Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Retrospective: 1993-2016

JAY MCINERNEY | FEBRUARY 19, 2025

It’s very rare for Frédéric Mugnier to participate in a tasting of his own wines, let alone his Musigny, so when I heard a few days before the event that a spot was available at a vertical of 15 vintages, with Mugnier in attendance, I leapt at the chance. The tasting and a dinner was held at the home of the late Becky Wasserman and her husband, Russell Hone, in Bouilland, about 20 miles outside of Beaune, where much of the international Burgundy fraternity had gathered for Les Trois Glorieuses. Thankfully, the event gave me an excuse to skip the interminable dinner at the Clos de Vougeot, one of three events that anchor the November weekend, including the Hospices de Beaune barrel auction and the Paulée de Meursault. Wasserman was Mugnier’s American importer, but more than that, a mentor. “I learned more about Burgundy from her than from anyone else,” he told me, after we sat down at the dining table of the old farmhouse with its soaring ceiling and timber beams. (Several of us at the table expressed similar sentiments.) I was seated next to him, which was fortunate for me, not least because to describe Mugnier as soft-spoken is like describing Andre the Giant as tall—a radical understatement. He is a slight, balding, shy-seeming figure, albeit a giant among Burgundy producers. And Musigny is undoubtedly the Queen of Burgundy, one of the three or four greatest vineyards in the Cotes de Nuits. (Chambertin may be the King, while Romanée Conti is probably divine—literally out of this world.)

In France, we are still allowed to describe wines as feminine, which is inevitably done with Musigny and more specifically with Mugnier’s Musigny. I personally like to think of Musigny as Gene Tierney, the gorgeous, blue-blooded brunette, known in her time as the most beautiful woman in the world. Musigny is famed for its perfume, though in my experience this only develops after the first decade of its life and even longer in ripe vintages. Mugnier’s wines are particularly delicate and ethereal and light in color compared with other Musignys. De Vogüé, the largest owner of the vineyard, was, for several decades, in the opinion of many of us, over-oaked and over-extracted, although their Musignys prior to the ‘80s defined, and continue to define, the vineyard for so many enthusiasts, and a new winemaker seems to be turning the domain around. In big, ripe vintages, Mugnier’s wines will have a relatively deep color and tannic structure, but in general they are even daintier than most Chambolles, in an appellation known for its delicacy.

Born in 1955—a very good vintage indeed—Fred Mugnier took over his ancestral domain in 1985, after a career as an engineer. However, partly in response to the difficulty of supporting a family on 4 hectares of vineyards, he worked as a pilot for the French Airline TAT for a number of years thereafter. He gradually became more and more involved with the vineyards and in 1993 produced a celebrated Musigny which was the final wine of the evening in Bouilland. Though I have had mixed experience with this wine, I find it wonderful on this occasion, with ample secondary notes and the kind of spicy and floral notes on the nose that come with age. As with all the wines that evening, they have been unmoved since birth, residing either in the Mugnier or Wasserman cellars.

Mugnier said during the tasting that he is often asked when one should open his Musigny. “I say if the wine isn’t ready to drink after ten years then perhaps I have failed,” he said. In fact, some of these wines, like the 2016 and 2014, were certainly ready to drink and well developed. Some of the big, allegedly “great” vintages need more than a decade to unfurl.  The 1999, which was not in the tasting but which I opened a few days later, like many Burgundies from that abundant vintage, has still not really blossomed. Based on my last three samples, I wonder if it ever will. Much better in my opinion is the ’98, almost certainly the wine of the vintage.

