Ric's Wine Journal

Miscellaneous wines drunk outside of formal visits to domaines during my recent trip to Burgundy…

1996 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny 1er. Poured from magnum over lunch at Le Ferme St Martin 21 Oct 2018. Courtesy of Jean-Luc Pepin, tasted blind. Dark in colour. Deep sweet tannins tinged with woody green elements amidst brighter tones of tangerines, red plums and redcurrants, showing great acidity that almost threatened to overshadow the fruit concentration.

2015 Domaine Thomas Pico Chablis at Les Caves Madeleine, Beaune, 22 Oct 2018. Intense bouquet of dense oily citrus. Cleanly focused palate, showing good concentration of fruit and minerals with fine intensity and sharp acidity, mellowing after some time. Very fine.

2012 Didier Dagueneau Silex at Les Caves Madeleine, Beaune, 22 Oct 2018. Complex forward bouquet of green melons, green apples and tropical fruits with a hint of durian in its pungent aromatics. Medium-full, fresh and rounded, showing good delineation and definition with oily textures. Good sophistication. Excellent.

2011 Domaine Roblet Monnot Volnay Piture 1er at Les Caves Madeleine, Beaune, 22 Oct 2018. Good color. Rather deep tone of dark fruits and dark plums. Fresh vibrant acidity. Very cleanly focused. Well-extracted. Highly supple with open intensity amidst undertones of ripe dark berries. Very fine.

Foie gras at Le Ferme St-Martin

2016 Pierre Yves Colin Morey Saint-Aubin La Chateniere 1er, at La Rotisserie du Chambertin, 23 Oct 2018. Beautiful color. Dense intense chalky bouquet with a sense of oiliness. Full concentration of dense white fruits and intense citrus on a backdrop of chiselled chalky minerals, rather tight and dry, developing further notes of tropical fruits. Plenty of potential.

2014 Domaine Marquis d’Angerville Volnay Champans 1er, at Le Chevreuil, 23 Oct 2018. Very dark. Rich bouquet of dark cherries, dark berries and currants with traces of tangerines. Well-extracted. Full concentration of fruit with rich tonal balance, fine intensity and depth, shrouded in creamy textures. Still incredibly tight.

2003 Markus Molitor Zeltinger Schlossberg Auslese**, over a home-cooked dinner at La Colombiere, 24 Oct 2018. Dense diesel fumes. Glowing with lovely concentration of tropical fruits and nectarine. Smooth, placid with understated acidity. Not quite as luscious as expected.

2000 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru, ex-cellars tasted blind courtesy of Jean Luc Pepin over a home-cooked dinner at La Colombiere, 24 Oct 2018. Evolved color with a vermilion rim. Lovely glow of red fruits and dark currants tinged with mild herbal tones. Rounded, open and fleshy, showing fine concentration with a deep minerally earthy vein. Good acidity. Excellent.

2006 Domaine Armand Rousseau Chambertin Grand Cru, ex-cellars courtesy of Cyrielle Rousseau over a home-cooked dinner at La Colombiere, 24 Oct 2018. Quite evolved in color. Somewhat reticent, just a suggestion of abundant dark plums and currants. Soft and fleshy with sublime acidity, glowing with lovely intensity. Highly supple and seamless. Slightly darker in tone, coming from a distinct minerally depth that imparted a stern demeanor. Excellent.

Cyrielle Rousseau & Jean-Luc Pepin tucking into black pepper crab flown in from Singapore

2014 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Les Vergers 1er, at L‘Auberg du Vieux Vigneron, 25 Oct 2018. Fabulous bouquet of dense white fruits and rich creamy minerals. Very plump, displaying great acidity and fine tension with a creamy tone, developing exquisite intensity over time with emerging complexity that finished with lingering presence.

2015 Domaine Dauvissat Chablis Les Forest 1er, at Bistro du L’Hotel de Beaune, 25 Oct 2018. Effusive complex detailed bouquet of peaches, yellow citrus and dense flinty minerals. Excellent in concentration and acidity, rather firm, showing good balance. Finishing with mouth puckering intensity. Excellent.

2014 Domaine Armand Rousseau Clos de la Roche Grand Cru, at Bistro du L’Hotel de Beaune, 25 Oct 2018. Lovely bouquet, layered with complex red fruits, cherries and redcurrants. Quite full but somewhat reductive. More of dense minerals that imparted a stern austerity amidst tangerines and subdued red plums with more rose petals to the fore later in the evening, laced with fine acidity. Still too tight at this stage.

