Mazis Chambertin Grand Cru, Olivier Bernstein 2019 (3x75cl OWC)

Description

“He has been the most meteoric rise I have witnessed in the region” – Jancis Robinson

Having studied oenology in Beaune, Olivier started his apprenticeship with a harvest at Domaine Rouget, where in 2002 he got to meet the late Henri Jayer. He moved to Roussillion soon after to establish his own domaine, Mas de la Deveze, before returning to Burgundy to create his own negociant business. He is part of a growing breed of micro-négociants; talented young winemakers who don’t own their own vineyards due to increasingly prohibitive land prices, but instead buy in grapes from a network of growers in prime locations. Unlike the traditional negociant system in Burgundy where buyers have little influence in the vineyard, micro-négociants and particularly Bernstein manage the whole process from the vineyard until bottling. They tend to focus on tiny quantities; often a barrel or two and mostly in grand or premier cru vineyards. Olivier has set the bar high and his wines now easily compete with the top domaines of Burgundy.

By Jeb Dunnuck in 2022 (JD97)

One of the few 2019s that really demands bottle age is the 2019 Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru, a tight, medium-bodied, mineral-laced Burgundy offering a promising bouquet of ripe berry fruits as well as ample background minerality. A more masculine, powerful, structured wine, it nevertheless has ultra-fine tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish. While all the 2019s will benefit from time, this is one that demands cellaring. Hide bottles for 4-6 years, and it’s going to cruise in cold cellars over the following 15-20 years.

By Jancis Robinson in 2020 (JR17.5)

His own vines are now in the lower (Bas) section but he has a contract in the upper (Haut) part. His biggest grand cru holding. In a good year he makes eight barrels of this (cf five or six of the others). Cask sample. Not quite as deep or purple as most of his other wines. Heady. Blackberries. Very hedonistic. But built for the long term. Seems a little hot on the end. Still quite dry on the end.