A powerful and structured night of very high caliber! Henri Gouges' Les Pruliers is a powerful wine, a great classic from these great Nuits terroirs.
In this famous domain, the relay has now passed from the hands of Christian Gouges to those of his nephew Grégory. Completely renewed technical facilities, in line with what one should expect from such a source, allow for gravity work and softening of tannins that, in recent vintages, tended to harden. But don't expect the wines to jump at you: with the Gouges, Nuits is serious business and meant for long aging.
Nuits Premier Cru "Les Pruliers" The 1.8 hectares of this plot benefit from an ideal location and sun exposure in the heart of the Nuits vineyard. Sometimes young (15 years), sometimes older (70 years for the oldest), these vines give birth to wines with aromas of wild fruits, game, infused with a lot of minerality.
Being bottled today. A slightly darker colour here. There’s a good weight of a darker red berry fruit with a slight mentholated touch. The structure is more like a classical central Nuits-St-Georges, with both firmer tannins and a sound thread of acidity. The fruit continues very nicely behind.
The 2021 Nuits Saint-Georges Les Pruliers 1er Cru comes across a little muted on the nose compared to its peers, maybe just a little subdued, though it will open with bottle age. The palate is medium-bodied with chalky tannins, citrus-fresh with a little more weight towards the finish. This conveys perhaps the most energy from Gouge's white 2021 with fine persistency on the aftertaste. Classy.
A cool, pure and distinctly earthy nose combines plum and dark berry aromas with plenty of sauvage and a hint of game. I very much like the texture of the highly energetic, sappy and rich medium weight flavours that immediately firms up on the rustic, robust and markedly powerful finish. This is very Pruliers in style and a wine that's going to need extended patience. Outstanding.