2014 Domaine Meo Camuzet Vosne-Romanee Les Chaumes 1er, at Bistro du L’Hotel de Beaune, 25 Oct 2018. Dark ruby. Shy, just hinting at dark cherries. Opened up with rich dark plums, very cleanly focused. Excellent concentration, layered with very good depth of fruit and minerals but too tight and dense at this stage, mellowing just a little to reveal intense red cherries. Not ready.

2001 Domaine des Lambrays Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru, from magnum at La Ferme de la Ruchotte, 27 Oct 2018. Evolved colour, dull red with brownish rim, exuding a firm medicinal glow amidst dark fruits. Fleshy, revealing excellent depth of fruit and supple acidity, still very fresh. Developed a more minerally tone with a minty glow over time, turning into a broad expanse of complex red fruits, cinnamon and peaches on a rich dark cedary floor. A little rustic but this is excellent.

Two gentlemen savouring their meal at La Ferme de la Ruchotte

2009 Domaine Armand Rousseau Gevrey-Chambertin Clos Saint-Jacques 1er, at Chez Guy, Gevrey, 27 Oct 2018. Beautiful deep ruby. Dense effusive bouquet of glorious dark currants and delicious dark cherries, richly layered with subtle minerally nuances, producing very fine intensity that grew more and more pronounced, culminating in a long glowing finish. Still far from its peak form but already outstanding.

2010 Domaine Georges Roumier Chambolle-Musigny Les Cras 1er, at Chez Guy, Gevrey, 27 Oct 2018. Popped and poured. Dark crimson. Sheer arresting fragrance of superbly ripe dark plums, dark cherries, red and black currants, highly alluring and intensely aromatic. Tight with excellent concentration and lovely density, deeply layered, drawing fine tension and intensity across the palate, gelling together very well after some time with a broad expanse of exquisite sophistication. Brilliant!

2015 Maison Capitain-Gagnerot Ladoix Les Grichons et Foutieres 1er, courtesy of Pierre over a home-cooked dinner at La Colombiere, 28 Oct 2018. White fruits and lovely intense citrus with concentrated focus, layered with subtle minerals on the palate with surprisingly good intensity and depth of fruit. Quite excellent.

1993 Domaine Robert Ampeau Meursault Perriere 1er, courtesy of Pierre over a home-cooked dinner at La Colombiere, 28 Oct 2018. Gentle floral chalky tones on the nose. Medium-full, displaying ample creamy chalkiness with lovely oily textures, developing firm stony minerals later. Still very fresh.

2015 Domaine Maldant Pauvelot Santenay, over a home-cooked dinner at La Colombiere, 28 Oct 2018. Fleshy red fruits and dark plums along with some undergrowth and earth. Medium-bodied, showing fine presence and inner detail, producing a dryish mouthfeel.

2009 Maison Albert Ponnelle Beaune Les Bressandes 1er, courtesy of Pierre over a home-cooked dinner at La Colombiere, 28 Oct 2018. Evolved colour, exuding aromatic dark red fruits and currants with a calm elegance. Very good concentration with some early complexity on the palate, yielding cool ripe fruit with subtle saline minerals. Quite seamless and fleshy, finishing with good inearity amidst a bit of gravelly brightness. Very fine.

Vilmart Grand Cellier champagne, at Helen’s residence in Levernois, 29 Oct 2018. Ample in dense sweet yellow citrus and lime, open with a broad expanse of dry minerality and good acidity, showing good definition. A blend of 70% chardonnay and 30% pinot noir.

2015 Domaine Coche-Dury Meursault, at Le Restaurant of Hostellere de Levernois, 29 Oct 2018. Our second bottle of the same wine within a week. Clear luminosity. Effusive bouquet of emerging chalky tones and dense white floral notes. Lovely minerally presence with layers and layers of clear tropical fruit, yellow citrus and crystalline minerals, becoming fuller over time yet retaining superb delicate intensity and transparency with a deeper minerally tone, finishing with great persistence. Superb.

2012 Domaine Francois Lamarche Vosne-Romanee Aux Malconsorts 1er, at Le Restaurant of Hostellere de Levernois, 29 Oct 2018. Gentle dark roses and dark cherries on the nose. Medium full with a distinct minerally tone amidst good concentration of ripe dark berries and plums, deeply layered with growing intensity. Excellent but still tight.

