Where to look for the best Nuits-St-Georges 2021 wines...
The post Top Nuits-St-Georges 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair
Domaine des Perdrix
Domaine Henri Gouges
Domaine de l’Arlot
Nuits-St-Georges was generally less severely impacted than many neighbouring villages by the weather conditions in 2021.
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]]>Top value wines from Burgundy's 2021 vintage...
The post Burgundy 2021 en primeur: where to find value appeared first on Decanter.
]]>In the past several years, ‘Burgundy’ and ‘bargain’ have seldom appeared in the same sentence. Despite the price escalation, finding value is eminently possible even in the current market of tiny supply and surging demand.
One possibility is to explore regional appellation wines that receive just the appellation ‘Bourgogne’.
This appellation is nominally at the lowest rung of the quality ladder, but even the most celebrated domaines produce a Bourgogne (although some are quite expensive). If you search, however, you will find superstar domaines producing a wine of great value that spectacularly over-delivers at this level, such as Hudelot-Noëllat Bourgogne Pinot Noir or Michel Niellon Bourgogne Chardonnay.
Some producers farm the less-expensive vineyards at high elevations above the main slopes of the Côte d’Or known as the Hautes-Côtes. These are also included in the regional category as Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Beaune and Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits.
These appellations can also provide exquisite quality wines that are also exceptional value, such as the Hautes-Côtes de Beaune Au Bout du Monde from Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey and the Hautes-Côtes de Nuits Corvée de Villy from Thibault Liger-Belair.
Hautes Côtes de Beaune. Credit: Vins de Bourgogne
Another type of regional appellation that should not be overlooked is Bourgogne Aligoté. This white wine grape is widely undervalued since it can produce spectacular wines of concentration, depth and structure in the right hands.
The fruit character is more tangy grapefruit and tarragon than Chardonnay’s ripe apple and white flowers, but the lively acidity and breadth on the palate make this a wine of intense pleasure with food.
Bouzeron in the Côte Chalonnaise is the only village-level Aligoté, yet the grape is grown widely. Marsannay-based Sylvain Pataille is one of the flag-bearers for this grape and he makes several delicious versions, but his Clos du Roy (from a vineyard in Chenôve) is our current favourite.
A bit of searching can land the thirsty collector delicious wines from top domaines that are accessible on release but will also continue to improve with five years or more in the cellar. If you’ve been thinking that ‘everyday Burgundy’ is an oxymoron, these are definitely wines to explore.
94 Domaine Alexandre Parigot, Savigny-lès-Beaune PC Les Peuillets
94 Château de Chamirey, Mercurey PC En Sazenay
94 Domaine des Heritiers du Comte Lafon, Macon Milly Lamartine
93 Domaine Henri Boillot, Bourgogne Chardonnay
93 Domaine Belleville, Rully PC Les Cloux
92 Domaine Albert Morot, Beaune Dessus des Marconnets
92 Domaine Jean-Marc Vincent, Auxey-Duresses Blanc Les Hautés
92 Domaine A. & P. de Villaine, Bouzeron
92 Domaine Berthaut-Gerbet, Hautes Cotes de Nuits
91 Domaine Pascal Prunier Bonheur, Monthélie
95 Domaine Lamy-Caillat, Chassagne-Montrachet PC La Grande Montagne
95 Domaine Philippe Naddef, Mazis-Chambertin GC
94 Domaine Pierrick Bouley, Volnay PC Clos des Chênes
93 Pernot Père et Fils, Gevrey-Chambertin Les Jeunes Rois
93 Domaine Albert Morot, Beaune Bressandes PC
93 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod, Chambolle-Musigny, 1er Cru Véroilles
93 Alvina Pernot, Puligny-Montrachet Rue des Vaches
93 Domaine Chataigneraie-Laborier, Pouilly-Fuissé
92 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod, Chambolle-Musigny
91 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod, Bourgogne
See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Morey-St-Denis | Chambolle-Musigny | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée | Meursault | Chassagne and Puligny-Montrachet
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]]>The best wines to seek out in 2021...
The post Top Chassagne-Montrachet and Puligny-Montrachet 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>Domaine Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey (Chassagne)
Domaine Paul Pillot (Chassagne)
Domaine Blain-Gagnard (Chassagne)
Domaine Lamy-Caillat (Chassagne)
Domaine Michel Niellon (Chassagne)
Domaine Jean Chartron (Puligny)
Domaine Alvina Pernot (Puligny)
See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Morey-St-Denis | Chambolle-Musigny | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée | Meursault
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]]>See the top bottles from Meursault in 2021...
