Burgundy

Alain Chavy Bourgogne Blanc 2015 (750ML)

Alain Chavy has quietly been producing some very fine white Burgundy in recent years from his winery located behind his house on the outskirts of Puligny village. “July was dry and warm,” he explained just prior...

Alain Chavy Bourgogne Blanc 2017 (750ML)

86-88 NM The 2017 Bourgogne Chardonnay has a pleasant light green apple and lime scented bouquet. The palate is crisp and taut, and without any new oak contact (just one to five years old oak), it possesses a linearity and...

Alain Chavy Puligny Montrachet les Pucelles 1er Cru 2017 (750ML)

90-92 VM The 2017 Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles 1er Cru has a clean, precise bouquet that is just missing a little energy at the moment - much like the Les Clavoillons. The palate is well balanced with a tad more weight...

Albert Bichot Latricieres Chambertin 2016 (750ML)

96 WS / 94-96 WA The black cherry and blackberry fruit is wrapped in seductive, smoky oak. Though dense and muscular, this is also close to seamless, even at this early stage. The finish is energetic and vibrant, with a...

Benjamin Leroux Nuit St Georges aux Boudots 1er Cru 2015 (750ML)

92-94 WA The 2015 Nuits Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Boudots has a clean and precise bouquet, quite intense with blackberry, crushed strawberry and crushed violet scents, the whole bunch component barely recognizable. The...

Bernard & Thierry Glantenay Volnay Santenots 1er Cru 2015 (750ML)

93 VM /16.5 JR The 2015 Volnay 1er Cru shows a lot of reduction on the nose that makes the fruit and terroir difficult to read at the moment. The palate probably indicates the potential more than the aromatics,...

Blain-Gagnard Chassagne Montrachet Boudriotte 1er Cru 2016 (750ML)

90 BH An exotic nose offers up notes of mango, viognier and lychee nut along with a mix of both yellow and white orchard fruit. Lush, even opulent flavors manage to retain reasonably good detail along with a discreet bead...

Blain-Gagnard Chassagne Montrachet Morgeot Rouge 1er Cru 2017 (750ML)

89-91 BH Tasting note: This too is quite restrained aromatically with its mélange of pepper, earth and various dark pinot nuances. The rich and not especially dense medium-bodied flavors possess a velvety mid-palate,...

Bonneau Du Martray Corton Charlemagne 2016 (1.5L)

95 VM / 94 WA (production was half of normal in 2016; aged in 30% new oak and bottled at the beginning of April of this year): Pale yellow-green. High-pitched aromas of citrus peel, menthol, lavender and white pepper...

Bruno Clavelier Vosne Romanee les Beaumonts 1er 2016 (750ML)

94 WS / 90-92 VM Shows terrific depth to the aromas and flavors of black currant, blueberry, graphite, earth and baking spices. Delivers weight and length, with overall balance and a long aftertaste that echoes the core of...

Chateau de Puligny Montrachet St Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly 2015 (750ML)

90-92 WA / 89-92 BH The 2015 Puligny Montrachet is actually 80% declassified vines in the Chalumeaux vineyard. It has an expressive, granite and slate-tinged bouquet that is nicely focused, more intense than many village...

Clos De Tart Grand Cru 2016 (750ML)

99+ VM / 97 WA The 2016 Clos de Tart Grand Cru, cropped at 35hl/ha, is the first year farmed biodynamically. This was completely breathtaking in barrel, and now, in bottle, nothing has changed in that respect. It has an...

Clos Frantin Chambolle Musigny les Amoureuses 1er Cru 2015 (750ML)

94-96 WA   2015 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Amoureuses, which contains 20-25% whole bunch fruit, has a surprisingly understated bouquet when considering both the precocity of the vintage and the esteemed vineyard in...

Comte de Vogue Chambolle Musigny AC 2015 (750ML)

89-91 BH / 89-91 WA / 88-90 VM Tasting note: A very pretty and elegant nose merges notes of spice and floral elements with those of red and dark currant. There is fine richness to the relatively full-bodied flavors that...

Comtes Lafon Macon Clos de la Crochette 2016 (750ML)

87-90 BH / 89 VM Tasting note: Reduction presently flattens the underlying fruit. On the plus side there is both good detail and unusually good refinement to the succulent yet tension-filled flavors that exude a fine bead...

Comtes Lafon Macon Prisse 2016 (750ML)

88 BH / 87 VM Tasting note: Smoky aromas of white orchard fruit and lemon peel lead to rich, opulent and seductively textured flavors that possess sneaky good length on the delicious and balanced finish. This too would make...

Comtes Lafon Vire Clesse 2016 (750ML)

88-91 BH / 90 VM Tasting note: This too exhibits enough reduction to render the nose difficult to evaluate. More obviously mineral-driven middle weight flavors possess both excellent detail and intensity while coating the...