2014 Domaine Hubert Lamy Saint-Aubin Les Dent des Chien 1er, at William Frachot in Dijon, 30 Oct 2018. Lovely delicate lift and luminosity. Good concentration of clear citrus with a lovely lightness and superb intensity of fruit and tight acidity, becoming more intense with gravelly minerals.

2018 Domaine Jacques-Frederic Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny Les Fuees 1er, at William Frachot, Dijon, 30 Oct 2018. Superb bouquet of deep savoury and earthy tones with a complex of dark ripe berries, blackberries and dark currants. Richly layered with delicious fruit, tangerines with some early cedar on a cleanly focused palate, structured with good definition and firm tannins, turning a bit assertive before settling with a mellower richer tone, tapering to a slightly dryish austere end. Outstanding.

Domaine Gouffier Cremant de Bourgogne, at Le Richebourg in Vosne, 31 Oct 2018. A blend of 50% pinot noir and 40% chardonnay with 2 grammes of dosage. Broad expanse of dense chalky minerals and yellow citrus, suitably dry, exuding a powerful yeasty pungency. Excellent in concentration and presence with fresh vibrant acidity. Quite excellent.

2016 Domaine Gouffier Rully, at Le Richebourg in Vosne, 31 Oct 2018. Attractive nose of white fruits. Medium-full, revealing sharp acidity and angular intensity. More forward minerally balance, building up to a sweet finish of great intensity.

2013 Domaine Mongeard Mugneret Fixin, at Le Richebourg in Vosne, 31 Oct 2018. Dark in colour and tone, revealing dark cherries with a reductive brazen intensity. Assertive tannins. Very tight and unyielding.

2016 Domaine Benoit Ente Bourgogne, at Pierre’s place, 01 Nov 2018. Lovely rounded creamy bouquet. Medium-bodied, yielding dry minerality.

2014 Maison Albert Ponnelle Savigny-les-Beaune VV Blanc, at Pierre’s place, 01 Nov 2018. Good fruit. Broad expansive minerality amidst very fine intensity of citrus fruits.

2015 Domaine de la Tournelle Cul du Brey Arbois at Pierre’s place, 01 Nov 2018. A chardonnay from Jura. Clear light citrus. Good freshnessand  acidity with transparent textures and good definition within a delicate structure. Lovely glowing finish, developing a gentle depth over time time. Zero sulphites.

2014 Maison Albert Ponnelle Savigny-les-Beaune Les Pimentiers at Pierre’s place, 01 Nov 2018. Darkish tones with characters of undergrowth, wild berries and dark plums. Medium-full. Very good presence and acidity, developing sweet delicious dark fruits amidst silky tannins. Fine.

One of the stalwarts of Morey-Saint-Denis, Domaine Georges Lignier has been active since the 1920s, started, of course, by Georges Lignier, then his son Bernard in 1949, then the latter’s son (also named) Georges in 1970. Since 2002, the winemaking has been passed to the latter’s nephew Benoit Stehly who welcomed us on 23 October 2018. The domaine has holdings of about 16 hectares in 17 A.O.C. appellations. The viticulture here is non-organic, Benoit prefering to be practical in his methods. Formally trained in oenology, Benoit has come to know his terroir and his vines better over the years and his methods have evolved through observation and intuition. For instance, in the 2017 vintage, the grapes were picked early on 3rd September to preserve freshness and avoid over ripening which Benoit felt the latter had been a problem with his 2011 wines when he had waited too long before harvesting. Up to 40% new oak is used for the Gevrey-Chambertin wines while up to 25% full bunches are used. Tasting the 2017 and a few other recent back vintages, I can safely say that the wines of Domaine Georges Lignier are in safe hands with Benoit. They are richly layered and lively with plenty of power and refinement. This is an excellent domaine.

The confusing Lignier family tree written by Benoit himself

2017 Domaine Georges Lignier Morey-Saint-Denis. Quite effusive in bright cherries and red fruits with a forward balance. Richly layered and structured with good intensity and attack, finishing well.

2016 Domaine Georges Lignier Morey-Saint-Denis Clos des Ormes 1er. Clear ruby. Lovely nose with a hint of burnt sandalwood. Fresh and lively, displaying good concentration and suppleness with a deeper streak of dense minerals. Robust but refined. Quite excellent.

2017 Domaine Georges Lignier Morey-Saint-Denis Clos des Ormes 1er. Good color. The 2017 is more feminine in its lifted rosy fragrance, layered with lovely depth of delicious ripe red fruits. Nicely supple, showing good integration with very lively acidity and fine intensity. Quite excellent.