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]]>See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Morey-St-Denis | Chambolle-Musigny | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
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]]>Where to look for the best Chambolle-Musigny 2021 wines...
The post Top Chambolle-Musigny 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
The post Top Chambolle-Musigny 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>Where to look for the best Gevrey-Chambertin 2021 wines...
The post Top Gevrey-Chambertin 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Chambolle-Musigny | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
The post Top Gevrey-Chambertin 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>The best wines to seek out from here in 2021...
The post Top Pommard and Volnay 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Chambolle-Musigny | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
The post Top Pommard and Volnay 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>Where to look for top quality in Morey-St-Denis in 2021...
The post Top Morey-St-Denis 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Meursault | Chambolle-Musigny | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
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]]>The best wines to seek out in Vosne-Romanée in 2021...
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]]>See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Chambolle-Musigny | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay
The post Top Vosne-Romanée 2021 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>A first look at Burgundy's 2021 vintage...
The post Burgundy 2021: What to expect appeared first on Decanter.
]]>Burgundian growers hesitate to share their wines with the press until they feel they are ready to show. In this report, I form some early opinions about the Burgundy 2021s.
Reports from Burgundy after the 2021 harvest were dire – and justifiably so.
After a warm, wet winter, and a cool spell, temperatures climbed sharply at the end of March, bringing on budbreak and the start of growth.
The post Burgundy 2021: What to expect appeared first on Decanter.
]]>Top-scoring Burgundy 2020 premier cru wines worth seeking out
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]]>‘The unique conditions – economic as well as meteorological – of 2020 mean it is an exceptional Burgundy vintage,’ said Charles in his Burgundy 2020 en primeur vintage report.
Yet he found himself questioning whether the wines from the 2020 vintage truly reflect what most consumers perceive to be a Burgundian style.
Across the region yields were much lower than usual and the fruit was particularly concentrated.
Burgundy 2020 en primeur: Full report plus top-scoring wines
See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Côte de Beaune | Côte de Nuits | Mâconnais | Côte Chalonnaise
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Gevrey-Chambertin | Chambolle-Musigny | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
Even though it is the grand cru wines that tend to score the highest, Charles noted that the premiers crus from the highest reaches of Puligny, Chassagne and Meursault, such as Puligny Champ Gain, Chassagne La Romanée or Meursault Blagny, offered excellent quality.
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]]>Top value white wines from this hot but successful vintage.
The post Best value white Burgundy 2020 en primeur to buy appeared first on Decanter.
]]>As the hottest vintage in Burgundy since the start of the century, it’s no surprise that the wines are showing a high concentration of fruit, with high levels of tannins in the reds and richness, density and ripeness in the whites, particularly in the Côte Chalonnaise.
This was the first year for Pouilly-Fuissé’s premier crus and Charles Curtis MW found it was a resounding success, producing ripe wines that ‘retained a lively acidity’, he said.
Burgundy 2020 en primeur: Full report plus top-scoring wines
See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Côte de Beaune | Côte de Nuits | Mâconnais | Côte Chalonnaise
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Gevrey-Chambertin | Chambolle-Musigny | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
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]]>Top value red wines from this hot but successful vintage.
The post Best value red Burgundy 2020 en primeur to buy appeared first on Decanter.
]]>Charles Curtis MW tasted over 1,200 wines for his Burgundy 2020 en primeur report and despite it being yet another hot year, he discovered some sublime wines from producers that have managed to tame the concentration of fruit.
‘The results are delicious, but they hardly conform to many wine lovers’ idea of what Burgundy is’, he said, as aromas and flavours in the reds tended more towards black fruit than red.
Burgundy 2020 en primeur: Full report plus top-scoring wines
See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Côte de Beaune | Côte de Nuits | Mâconnais | Côte Chalonnaise
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Gevrey-Chambertin | Chambolle-Musigny | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
Cool nights, wind, early harvesting and sorting for sunburn has allowed producers to craft some excellent wines despite such dry conditions.
If money is no object, Charles Curtis MW recommends seeking out reds from Bonnes-Mares, Richebourg, Ruchottes-Chambertin or Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Beaux Monts.
However, Charles has also compiled a list of top value reds, featuring wines from appellations such as Santennay, Marsannay and Chorey-les-Beaune.
