Domaine Grivelet – Bonnes-Mares ‘Grand Cru’ Cuvée Princess Noura 1976 MAGNUM 1500ml

Domaine Grivelet – Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru ‘Cuvée Princess Noura’ 1976 MAGNUM 1500 ml: A Grand Cru of regal nobility

The magnum bottle – 1,500 millilitres instead of the usual 750 – is far more than just a measure of size in Burgundy. It is regarded as perhaps the most ideal embodiment of a great Burgundy: the greater volume of liquid in relation to the surface area of the glass slows down the ageing process, preserves the fruit and lends the wine a texture and depth that is almost never achievable from a standard bottle. The 1976 Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru ‘Cuvée Princess Noura’ from Domaine Grivelet, in this large-format bottling, brings together several rare factors: one of the most impressive Grand Cru vineyards in the Côte de Nuits, a traditional, artisanal producer from a bygone era, a vintage of exceptional concentration – and all this in a format that is virtually tailor-made for decades of ageing.

The vineyard: Bonnes-Mares – between Musigny and Chambertin

Bonnes-Mares is one of Burgundy’s 33 Grands Crus and is arguably one of the most fascinating vineyards in the Côte de Nuits. The vineyard covers around 15.2 hectares and – unusually for Burgundy – straddles two municipalities: The far larger part (around 13.5 hectares) belongs to Chambolle-Musigny, whilst the northern part, bordering Morey-Saint-Denis (around 1.7 hectares), belongs to the neighbouring commune. Geographically, the vineyard is situated exactly between the region’s two most famous Grands Crus – Musigny to the south and Chambertin to the north – and has always been regarded by connoisseurs as a distinct entity between these two poles.

According to tradition, the name ‘Bonnes-Mares’ derives from a farmer who discovered a sculpture of the three goddesses of fertility – the ‘Bonnes Mères’ (Good Mothers) – in his field. Another interpretation traces the name back to an old French word for a winegrower’s tool that was once used to excavate the old quarries on this land. The soils of Bonnes-Mares are characterised by remarkable heterogeneity: at the northern end, facing Morey-Saint-Denis, they are heavier and richer in clay, whilst towards Chambolle-Musigny they become lighter and are interspersed with calcareous pebbles. This geological diversity is the reason why Bonnes-Mares can produce two fundamentally different styles, depending on the plot and the producer – a more robust, structured wine from the Morey side and a more delicate, aromatic one from the Chambolle side.

The wines of Bonnes-Mares are characterised by a brilliant ruby-red colour, with a complex palette of aromas including sour cherry (‘griotte’), cherry wood, raspberry and – in some vintages – a subtle hint of brown tobacco. As they mature, notes of truffle and musk emerge. On the palate, they display a remarkable balance between structure and texture, with a robust tannic structure balanced by a pleasant sweetness, and an exceptionally long finish.

The estate: Domaine Grivelet – a bygone era

Domaine Grivelet was a traditional Burgundian winery based in Vosne-Romanée, whose roots date back to the early 20th century. The Grivelet family were originally coopers – a craft that has always been closely linked to winegrowing in Burgundy – and, in Fernand Grivelet (1885–1958) and his son Bernard Grivelet, two winemaking figures who left their mark on the estate. Fernand Grivelet was a leading négociant-éleveur on the Côte de Nuits during the interwar period, and the family business, which operated under the names Grivelet Père & Fils and Domaine Grivelet, owned vineyards in some of Burgundy’s most renowned sites – including plots in Chambolle-Musigny (Les Amoureuses, Les Charmes, Les Beaux-Bruns), in Vosne-Romanée (Les Malconsorts), in Bonnes-Mares, in Echézeaux and in Vougeot. The estate’s wines were traded internationally and sold at auctions held by renowned houses such as Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Bonhams – a testament to the domaine’s former significance.

Wine-making followed the estate’s traditions: the grapes were harvested by hand, rigorously selected and fermented in open vats, followed by ageing in oak barrels, with a moderate proportion of new wood. The style of Grivelet wines is described as ‘charnus et foncés’ – full-bodied and dark – and still displayed remarkable vitality even after decades of bottle ageing.

The ‘Cuvée Princess Noura’: A tribute to royal nobility

The name ‘Cuvée Princess Noura’ – named after a princess – lends this bottling a special aura. It is a top-tier cuvée from the House of Grivelet, bottled only in selected vintages and in limited quantities. The cuvée range included several of the estate’s Grands Crus, amongst them Chambertin, Chambertin Clos de Bèze, Bonnes-Mares and Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses. The label bears the designation ‘Longe Prospicio’ – a designation indicating particularly careful selection and long ageing. The bottles were also numbered – a sign of special esteem from the estate and an important feature for collectors.

The 1976 vintage: heat, concentration and longevity

The 1976 vintage was a year of extremes in Burgundy. Following a series of difficult vintages – particularly the rainy 1975 – 1976 brought a frost-free winter and a mild spring, followed by an exceptionally hot and dry summer. Wine literature still recalls ‘the year of the heatwave’ and the drought, which hampered photosynthesis and put the vines under stress. The harvest began in mid-September and was early; timely rainfall at the end of the month did not affect the majority of the grapes. The result was exceptionally concentrated Pinot Noir wines with a dense structure and remarkable depth. Wine-Searcher describes the vintage as ‘exceptionally good’ and emphasises that the finest examples came from the Côte de Beaune, as the Côte de Nuits suffered more from “overcooked fruit and heavy-handed structures” – yet many of the top producers rose to the challenge and produced wines of great class.

For the magnum bottle, this represents a decisive advantage: whilst standard bottles from the 1976 vintage have often now passed their peak, the larger format benefits from a significantly slower maturation process.

The magnum bottle: a window into a bygone era

After more than four decades of bottle ageing, this magnum bottle is in a condition reserved for only the very rarest of wines. The colour is likely to be a luminous ruby red with subtle brick-red highlights – the typical patina of a Burgundy that has matured for over forty years. The nose unfolds the classic aromatic spectrum of a great Bonnes-Mares: notes of sour cherry, cherry wood and raspberry, underpinned by the tertiary aromas characteristic of mature Burgundies – brown tobacco, truffle and musk. On the palate, there is a powerful yet silky tannin structure, balanced by a pleasant sweetness, with an exceptionally long, harmonious finish.

The existence of this magnum bottling is documented by auction lots at Christie’s: A lot comprising a magnum bottle of Bonnes-Mares ‘Cuvée Princess Noura’ 1976 was offered with a liquid level of 3 centimetres below the capsule, with a slightly damaged capsule and a bin-soiled label – an appearance typical for its age. A double magnum (3.09 litres) of the same wine was offered at Brunk Auctions. A Methuselah (6 litres) is also documented.

For collectors and connoisseurs, the magnum bottle of the 1976 Grivelet Bonnes-Mares ‘Cuvée Princess Noura’is a wine of great rarity – a testament to a bygone era of Burgundian winemaking, from one of the most prestigious Grand Cru sites of the Côte de Nuits, produced in a year that presented winemakers with extraordinary challenges yet still yielded wines of remarkable depth and longevity. Anyone who opens such a bottle holds not only a rare Burgundy in their hands, but a piece of Burgundian contemporary history – and a format that has preserved the essence of this history in all its richness.