2014 Domaine Georges Lignier Gevrey-Chambertin Les Combottes 1er. Clear ruby. Lovely aromatic lift of rose petals. Highly generous and ample on the palate with ripe fruits and dark currants amidst saline minerals, structured with sweet dark tannins, layered with fine intensity. Quite excellent. From a 0.49 ha plot.

2017 Domaine Georges Lignier Gevrey-Chambertin Les Combottes 1er. The 2017 wine displays a full warm ripe expanse of intense ripe raspberries, cherries and mulberries, slightly forward in balance with understated minerals, displaying very fine acidity and persistence. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Georges Lignier Clos Saint Denis Grand Cru. Total holdings of 1.49 ha from two separate plots, one planted in 1956 and the other 1980. Clear ruby, exuding aromas of dark roses and dark cherries, lifted with fine concentration and lively intense acidity with a deep minerally streak. Good presence. Very fine.

2013 Domaine Georges Lignier Clos de la Roche Grand Cru. Total holdings of 1 ha from four plots within. Darker than the 2017 below, exuding a lovely aromatic lift of red fruits and currants. Rather full, fleshy and amply layered with well-defined acidity and detail. Quite excellent.

2017 Domaine Georges Lignier Clos de la Roche Grand Cru. Forward intense bouquet of bright red fruits and cherries. Full-bodied but gently structured, very well-layered with excellent integration of minerals, displaying good definition, detail and vigour, finishing with great mouthfeel. Huge potential. Likely to surpass the 2013 in time to come. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Georges Lignier Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru. Holdings of only 0.24 ha. Bright color and tone. Highly lifted fragrance of ripe red fruits and red cherries. Great exuberance and freshness, displaying superb concentration, detail and layering, structured with highly refined tannins that imparted excellent mouthfeel. Still tightly coiled with tannic intensity at this stage but its potential is enormous. Likely to develop very well. Excellent.

2016 Domaine Georges Lignier Chambolle-Musigny. Reductive nose, displaying a great earthy pungency with lifted tones of ripe red and dark berries. Notably bright on the palate, showing very fine concentration and balance with just the right degree of extraction, proudly poised with highly refined tannins, finishing with lingering persistence. A wonderful village.

Burgundy lovers will, most definitely, revere the wines of Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé. After all, this single domaine has the lion’s share of Musigny Grand Cru (7.2 ha) and Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru (2.7 ha), both of which are wines to die for. Together, they account for more than three-quarters of de Vogüé’s total holdings of just 12.5 hectares. Still, there is not enough wine to go around as annual production is limited to less than 50,000 bottles. This is partly attributed to the fact that half of the Musigny vines are cordon-trained which results in lower yields of about 25 hectolitres per hectare. Whilst the history of this domaine may be traced as far back as 1450, it officially came under Comte Georges de Vogüé in 1920. Its modern history, though, only took off in 1986 when Francois Millet joined the domaine as cellar master while the aptly named Eric Bourgogne (who resembles Jason Statham) came on board a decade later in 1996 to manage the vineyard. Quality has been tremendous since. These two gentlemen are still at their jobs, and we were truly privileged to have them join us for lunch at Le Millésime in Chambolle on 31 October 2018, joined by the domaine’s equally long-serving Sales Director Jean-Luc Pepin.

Francois had brought a couple of wines (ex-cellars, of course) to go with lunch and he insisted that they were tasted blind. The first red showed a lovely crimson hue with some bricking at the rim, exuding a lifted deep earthy bouquet with ripe dark cherries, redcurrants and blueberries layered with cedary tones and early tertiary nuances. Bright, rounded and open on the medium-bodied palate with a gentle aged feel, the wine was very harmonious and softly structured with melted tannins, turning more plummy with traces of black pepper. A second bottle was considerably fresher with slightly greater intensity of fruit and vigour, underscored by ferrous minerals. This wine was so good that some thought it to be the domaine’s Bonnes-Mares when, in fact, it was the domaine’s humble village: the 2007 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny.

The second red was great in colour, displaying an easy-going charm of rosy fragrance and subtly intense cherries with a beguiling lovely presence and ripeness on the palate, very subtly layered with fine acidity and silky smooth tannins, rounded with excellent length and feminine grace, developing a gentle intensity over time. We were in no doubt that this must be a premier cru. Indeed, it was a 2001 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny 1er. Most impressive with unmistakable breed, which isn’t surprising as this was made entirely from young vines (ie. aged below 25 years) of Musigny Grand Cru. This has been the practice since the 1996 vintage.

