The appellation of Côte de Nuits-Villages comprises five villages that span the length of the Côte de Nuits, including the northern villages of Fixin and Brochon, just around the corner from Gevrey-Chambertin, as well as the southern villages of Comblanchien, Corgoloin, and Prissey. Domaine Daniel Rion’s Côte de Nuits-Villages hails entirely on the Comblanchien Prémeaux. Offering fascinating history as well as terroir-driven wines, Comblanchien was a seat of the French Resistance during World War II and was also the source of fine marble that was used to construct such famous landmarks as the Paris Opera. The Rion’s 2.24-hectare parcel rests on a gently sloping stretch where the vines are rooted in stony limestone from the Callovian and Oxfordian period.

 

The family owned Domaine Daniel Rion & Fils was created in 1955 with only two hectares in the village of Vosne-Romanée. Daniel Rion’s great-grandfather served as staff for Romanée-Conti before striking out on his own to found the family domaine. When Daniel’s children, Christophe, Olivier and Pascal, joined the family business in 1978, the family began crafting and bottling their own wines for the first time. Today the Domaine comprises vineyards in six villages and owns over eighteen hectares. The vineyards are sustainably farmed with lutte raisonée practices, which entails organic farming unless an emergency in a difficult vintage arises. The Rion Family is a prime example of the adage that great wine is made in the vineyard. Their meticulous attention to detail results in a serious reflection of place and the pure expression that nature intended. All of the grapes are hand tended and harvested. During crush, the grapes are destemmed entirely and fed through a gentle gravity press in a successful effort to obtain the softest of tannins. The wine is aged in restrained, partial usage of new French oak for 15-18 months. The result is a terroir-driven beauty that still flies at an under the radar price point.

 

The 2013 Mosaic displays a pale garnet core with light ruby reflections on the rim. Highly perfumed aromas of strawberry, dried black cherry, wet herbs, a touch of rhubarb, wet leaves and crushed clay offer a stunning glimpse of village-level red Burgundy that drinks far above its modest price point. The medium-bodied palate reveals soft silky tannins that bind pristine flavors of redcurrant, cranberry, black cherry, wet herbs and black tea for a delightful sensory experience. This wine is a beauty in its youth but will develop incredible savory complexity and depth over the next 7-8 years in the cellar. For instant gratification, open one hour prior and serve in Burgundy stems between 60-65 degrees alongside this otherworldly Zuni Chicken recipe.