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]]>The top-scoring wines from these two appellations...
The post Top Meursault and Montrachet 2020 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>Among the whites, the best of the Meursault Perrières are breathtaking, and there are marvellous wines from Meursault Gouttes d’Or and Bouchères as well.
In Puligny-Montrachet, look for the Premiers Crus La Truffière, Caillerets, Folatières and Champ Gain, while in Chassagne, the Les Chaumées and La Grand Montagne were particularly good.
The post Top Meursault and Montrachet 2020 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>A round-up of the best wines in Pommard and Volnay in 2020...
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]]>To the south of Beaune in Pommard, Caroline Parent-Gros of Domaine A. F. Gros noted: ‘2020 was a year of drought and concentration, but a concentration of both acidity and sugar.’
Guillaume dAngerville of Domaine Marquis d’Angerville
Most winemakers left as much foliage on the vines as possible and followed through with a ‘hands-off’ policy.
‘I didn’t touch the vines at all,’ says rising star Joannès Violot-Guillemard in Pommard. ‘I punched down only once and shortened the length of fermentation; everything finished very quickly.’
See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Côte de Beaune | Côte de Nuits | Mâconnais | Côte Chalonnaise
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Gevrey-Chambertin | Chambolle-Musigny | Vosne-Romanée
Even producers such as Nicolas Rossignol who typically favour a firm extraction showed restraint: ‘This year, it’s more about infusion than extraction,’ explains Rossignol.
Overall, the classic red wine terroirs of Rugiens and Epenots in Pommard, and Volnay’s Les Caillerets, Champans and Clos de Chênes were all reliable.
Related content:
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]]>Where to look for the best Chambolle-Musigny 2020 wines...
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]]>In Chambolle, Christophe Roumier was pleased with his results: ‘The surprise of the vintage is the freshness of the wines. The village-level Chambolle suffered in 2020 due to the lack of water, but the old vines not as much. There was less alcohol in 2020 than in 2018, and more complexity than 2019.’
Christophe Roumier of Domanie Georges Roumier
It was, above all, important to vinify carefully.
As Charles van Canneyt of Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat put it: ‘We don’t want to make 2005 all over again’, referring to the hard tannins of that vintage.
Away from the grand crus, it is a great year for the premier crus Les Fuées, Les Cras and La Combe d’Orveau.
See further analysis and top-scoring wines of the following areas:
Côte de Beaune | Côte de Nuits | Mâconnais | Côte Chalonnaise
Morey-St-Denis | Meursault | Gevrey-Chambertin | Pommard and Volnay | Vosne-Romanée
Related content:
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]]>Where to look for the best Gevrey-Chambertin 2020 wines...
The post Top Gevrey-Chambertin 2020 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>According to Denis Bachelet in Gevrey, 2020 ‘was a vintage where the wines resembled the Rhône more than Burgundy’.
He notes that his yield was 35-40% below an average harvest.
Related content:
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]]>Where to look for top quality in Morey-St-Denis in 2020...
The post Top Morey-St-Denis 2020 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>In Morey-St-Denis, Jacques Devauges at Domaine des Lambrays calls 2020 a ‘historic vintage’.
‘The broad lines are striking: 30% less rain than normal and 20% more sun,’ he says. ‘Sunburn was a problem for the vines classed in village or premier cru, but the grand cru parcels were planted parallel to the slope which provided protection. Still, the yields were meagre – 15 hl/ha for the old vines sensitive to coulure.’
Related content:
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]]>The best wines to seek out in Vosne-Romanée in 2020...
The post Top Vosne-Romanée 2020 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>In Vosne-Romanée, Louis-Michel Liger-Belair was very sensitive to the risk of ‘figging,’ noting that his whites were significantly affected, as were the younger Pinot Noir vines.
‘We sorted three times at the end of the vine rows to eliminate the problem,’ he explains.
Related content:
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]]>There's value to be found in the Mâconnais 2020 wines...
The post Top Mâconnais 2020 en primeur wines appeared first on Decanter.
]]>At the end of a relatively warm and sunny winter season, budbreak in the Mâconnais occurred at the end of March.
According to Audrey Braccini of Domaine J.A. Ferret, the rains at the end of April ensured that the vines were an entire month ahead of an average vintage.
This advance continued as flowering was completed in mid-May and an ample crop was set on the vines.
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]]>