Comtes Lafon Volnay Santenots du Milieu 1er Cru 2016 (750ML)

94 BH / 94 WA Note: from 40+ year old vines planted in shallow, high clay content soil sitting on a bed of solid rock; from yields of 11 hl/ha in 2016Tasting note: An overtly floral nose combines notes of rose petal, violet...

Confuron-Cotetidot Vosne Romanee les Suchots 1er Cru 2015 (750ML)

95+ VM / 91-94 BH / 17+ JR Dark red-ruby. Incredible nose melds black raspberry, licorice, Asian spices, minerals and cocoa powder. Densely packed and powerfully structured but the wine's finesse of texture ensures a...

Courcel Pommard Grand Clos Des Epenots 1er Cru 2010 (750ML)

93 BH / 92 VM / 90 WS A beautifully layered nose of purple fruit, violets and soil tones leads to exceptionally rich, velvety and sappy medium weight plus flavors that brim with dry extract that does a fine job of buffering...

d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru 2016 (750ML)

89-92 VM / 89-91 WA / 89-92 BH Very dark color. Lively aromas of blueberry and violet. Juicy and intense, with very ripe, sweet dark berry and chocolate flavors framed and enlivened by brisk acidity and saline minerality...

d'Angerville Volnay Champans 1er Cru 2016 (1.5L)

92-95 VM / 93+ WA / 91-94 BH (the entire bottom of this vineyard was fried by frost, according to régisseur François Duvivier): Bright, dark red-ruby. Medicinal blueberry and licorice aromas are lifted by a...

d'Angerville Volnay Champans 1er Cru 2017 (750ML)

92-94 VM    The 2017 Volnay Les Champans 1er Cru is tasted from two barrels. It demonstrates wonderful grace and precision with mineral-infused cranberry and wild strawberry fruit. There is a sense of vitality...

d'Angerville Volnay Fremiet 1er Cru 2016 (750ML)

92-94 VM / 92+ WA / 91-93 BH Bright ruby. Blackberry, licorice and violet on the perfumed nose. Fine-grained and suave, but with terrific inner-mouth floral lift giving the middle palate a sense of energy. The wine's...

d'Angerville Volnay les Caillerets 1er Cru 2016 (750ML)

93-95 VM / 91-93 WA (the yield was down 25% due to the frost): Very dark ruby-red. Pure, high-pitched aromas of blackberry, violet and crushed rock. A step up in sucrosité and pliancy, offering an almost voluptuous...

de Montille Clos Vougeot 2016 (750ML)

 93-95 WA / 92-94 BH The 2016 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru is one-third whole cluster, less than in recent years according to winemaker Brian Sieve, with almost 50% new oak. It has a beautiful bouquet with scents of...

de Montille Corton Clos du Roi Grand Cru 2016 (750ML)

93-95 WH / 91-94 BH / 90-92 VM Back to Clos-du-Roi and to a more controlled and refined wine. Is it the vineyard? Or the de Montille style? Or a bit of both? It’s an intense and delicate young wine – fine...

de Montille Pommard les Pezerolles 1er Cru 2015 (1.5L)

 91-93 WA / 92 VM / 90-92 BH The 2015 Pommard 1er Cru les Pezerolles has quite a dense, rich bouquet with cassis-tinged red berry fruit, actually more like a Volnay in style. The palate is medium-bodied with fine...

de Montille Volnay Taillepieds 1er Cru 2015 (750ML)

94-96 WA / 92-95 VM / 92-94 BH The 2015 Volnay 1er Cru les Taillepieds, 100% whole cluster with around 30% new oak, offers impressive precision and focus on the nose, lively cranberry, wild strawberry and pomegranate scents...

de Montille Vosne Romanee les Malconsorts 1er Cru 2016 (750ML)

93-96 VM / 93-95 WA / 92-95 BH (vinified with two-thirds whole clusters and aged in 60% new oak; no frost damage here but the yield was just under 40 hectoliters per hectare): Healthy dark red. Explosive aromas of black...

de Villaine Bourgogne Blanc les Clous Aime 2016 (750ML)

89 VM / 89 WA The 2016 Bourgogne Côte Chalonnaise Blanc Les Clous Aimé has a potent asparagus and pear scented bouquet, a touch of toffee apple in the background. The palate is fresh on the entry with a...

de Villaine Bourgogne Rouge Cote Chalonnaise la Fortune 2016 (750ML)

90 VM "The 2016 Bourgogne La Fortune has a lovely raspberry and blackberry bouquet with a subtle sea influence coming through with aeration. The palate is surprisingly structured for a Bourgogne Rouge with black pepper and...

de Villaine Bouzeron Aligote 2017 (750ML)

93 DE / 90 WA / 90 WS Pierre de Benoist says that he wants bitterness in his wine and, in the best possible way, he gets what he wants: this is racy and refined, its greenness and salinity balanced by pretty white fruit...

