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Red Burgundy

Vintages:
2001 - The weather was very difficult. There was rain at harvest time, and there was rot, which attacks the colouring matter in wines, resulting in some very light colours indeed in some cases. As a generalisation, the further south you go in the Côte d'Or (and beyond) the more tricky the vintage. Uneven for whites.
2002 - Lovely vintage (for both reds and whites) - exceptional ripeness with good balance.
2003 - Many growers seemed worried about this vintage on my visit to France in 2004 - there was talk of baked flavours, of raisins and prunes in the wines, and anxiety over volatile acidity. Personally, I was impressed by the wines, which seemed to me to have not only excellent colour, but good, ripe structure as well.
2004 - The wines have not aged well: green, stalky, mean flavours. Avoid.
2005 - Great vintage: benign weather conditions allowed a crop of healthy, perfectly ripe gapes to be harvested; both reds and whites are showing wonderful balance.
2006 - Very attractive vintage of early-maturing wines. Most wines up to and including village level are drinking very well now, and some Premier Crus as well. Low tannins, lighter colour than 2005 (not surprisingly!), but lovely fresh fruit. Similar in character to 2000, but better quality.
2007 - Difficult year, with a damp summer causing a lot of rot. Small quantities of very early-maturing wines, earlier than 2006. As always, it depends on the grower - for example, the Domaine Gachot-Monot used tables de trie for the first time, and has made some very appetising wines.
2008 - Good colour, and lovely flavour in the wines I have tasted, combined with a firmness that bodes well for the future. Good whites as well.
2009 - The growing season, and harvest, went swimmingly, producing large quantities of healthy, ripe grapes. Easy to taste in their youth, the world's press went overboard for this vintage. Of course, many will keep well, but it looks as though the 2010s will last longer.
2010 - Very fine vintage - tiny yields, but fine, concentrated wines with good colour and the structure to give them a good future. Good whites as well.
2011 - A lighter vintage, but some delicious wines with a spicy dimension, displaying their orgins most attractively. This vintage has turned out better than expected - nice acidity has allowed the wines to develop most attractively. 

 

BOURGOGNE ÉPINEUIL 2019 Domaine Leger
Tasting note to follow.

   £15.95

BOURGOGNE CÔTE CHALONNAISE "Clos de l'Évêché" 2021
Domaine de l'Évêché
A light but delicious Pinot Noir from southern Burgundy.

   £19.95

BOURGOGNE HAUTES CÔTES DE NUITS "Clos du Vignon" 2017
Domaine Thevenot-Le Brun
From this domaine's best vineyard - a south-facing well-drained slope facing the village of Marey-les-Fussey. Lively, fresh redcurrant fruit. Quite light.

   £17.50

BOURGOGNE 2019 Domaine Gachot-Monot
Though a mere Bourgogne, this displays proper burgundian Pinot Noir characteristics, with lots of fresh bouncy fruit.

   £17.50

BOURGOGNE Pinot Noir 2018 Domaine Denis Pommier
Denis and Isabelle Pommier mainly produce Chablis, but cultivate a few Pinot Noir vines. The 2018 still needs a little time to settle down, but will get there! 

   £17.95

MERCUREY "Les Murgers" 2016 Domaine de l'Évêché
This is currently drinking extremely well - fresh red berry fruit, with a savoury undertone, lively and satisfying. 

   £17.95 

AUXEY-DURESSES 2015 Domaine Diconne
A great success in this vintage. 

   £19.95

BOURGOGNE "Chant de Muses" 2018 Domaine Gachot-Monot
This comes from a parcel of vines on the edge of the village of Chambolle-Musigny, but just outside the appellation. A step up in quality from this domaine's straight Bourgogne.

   £19.50

SANTENAY "Les Charmes Dessus" 2020 Domaine Claude Nouveau
Very ripe vintage, with lots of colour. 

   £23.65

MARANGES 1er Cru La Fussière 2018 Domaine Claude Nouveau
The house style of Nouveau is pale and light, but with really good Pinot Noir smell, and flavour of red fruits, with a touch of farmyard after a few years in bottle.

   £21.50

CÔTE DE NUITS VILLAGES 2019 Domaine Gachot-Monot
We have moved on to the 2019 vintage of this reliably delicious wine. 

   £21.50

CÔTE DE NUITS VILLAGES "Les Chaillots" 2019 Domaine Gachot-Monot
This has now moved on to the 2019 vintage,very attractive. Drinking well now, and for a few years yet. Still reasonably priced!

   £23.50

SANTENAY 1er Cru Grand Clos Rousseau 2019 Domaine Claude Nouveau
This has moved on to the 2019 vintage. Beginning to drink nicely.

   £23.95

BOURGOGNE HAUTES CÔTES DE NUITS "Clos des Dames Huguettes" 2019
Domaine Philippe Gavignet
This is a reliably wonderful, reasonably priced burgundy that I have been buying for over twenty years - and it also ages well. The vineyard is just outside the appellation of Nuits Saint Georges, but produces wine similar in style, without the hefty price tag, making it excellent value. Try this wine - it's a brilliant mouthful of Burgundian Pinot Noir.

   £23.50

SAINT ROMAIN "Sous le Château" 2018 Domaine Prunier-Bonheur
The style of Pascal Prunier's reds is very pale - but lots of flavour.

   £23.50

MONTHÉLIE "Les Crays" 2018 Domaine Prunier-Bonheur
Drinking now but can be cellared for several years yet. Pascal Prunier made a great success of the vintage in 2018. 

   24.95

NUITS SAINT GEORGES "Vieilles Vignes" 2016 Domaine Philippe Gavignet
The 2017 of this wine has now all gone. I kept back the 2016, because it seemed to me that it would be slower to mature than the 2017. 

   £36.00

NUITS SAINT GEORGES 1er Cru "Les Bousselots" 2017
Domaine Philippe Gavignet
Rich, serious Premier Cru Nuits St. Georges, described by Clive Coates MW as "solid".

   £47.50