Jean-Marc Burgaud - Morgon Cote du Py 'James' Red 2018 Magnum

The James wine is a single vineyard selection that comes from a small plot near the Cross at the top of the Côte du Py.

Grape

100% Gamay

Tasting notes

This cuvée has a richness and a concentration that is rare in a Beaujolais. It is only produced in the best vintages and in small quantities. The nose has aromas of ripe fruit and well integrated toasty notes. The palate is dense, rich, well structured, silky and with a long, fresh finish. If you lie this delicious cuvée down for a few years it will reach its full potential.

Expert rating

Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate 95/100

“Unwinding in the glass with notes of cherries, wild berries, warm spices and licorice, the 2019 Morgon Côte du Py James is medium to full-bodied, velvety and concentrated, with superb mid-palate amplitude, lively acids and a vibrant core of fruit. Seamless and integrated, it has a bright future ahead of it. Last year, I observed that Jean-Marc Burgaud is a winemaker at the peak of his powers, and his beautifully realized 2020 vintage—in his own words "fresher than 2018, but with more substance than 2019"—only confirms that judgment. These are some of the most consistently delicious wines being produced in the region today, and they're all the better for the fact that Burgaud has abandoned new oak in favor of seasoned wood and pursues gentler extraction than in the past, with his classical semi-carbonic macerations ranging from between seven and 15 days in duration, depending on the cuvée. And there's just one bottling of each wine, making for rare homogeneity—even for his 4.3-hectare holdings in Beaujolais-Lantignié (one of the region's finest values, incidentally). A vertical of Burgaud's Côte du Py, of which he's now produced 31 vintages, is in the works and will hopefully be realized before the end of the year.”

James Suckling 95/100

“This Morgon is so vibrant, it’s shocking! Serious tannins and whiplash acidity give this almost supernatural drive and energy. At the moment, the black-fruit aromas are way in the background, but maybe we have to learn that Beaujolais can live for decades, because this one sure will! Drinkable now, but better from 2023.”