The twenty-first century vintages were a revelation for me, with many pleasant surprises. With the exception of 2006, which has elsewhere been defined as the wine of the vintage but on this occasion was two dimensional and a little clumsy, they were highly individual and delicious in varying degrees, even in maligned vintages like 2003, 2004 and 2011. Mugnier explained that he had just purchased a vibrating sorting table in ’02, which in 2004 resulted in a bonanza of ladybugs falling through the small holes, thereby largely salvaging the crop. He claimed he sorted out a hundred kilos of ladybugs. The famous infestation of 2004 certainly shows in other wines of the vintage. The greenness attributed to 2004 vintage also shows up in the 2011, although the wine has just enough fruit to almost balance it out, assuming you like the leafier, herbal side of Burgundy.

The riper vintages, 2015, 2009 and 2005, are surprisingly singular. To my mind the ‘15 is exuberant and fruit forward, kind of a Golden retriever puppy of a wine, dominated by dark fruit on the nose and the palate. Not the smartest wine in the class at this point, but it has all the qualities to develop beautifully. The ‘09 is much more complex and a little less flamboyant, still brooding and just a little backward. The '05 was probably the greatest wine of the tasting, and gave far more pleasure than I would have expected, given the backward nature of the vintage. I knew the wine by reputation but wondered if I would really get to experience its greatness in my lifetime.  The answer is a resounding yes.

I got the impression that Mugnier likes the cooler vintages. “The idea of a great vintage is widely misunderstood,” he said, somewhat enigmatically. Since he said it while we were tasting the ’04 I think he meant that power and ripeness are not all. As for me, the three wines of the night were a surprise, the ‘16 leading the way, followed closely by the ‘14 and the ‘05. The former pair may not last the longest, and they are certainly less ripe and powerful than the ‘05 and others. But they seemed to me to be perfect expressions of the vineyard and of the balletic ideal of Burgundy. Since I lost my menu, I have mostly forgotten the food which accompanied the last eight vintages, as well as an intermezzo of white Nuits St. Georges from Clos de la Maréchale, but I won’t forget the wines—some of the greatest younger wines I have ever tasted. 

Wines are listed in the order in which they were served.

2015 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. A big, ripe, buxom, sumptuous Burgundy. The nose is exuberant with black fruit, as is the palate. Right now this wine is like a warm blackberry sorbet. The long finish and the tannic backbite foretell a long life. At this point the warm vintage dominates the vineyard, but this wine has all the ingredients for brilliant development. 97/Drink 2025-2050.

2014 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. A nose more floral than fruity, leading Paul Wasserman to suggest it seemed to be whole cluster. (Mugnier destems every vintage.) Very elegant and subtle, this wine opens up nicely in the glass. A mineral component shows up and the fruit is more red than black. It’s a pretty light ruby color, with medium body. The balance is impeccable, the texture silky. Drinking brilliantly now, it will hold for at least a decade. But why wait? 95/Drink 2025-2035.

2011 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. A leafy, earthy tobacco-inflected nose leads to an herbal, slightly bitter mid palate. A subdued Moose, the product of early flowering and “one too many rainstorms,” as Mugnier suggested, the wine was picked in early September after a cool summer.  The tannins are edgy and probably will remain so and the finish is shorter than that of warmer vintages. I would guess the time has come to drink it up. 91/Drink 2025-2030.

2009 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. This is more closed up initially than I expected from this hot vintage, certainly not as open or exuberant as the 2015. But with coaxing a spicy nose emerges. On the palate it is round, generous and harmonious and becomes more so with air. The wine has lots of everything, red and black fruit and evident structure. More elegant certainly than most 2009s, this eventually develops spicy, earthy and mineral notes. This is a great wine already and will only get better. 97/Drink 2027-2045.

2006 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. Although the nose has tobacco and herbal elements, the wine is a bit of a monolith in the mouth, somewhat clumsy and one dimensional. It’s certainly ripe, giving a mouthful of dark fruit, but lacks complexity. The tannins are dry and there is more structure here than pleasure. Strangely, despite a lot of rain that year, the wine is very dark—something which Mugnier says developed during élevage. Maybe not representative? 90?/Drink 2025-2035?

