Ulysse Collin Le Jardin d'Ulysse 60 mo sur lie (Base 2016, deg 2022)

Based on the 2016 vintage, complemented by 10% reserve wines and disgorged this year after 60 months on the lees, Collin's NV Extra-Brut Les Jardin d'Ulysse (2016) represents the second iteration of this new cuvée. Unwinding in the glass with notions of citrus oil, crisp green apple, mirabelle plum, pastry cream and nutmeg, it's medium to full-bodied, racy and tightly wound, with terrific concentration and chalky structure, girdled by incisive acids, concluding with a long, penetrating finish. After having produced mono-cépage bottlings from terroir with more or less uniform expositions, the Jardin d'Ulysse is a complete departure from that formula, blending Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay, and deriving from a site some 70% of which is oriented north, the rest south. This cuvée really needs a year on cork to start to show all its cards, and Collin is considering extending its time en tirage to 72 months to see what additional potential can be unleashed.

By William Kelley August 2022