Desaunay-Bissey Grands Echezeaux Grand Cru 2015 (750ML)

The Grand Echezeaux are situated right at the point where Clos de Vougeot, Le Musigny and Grand Echezeaux come together - nearly 70 year old vines produce one of the potentially great wines of Burgundy. Bruno also makes...

Domaine de l'Arlot Mont des Oiseaux 2015 (750ML)

90-92 WA / 89-91 VM The 2015 Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru Mont des Oiseaux is the same vineyard as the Petit Arlot, which is to say that it still comes from the younger vines in Clos de l'Arlot. At the time of my visit, the...

Domaine Matrot Meursault 2017 (750ML)

90 WS / 88 BH A lean, lime-infused style, with some reductive, sel gris and iodine notes playing off the stony mineral element. Fine length. Decant now, or cellar for a few months. Drink now through 2024. 2,000 cases made,...

Dominique Laurent Volnay Clos des Chenes 1er Cru 2015 (750ML)

91-94 VM (two-thirds of these vines are among the oldest of the appellation, according to Laurent; vinified with a small percentage of whole clusters; just a single new barrel of this juice): Red-ruby. Fruit-dominated...

DRC Romanee St Vivant 2015 (750ML)

96 BH Tasting note: This is more restrained still though aggressive swirling eventually coaxes the gorgeously broad-ranging nose to reveal an even more floral and spicier mélange of red and dark currant, Asian-style...

Dugat-Py Bourgogne Halinard 2011 (750ML)

Dugat-Py Pommard Vieilles Vignes 2011 (750ML)

89-92 BH Not surprisingly the nose is completely different compared to that of the Vosne as the floral elements are less pronounced with more earth character to the red currant aromas. There is excellent richness and...

Etienne Sauzet Puligny Montrachet Les Combettes 1er Cru 2016 (750ML)

94 BH / 93 VM Tasting note: Vestiges of post-bottling sulfur don't completely mask the otherwise elegant citrus, white pear and acacia blossom aromas. The detailed, intense and concentrated medium weight plus flavors...

Eugenie Clos Vougeot Grand Cru 2015 (750ML)

94 DE / 93-95 WA / 92-95 BH Powerfully complex and brooding nose of dark fruits, cloves and liquorice. Fresh, sleek attack, very concentrated and tannic. The burly, muscular character doesn't lack elegance or drive. Pungent...

Eugenie Echezeaux Grand Cru 2014 (750ML)

93 BH / 92+ VM / 17+ JR / 90-92 WA Deep ruby color. An ultra-spicy and attractively fresh nose is composed by openly floral, Asian tea, plum and black currant scents. There is a lovely sense of energy to the fleshy and...

Eugenie Echezeaux Grand Cru 2017 (750ML)

18 JR / 93-95 WH / 91-93 BH Deep cherry red. Less open than the Brûlées and a hint of smoky reduction adding complexity at this point, very slight and attractive. Under that there’s pure, sweet red and...

Eugenie Vosne Romanee 1er Cru Aux Brulees 2017 (750ML)

17 JR / 94-94 WH / 90-92 BH Mid cherry red. Smells richer, deeper and riper on the nose than the Clos d’Eugénie, generous dark-red fruit. You hardly see the oak the fruit is so alive. Ripe and rounded on the...

Eugenie Vosne Romanee Village 2016 (750ML)

16.5 JR / 87-89 WA From Vigneaux and the bottom bit of Brûlées because they don’t reckon it’s up to premier cru standard – a little bit rustic. And young vines. Racked and in tank. No whole...

Eugenie Vosne Romanee Village 2018 (750ML)

89-91 BH / 88-90 VM / 16.5 JR Moderate wood influence surrounds the overtly spiced and ripe plum, dark currant and violet scents. The attractively textured, rich and sappy medium weight flavors possess very good depth on...

Eugenie Vosne Romanee Village Clos D'Eugenie 2017 (750ML)

17 JR / 90-91 WH / 89-91 BH Richer and spicier than the village wine and shows the whole-bunch component. Bramble, suggests Michel Mallard and he’s spot on. Slightly floral. So fragrant. There’s a little more...

Fabien Coche Bourgogne Blanc 2015 (750ML)

This family-run domain, based in Meursault, was created by Julien Coche in1940 and began as just one hectare of vines. His son Alain took over from him, expanded the holdings, and earned a high reputation for the vintages he...

Faiveley Bienvenues Batard Montrachet 2015 (750ML)

96-97 JS / 93 WA / 93 WS / 91 VM / 91-93 BH Fabulous aromas of crushed lemons, stones, yogurt, flan and cooked apples follow through to a full body, round and rich fruit and a flavorful finish. Dense and so long. Fantastic...