Racking in progress

After lunch, we adjourned back to the cellars where Francois supervised the tasting. Speaking in elegant English (he’d spent time in Canada), Francois is a serious but engaging person who knows his wines inside out and who can be totally absorbing when he starts to loosen up about what he has seen and done with his wines over the past thirty-two years. To him, wine constantly relays messages from Mother Nature. Wine should bring peace but, in recent times, Francois feels that Nature has been troubled. He is, without doubt, referring to the impact of global warming which has already changed the style of wines throughout the world. However, if our tasting of the 2017s from barrel is any indication, it appears that the continuity at Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé over the last generation is still intact and going strong. These are wines of great balance and finesse without having to show off their power.

Francois Millet (Photo: Roger Lum)

2017 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny. Very dark in colour, proffering dark roses and black cherries on the austere nose. Excellent in concentration, rounded with supple acidity and good layering. Very fresh and juicy, tapering to a spicy glowing finish. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny 1er. Very deep ruby with a delicious bouquet of dense dark cherries and blackcurrants, rather forward in fruit balance with a superb rounded presence. Darker in expression but with plenty of purity, youthful brilliance and elegance laced with lovely freshness and acidity amidst understated minerality. Excellent. From young vines of Musigny Grand Cru.

2017 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses 1er. Lovely deep purple. Rather shy, just a gentle glow of ripe raspberries and dark currants though the palate is swathed in velvety textures with lovely concentration of fruit and acidity, all seamlessly balanced and proportioned with fine inner detail. Superbly poised and elegant though not the most profound in depth nor power. Tremendous breed. Still yet to flesh out. Outstanding. Only 5 barrels.

2017 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru. Deep purple, effusive in dark currants, ripe blueberries and raspberries tinged with a suggestion of dry malt. Superb;u layered with exciting acidity concentration with understated minerals that conferred rich velvety textures. Appropriately more exuberant in character but not outright power, finishing with good length. Beautiful.

2017 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Grand Cru. Deep dark purple. Richly layered on the nose but rather reticent and slightly dryish at this early stage. Superb concentration and suppleness, layered with a deep vein of fruit with very fine integral acidity and silky tannin structure, displaying excellent transparency, balance and proportion. Neither dense nor hedonistic. Poised with supreme confidence and delicate power, finishing with delicious dark fruits. Wonderful finesse.

2017 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Blanc Grand Cru. Superb luminosity with a wonderfully complex bouquet of savoury characters and white floral tones rich in perfumed fragrance and elegance, deeply inviting. Fullish with an open broad expanse and presence, displaying overtones of light citrus, peaches, nutmeg and fig on a bed of plush minerality that imparted a quiet intensity, finishing gently. Glorious. From a 0.66 ha of chardonnay planted within Musigny. Not declared (bottled simply as Bourgogne Blanc) from 1994 to 2014 when old vines were uprooted and new ones planted.

Thank you very much Francois, Eric and Jean-Luc for the privilege of your friendship and for the wonderful work you have all been doing for the benefit of countless wine lovers thoughout the world.

Started by Joseph Arlaud and his wife Renee Amiot, Domaine Arlaud, based in Morey-Saint-Denis, has been making wines since 1942. Through gradual acquisitions, the domaine now owns about 15 hectares of vines (with another 3.5 ha of buy-in) in 19 A.O.C. appellations throughout the Cotes-de-Nuits. When we arrived on the morning of 23 October 2018, we were welcomed by its third generation owner Cyprien Arlaud. This domaine has been certified fully biodynamic since 2014 although it had begun vinifying with organic methods as far back as 1998. Horse ploughing is utilised for its premier cru and grand cru vineyards. Using up to 25% new oak and selected whole bunches for its grand crus (the grapes are, otherwise, de-stemmed), I found its wines to be well-extracted (but not overdone), structured with clean focus and definition. Its village and premier cru tend to show a certain feminine elegance and roundness, while its grand crus are impressively layered with power and verve. They reflect well the style and drive of a young winemaker. While the 2017s we tasted from barrel already seemed approachable, I can imagine that those from outstanding vintages like 2015 and 2016 will be much more structured and robust. Patience is required for these wines which are still reasonably priced. This is a very fine address.