2013 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. Another cool vintage, with a leafy nose, this is light to medium-bodied, lean and restrained and probably not quite ripe. It was picked on the 17th of October, very late by today’s standards. Elegant if somewhat brittle, I don’t expect this will improve much. 92/Drink 2025-2035.

2008 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. Intriguing nose of tobacco and black tea. This is medium bodied, pretty but slightly bitter. Almost classic, well balanced and generous for the vintage, if not compared to its successor. This is à point but will hold for at least five years. 93/Drink 2025-2032.

2004 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. Just the slightest touch of greenness on the nose, but overall this wine is surprisingly pure and round for the vintage. A bit of pyrazine in the palate, but this impresses with its delicacy and red fruit. I would drink it in the next few years. 91/Drink 2025-2030.

2016 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. A beautiful floral nose and a wonderful medium-bodied palate belie the difficult birth of this wine, the product of a brutal April frost. Production here was just four barrels, down from an average of 16. But what a wine. Sweet fruit, earthy and spicy notes, this reminds me in some ways of the ‘14 and is if anything ever more complete. If I used exclamation points, I would use them here. Drink now and for the next fifteen years. 97/Drink 2025-2040.

2010 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. Another difficult vintage that produced a brilliant wine. This Musigny has developed a spicy nose with hints of tobacco. Very round but not overripe. Somehow this seems both bitter and sweet at the same time, yin and yang, with red and black fruit. Seems to combine the virtues of ripe and cool vintages. 97/Drink 2025-2050.

2005 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. The first bottle was slightly funky on the nose but still delicious; Paul Wasserman kindly opened a second, which was pretty close to perfection. The fruit was so round, and the balance was so perfect, it was almost hard to analyze. Though still young, the nose, in addition to ripe black fruit, was starting to show tobacco and bay leaf and myriad other herbs and spices. The core of dark fruit was incredibly dense without any harsh edges and the finished lingered on and one. This will last for decades but it is starting to reveal its immense charm. 99/Drink 2028-2060.

2003 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. The famously hot vintage announces itself right out of the glass: explosive blackberry and blueberry fruit. Yes, it’s ripe but not ridiculously so. Picked September 1st. Despite a bit of residual tannin, this is developing surprisingly well and may continue to do so. 93/Drink 2025-2035?

2002 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. Showing all the virtues of this fine vintage, including a lovely mélange of perfectly ripe red and black fruit. My notes also say “smells cool, tastes warm,” which I guess would indicate its perfect balance. This is à point, elegant and silky, but should go on and on. 95/Drink 2025-2045.

2001 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. “A vintage that got no respect,” according to Mugnier, but this wine, like many other Grand Crus, has developed very nicely. Yes, it’s cool and the fruit is subdued, with a bit of a bitter note in the middle, but it’s very pretty overall, medium-bodied and floral, with very soft tannins. 93/Drink 2025-2040.

1993 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. A complex and seductive nose of spice and herbs leads to a round and ripe mouthful of raspberry and black cherry fruit. I have had mixed experience with this wine, but this bottle was delicious and probably at its peak. A touch of acidity on the finish suggests it may be better sooner rather than later. 94/Drink 2025-2035.

2007 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru (opened from personal storage). Since this one wasn’t in our Bouilland tasting I decided to open it a few days later and I was very glad I did. Somewhat muted on the nose, light ruby in color and relatively light to medium-bodied, this was busting with red fruit, silky in texture and seamless. So well balanced and round. The finish sings. A real ballerina of a Musigny. 94/Drink 2025-2040.

1999 Domaine J-F Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru(opened from personal storage). Deep red color with faint notes of coffee and dark chocolate. Muted on the nose and on the palate. At this point I taste potential without pleasure; one hits a kind of unyielding, almost impenetrable wall of tannin.  Will this eventually open up? Will the fruit outlast the massive structure? Am I tasting the same wine as other critics? I’m beginning to wonder. 92?/Drink 2029-2050?

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