 3-4 decades. |
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Rhone | 1 | 100 (WA) | HK$12,645.00 | |||||
Wine Advocate (100)Even better and a prodigious effort that hits all my sweet spots, the 2011 Ermitage Le Pavillon comes from one of the top terroirs on Hermitage hill, the granite soils of the Les Bessards lieu-dit. Spectacularly perfumed, with raspberry, blackberry, licorice, toasted spices and assorted floral nuances, this full-bodied effort has massive depth and richness, no hard edges and masses of finely polished tannin that emerge on and frame the finish. It will be approachable at an earlier age than either the 2009 or 2010, yet should nevertheless have 2-3 decades of ultimate longevity. |
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Rhone | 1 | 95 (WS) | HK$6,975.00 | |||||
Wine Spectator (95)Offers a mouthfilling, brambly feel, with dark plum, steeped blackberry and mulled boysenberry fruit at the core, backed by anise, singed mesquite and black tea notes that give the finish a perfumy caste. Has depth and power but stays remarkably refined. Best from 2016 through 2030. 13 cases imported. -JM |