I have so many flattering things to say about today’s wine but let me start here: Domaine Harmand-Geoffroy is one of my personal and most sentimental favorite producers in all of Burgundy. Period.
If you regularly read our offers, you are already familiar with the family’s reliably outstanding, classically styled, terroir-driven reds. When we started SommSelect in 2014, Harmand’s wines were still relatively easy to acquire: Well, suffice it so say that times have changed. A dramatic increase in demand over the last five years has painfully tightened inventory and sent prices skyrocketing upward. This once under-the-radar and over-performing property is now firmly in the “cult” category. Today, when you see Harmand here on SommSelect, you’re usually paying somewhere between $80 and $200 per bottle. So, you can imagine how great it feels to offer today’s absolute barn-burner 2014 Gevrey Chambertin for $59. Only 100 cases of this extremely limited cuvée entered the US and for me, they offer all the power, character, and depth I expect from this venerable property—but without the “cult” price tag. The only downside today is we don’t have much to share, so I advise you to move quickly!
When turning on new clients, young sommeliers, and wine “novices” to the magic of red Burgundy, I stick to a short list of trusted families. When people are trying to wrap their heads around the differences between Oregon/California Pinot Noir and Burgundy, I’ve found that Harmand-Geoffroy’s reds make the distinction clear and hard to argue. The Harmand family works exclusively in Gevrey-Chambertin and has earned a reputation for capturing the essence of this world-famous village in every bottle. They accomplish this by organically hand-farming many top parcels in the village, and keeping things ruthlessly simple in the cellar. The end result is among the most terroir-driven and quintessential red Burgundies money can buy. If you wish to lose yourself in a deep, truly soulful bottle and be reminded of why Gevrey-Chambertin is one of the top Pinot Noir-producing villages on earth, Harmand-Geoffroy is a sure thing. Gérard and Martine Harmand and their son, Philippe, farm a mere 9 hectares of vines divided across almost 30 small parcels in Gevrey. Today’s AOC Gevrey-Chambertin bottling is a limited “survey” bottling that combines fruit from across their holdings. Vine age averages 60 years and the soil is, of course, the village’s timeless cocktail of clay, limestone, and marl. The Harmand family hand-harvests fruit and fully de-stems before fermenting for 2-3 weeks in tank. Thereafter, the wine is racked into mostly neutral small French oak barrels where it rests for a year and a half prior to bottling without fining or filtration.
If every bottle of $50-something red Burgundy that came across my desk was this profoundly delicious, I would be the happiest and wealthiest wine professional around. Of course, it’s not that easy. The US market continues to be flooded with expensive and merely “good” Burgundy. Collectors and sommeliers have pretty well sussed out what deserves their attention and dollars—and what does not—and there isn’t much crossover. Today’s wine proves the consensus, and my own, opinion that Harmand-Geoffroy is great red Burgundy that deserves everyone’s attention.
In this 2014, it starts with the intoxicating perfume of dried roses, wild berries and the meaty, black mushroom muscle that has made Gevrey a destination for top-tier red wine dating back to Roman occupation. Harmand-Geoffroy is revered for putting a magnifying glass on Gevrey’s masculinity and today’s bottling offers that refined, perfectly restrained power and muscle in spades. This wine is a joy to drink today, its deep fruit and savor a perfect companion to braised duck. Just decant for 45 minutes then serve in a large Burgundy stem at just above cellar temperature. But remember also: The Harmand family’s reds are guaranteed superstars in your cellar. I’ve pulled corks on a variety of the family’s Gevrey reds from the mid-to-late 2000s over the last year and the one clear thruline is that they only improve with time in bottle. This is devoutly old-school Gevrey and that means it will be delivering the goods for at least another 10-12 years. So, by all means, please enjoy a bottle or two today and use it to educate your friends on what makes Burgundy the most important Pinot Noir destination in the world—but don’t forget to stock your cellar!
