2020 Marsannay Les Grasses Têtes, Domaine Bruno Clair
Dry | Red | Still | 13%
Bruno Clair has an impressive 10 hectares in his home village of Marsannay. He bottles five separate cuvées, including this wonderful iteration from a single parcel at the southern end of the commune, on the slope that rises up behind the village. Its name (meaning “fat heads”) refers not to anybody involved in its cultivation, but rather the large rocks that show through the surface of the clay soil. It is typically the most structured and powerful of the Clair Marsannays, and in 2020 it is muscular and athletic, reminding me of Gevrey-Chambertin. It can often be difficult to taste so young, but its powdery tannins and fleshy, energetic red-fruit freshness make this 2020 feel accessible already, though with the structure to age. Like the 2019, this is quintessential Marsannay, and quintessential Clair.
Ready: 2023 - 2033