Ric visits Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet

Meursault is truly home to some of the best stars of Burgundy still under the radar. One of these is Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet, started in 1981 by the man himself when he took over a fledgling winery from his father with small holdings in Meursault Les Gruyaches and Puligny-Montrachet Les Referts 1er. With a clear vision of what he wanted to achieve and a fastidious work attitude, Jean-Philippe literally worked the ground. He has his own compost-making facility, it is all manual work in the vineyards, ploughing is done by horses, farming is organic, he green-harvests, vine stock is capped at 6-7 grapes and all harvesting and sorting are done by hand. The wines are vinified with minimal new oak, at most 30%. He is truly a very busy man, evident by the fact that our appointment had to be re-scheduled to a later time of 6.00 PM on 26 October 2018. No grand crus here, and only one premier cru (the above-mentioned Referts). As in Coche-Dury and Roulot, Jean-Philippe prefers to concentrate on bringing out the best possible expression of each individual lieu-dit. His efforts have clearly paid off. Tasting through the 2017s, a generous and exceptional vintage for Jean-Philippe, one that he feels fits his vision better than the less-than-ideal 2016 where some alcoholic fermentation was incomplete, the wines of Domaine Fichet consistently exude excellent purity of fruit, balance and layering. In particular, the Meursault villages can all share the same table as Coche-Dury and Roulot, while his other whites from Monthelie, Auxey-Duresses, Rully, Chassagne and Puligny are equally superb. Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet is where the smart money should be. Merci beaucoup, Jean-Philippe.

Jean-Philippe Fichet

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Bourgogne Aliqote. Clean grassy elements with gentle morning dew.  Good concentration and firm, largely fruit driven with well-balanced minerals. Lively with good energy.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Bourgogne Blanc. Clean lifted floral tone tinged with morning dew. Good attack and concentration. Rounded with fine acidity and good purity, finishing with a gentle note of white pepper. Very fine.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Bourgogne Blanc VV. Lifted nose of white citrus, very cleanly focused. Medium-bodied. Quite ample, displaying very fine acidity and presence with great delicacy and elegance, finishing with quiet intensity. Very fine.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Bourgogne Hautes Cotes de Beaune. Lifted full bouquet of white floral tone. Fullish with a distinct minerally tone, displaying fine acidity and intensity. Good finish.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Monthelie. Full attractive floral fragrance with ripe citrusy flavors. Medium-full. Superb acidity and balance with tremendous vigour, finishing gently. Plenty of promise. Great value.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Auxey-Duresses. Quite effusive. More of grassy elements amidst delicate tones, displaying clean crisp acidity and white peppery tones with good presence, transparency and structure. Finishing well. Quite excellent.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Rully. Firm white floral tones on a distinct minerally palate, showing good weight and presence with very fine acidity and delicate intensity, tapering to a soft gentle finish. Very fine and attractive.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Chassagne-Montrachet. Lovely balanced bouquet of dense fruit and creamy chalky minerals. Good attack, possessing just the right degree of fullness, weight and balance with an attractive deep minerally streak, rather plump, imbued with excellent power and elegance. Finished with great mouthfeel and persistence. Superb.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault. Mildly reductive earthy nose though nicely nuanced with raw nutmeg and fine white pepper, layered with austere minerality and prominent acidity. Very fine.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault Les Gruyaches. Lifted white peppery tone. Rather full. Very well-integrated with firm acidity, excellent depth and linearity. From 90 year-old vines. Excellent.

2007 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault Les Chevalieres. With the advantage of significant bottle age, this outstanding lieu-dit of Meursault boasts a rich creamy bouquet of distilled white fruits, beautifully delicate, showing excellent definition, exquisite detail and precision with lingering tones of vanilla, culminating in a complex finish of spicy tangy mouthfeel amidst superb acidity. Outstanding.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault Les Chevalieres. Still in barrel but the same DNA is evident, displaying an expansive white floral tone with excellent depth and concentration of fruit, layered with superb acidity that enhanced its inner precision and detail. Very well-balanced, tapering to a spicy tangy finish. Great potential.

2015 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault Les Tesson. Effusive nose of complex tropical fruits that hinted at a delicate gentle sweetness, superb in acidity and fine intensity, nicely plump and ripe, displaying great verve and wonderful length with a deep vein of fruit. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Meursault Les Tesson. Highly promising bouquet of white flowers with traces of grassy elements amidst gentle chalky tones. Good concentration. Open and highly supple, displaying great inner detail and lovely integration, ending with excellent linearity in a long clear minerally finish. Great potential.

2017 Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet Puligny-Montrachet Les Referts 1er. Full bouquet of dense white fruits and citrus with clean crisp focused acidity well-balanced against fine minerality and overtones of white pepper, showing good linearity and expression.