Cyprien Arlaud

2017 Domaine Arlaud Morey-Saint-Denis. Deep color. Effusive glow of dark cherries and raspberries. Well-extracted with a clean sharply-focused palate, displaying good depth and linearity that tapered to a glowing finish.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Vosne-Romanee. Glorious deep ruby. Effusive aromas of delicious ripe dark cherries and rose petals. More earthy on the palate with a bright minerally presence balanced by a deeper vein of dark currants, finishing with good persistence. Lovely.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Vosne-Romanee Aux Reas. This village exudes a lovely deep bouquet of dark currants covered with cedar. Fleshy with a focused palate, slightly more minerally which imparted a somewhat stern demeanour, layered with fine acidity.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Chambolle-Musigny Les Noirots 1er. Dark in colour, proffering delicious seductive aromas of red and dark fruits. Fleshy, soft and rounded with a clean focused acidity and understated intensity, showing good vigour but just a tad short.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Morey-Saint-Denis Les Millandes 1er. Mulberries and blueberries dominate on the nose. Rounded and minerally but more lean on the palate, displaying good balance and well-defined acidity.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Morey-Saint-Denis Les Blanchards 1er. Great color with an aromatic fragrance of rose petals and dark plums, rounded and fleshy with understated structure, intensity and acidity amidst lovely presence of warm ripe fruit. Very fine.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Morey-Saint-Denis Aux Chaseaux 1er. Dark cherries and dark plums dominate on the nose. Medium-bodied. Soft and fleshy, layered with good concentration of warm ripe that conferred a feminine gentle elegance. Very fine.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Morey-Saint-Denis Les Ruchots 1er. Brighter nose of rose petals and currants. Fleshy and rounded with a gentle minerally tone, highly seamless. Distinctly feminine.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Chambolle-Musigny Les Sentiers 1er. Gentle fragrance of bright red fruits and cherries. Medium-bodied. Fleshy and well-layered with fruit and supple seamless acidity. Highly graceful. Drinking very well.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Gevrey-Chambertin Aux Combottes 1er. Beguiling rosy fragrance of red fruits and cherries. Rounded and fleshy, gently layered with a very fine minerally tone, highly supple. Finishing well.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Vosne-Romanee Les Petits Monts 1er. Dark red fruits dominate throughout with a very cleanly focused palate. Appropriately more structured with traces of earth and ferrous minerals, finishing brightly.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru. Deep color. Beautiful aromas of delicious red fruits, glowing with rich purity of lovely fruit on the gently layered palate. Highly supple and seamless, exuding plenty of feminine elegance and charm. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Clos de la Roche Grand Cru. Lifted floral fragrance and dark fruits on the nose. Quite fleshy with a lovely presence though understated in acidity and structure, finishing with fine gentle intensity.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Echezeaux Grand Cru. Intense bouquet of dark fruits and varnish that carried well onto the palate, displaying lovely intensity and understated structure on a minerally bed.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Clos Saint Denis Grand Cru. Warm red fruits dominate with very good levels of ripeness, concentration and structure, though there is a certain sternness from its underlying minerally streak.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru. Pervasive dark fruits and dark currants with a warm fullish presence, displaying good acidity and intensity of fruit with a fine minerally balance. Good vigour throughout. Quite excellent.

2017 Domaine Arlaud Hospice de Beaune Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru. Superb nose. Full hedonistic bouquet of complex red and dark fruits, mocha and chocolate. Well layered in fruit and minerals on the medium-full palate, very well-proportioned with controlled intensity without any of the burliness usually associated with Hospice wines, tapering to a bright minerally finish. Vinified by the domaine for a certain Singaporean, it seems (not me!). Only 2 barrels.

Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet is the undisputed king of Chassagne. Started at the turn of the twentieth century by Pierre Ramonet, it has been said Pierre hardly ever ventured outside of Chassagne, preferring to tend to his vines and the wines in his cellar, things that he was familiar and most comfortable with. And legend has it that he paid for his plot of Montrachet Grand Cru in the 1970s with cold hard cash at the lawyer’s office. Nowadays, the estate is largely run by one of his grandsons Jean-Claude Ramonet (his brother Noel having entered into semi-retirement since 2013), and the labels have been sporting his name since. Producing some 120,000 bottles annually from various holdings in Chassagne, Puligny and Saint-Aubin, it has been reported that Jean-Claude, who had never received any formal training in oenology, makes his wines through intuition and feel. The wines are aged in barrel for 12-16 months, utilising 10% new oak for village, 25% for premier cru, and between 50%-75% for grand cru. When we visited on the morning of 25 October 2018, I found the estate itself to be unmarked, modest and unassuming. In spite of our modern age, there is a certain Old World feel that pervades through the place: machines and equipment that appear to have seen better times, and cellars that are neat rather than aesthetically pleasing. Domaine Ramonet likes to vinify only from older vines. The extensive line-up of 2016 that we sampled demonstrated amply why Domaine Ramonet is so highly revered: the whites are rich, plump and wonderfully textured with fine precision and elegance. They sing of the unique Chassagne terroir but in the language of Ramonet. I cannot imagine anyone being tired of drinking such wines. And, lest we forget, Domaine Ramonet also makes a series of Chassagne reds generously layered with delicious fruit, fine acidity and minerality with reasonable complexity. They will never be grand cru but they are immensely satisfying.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Bouzerons. An aliqote village. Clear clean tones on both nose and palate, underscored by yellow citrus and fine acidity. Good clean sharply-defined finish.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Bourgogne Blanc. Gentle green fruits and citrus on a bed of fine acidity and dense minerals, finishing with spciy white peppery tones that imparted good mouthfeel.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassage-Montrachet. Full rounded bouquet of warm white fruits. Medium-bodied, displaying excellent presence of white fruits with good levels of ripeness, well layered with excellent base acidity. Good balance, finishing with Ramonet’s classic minerally signature. Excellent.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Puligny-Montrachet. Distinct tone of white fruits, warm ripe  and rounded. Nicely layered with very fine acidity and subtle minerals. Long.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Saint-Aubin En Remilly 1er. Lovely nose of delicate peppery white floral tones while yellow citrus dominate on the palate with superb freshness, integration and definition, layered with a deep vein of delicious fruit, finishing well. Highly elegant and feminine.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Les Boudriottes 1er. Reticent with just a gentle glow minty though there is ample bloom of ripe gentle citrus and white flowers on the palate. Very soft and gently rounded, revealing very finely detailed minerals, just a tad short.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Morgeots 1er. Quite effusive in light tropical fruits and white flowers. Rather fullish with a firm minerally tone. Excellent integration. Lovely.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Les Caillerets 1er. Highly lifted in white fruits with early complexity. Highly seamless and rounded, displaying fine concentration amidst gentle saline tones. Distinctly feminine. Lovely. Not to be confused with the domaine’s monopole Clos du Caillerets 1er, a walled section within Les Caillerets itself since 2014 leased from FICOFI.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Les Ruchottes 1er. Layered bouquet of white flowers and lime. Rather full but delicate, displaying very fine concentration and understated intensity that imparted excellent mouthfeel. Excellent.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Bienvenues-Batard Montrachet Grand Cru. Lifted in dense white floral tones and fig on the nose, highly seductive. Medium-bodied, displaying seamless integration between gentle saline tones and white fruits with a fabulous depth of understated sweet intensity, poised and elegant with superb balance, finishing with great length and persistence. A flirtatious beauty. Very lovely.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru. Great effortless lift of intense floral tones and minerals, displaying excellent presence with superb layering, definition and detail of white peppery tones and understated fruit, seamlessly integrated with very fine acidity and controlled intensity within a highly supple pliant structure. A real seductress. Superb.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Montrachet Grand Cru. This Holy Grail of all whites is poised with ethereal elegance, exuding an ample floral bloom with a fine density of plump oily textures. Superbly layered and integral with fabulous depth of fruit and controlled intensity with a finely detailed structure, superbly proportioned and balanced with plenty held in reserve, displaying a very natural seamless flow of energy throughout its length. Absolutely wonderful. Ramonet’s plot of Montrachet lie on the Puligny side, adjacent to Bouchard’s.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Rouge. Good colour. Lovely bouquet of soft red fruits, ripe raspberries and red plums. Amply rounded and fleshy with very fine seamless acidity and supple tannins, displaying great elegance. Excellent.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Morgeots 1er Rouge. Lifted tone of complex dark fruits, cherries and currants with a fleshy cool elegance. Medium-bodied. Softly textured with good definition, highly seamless, tapering to a superb lengthy finish of sublime acidity and glorious fruit. Quite superb.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Clos Saint-Jean 1er. Highly lifted nose of ripe red cherries and red fruits with early complexity, superbly nuanced with ayers of glorious fruit, fabulous tannins and sweet incense, displaying great linearity at the finish. Outstanding.

2016 Domaine Jean-Claude Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Clos Boudriottes 1er Rouge. Lifted tones of cherries and red fruits, wonderfully ripe. Open on the palate, totaly seamless, displaying superb concentration with fine supple tannins that exuded fabulous intensity. Brilliant, almost hedonistic. This is an absolute pleasure.

2016 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet Grand Cru

Wine lovers who have wandered around the village of Chambolle surely would not have failed to notice a great mansion beautifully shrouded in autumn leaves (at this time of year) just a stone’s throw from restaurant Le Millesime that says Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier. When we knocked on its doors on the wet Monday morning of 29 October 2018, we were greeted by none other than the man himself, M. Frédéric Mugnier. Distinguished-looking but reserved in demeanour, M. Mugnier is clearly a serious person who takes time to warm up to visitors. It is little wonder, therefore, that his wines also behave in the same manner: reserved and seriously Burgundian to the core at the first whiff whenever one pops a fresh bottle of Mugnier, taking its time to reward the drinker with its wonders.  Making one of the most sought-after wines of Burgundy often mentioned in the same breath as those of his illustrious neighbour and friend Christophe Roumier, M. Mugnier is not the sort who will give you an oration about how he does things. However, you can tease certain bits and pieces from him once he senses that you are appreciative of his wines bona fide. Speaking in elegant English but in measured tones, M. Mugnier declares: “I like that I don’t understand everything. I just take care of the garden. I don’t shape the flowers”. Wow. That just about sums up this famous domaine. M. Mugnier prefers to make reds rather than whites, and his grapes are 100% de-stemmed. We tasted through the 2017s from barrel and the 2016s that are about to be bottled. They all show great purity of fruit and expression with superb integration and concealed power. M. Mugnier places great importance in achieving great harmony in his wines, a trait that was highly evident throughout our sampling. The very essence has been grasped. Thank you so much, M. Mugnier, for your time and generosity and for the privilege of this wonderful visit.

Frédéric Mugnier

2017 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny. Lovely fragrance of delightful bright cherries and dark plums. Soft and fleshy, underscored with gentle minerals, finishing with smooth tannins.

2017 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny Les Fuees 1er. Lovely bouquet of bright red fruits, cherries and darker currants. Fleshy and gentle. More pronounced in minerality, displaying very fine acidity and integration with highly refined silky tannins. Delicate and expressive, finishing with good linearity. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos de la Marechale 1er Rouge. Glorious deep ruby.  Amply layered with fruit of excellent purity. Has more presence and minerally quality, showing fine intensity and tension across the palate, structured with understated tannins. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru. Lovely deep understated bouquet of dark rose petals and ripe raspberries. Highly integral, seamlessly structured with subtly nuanced tannins, sublime acidity, gentle elegant fruit and understated minerals. A wine of immense elegance and refinement without the extroverted flamboyance of most Bonnes-Mares. Superb.

2017 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses 1er. Effusive in its rosy floral fragrance. Gently layered with soft ripe fruit and currants. Highly expressive and feminine, poised with regal elegance and superb refinement, utterly seamless and supple, finishing with understated intensity. Very lovely.

2017 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru. Great color, exuding a softly seductive bouquet of beguiling red fruits and nuanced minerals with a serious side. Medium-full, superbly proportioned with sublime acidity, singing with expressive gentle intensity, very open and highly harmonious, finishing with an unique complex of nutmeg, herbs, complex minerals and earth. A wine of great harmony, elegance and understated power. Wonderful! What a privilege to have tasted this.

2017 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos de la Marechale Blanc 1er. A complex of warm crystalline tones, wet morning dew and understated grassy elements on the nose. Medium-full, yielding delicate power of yellow fruits with pronounced crystalline minerals amidst overtones of nutmeg that tapered to a glowing finish. Lovely.

Photo: Roger Lum

2016 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos de la Marechale Blanc 1er. Quite different nose from the 2017. More of white floral tones with white pepper, less crystalline though slightly more grassy. Gentle tones of mint and paraffin on the detailed palate, finishing with a slight superb accentuation of sublime acidity. Excellent.

2016 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny. This village is the 32nd vintage of Frédéric Mugnier, done very specially as a blend of 75% Les Plaintes 1er with 25% Musigny Grand Cru!! Displaying a glorious deep ruby with a nose of bright red fruits, dark roses and cherries, this wine carries more density, structure and power than the 2017, cloaked with great understated refinement amidst cedary tones and lovely acidity, finishing with some superb early complexity. Outstanding. Only 8 barrels.

2016 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny Les Fuees 1er. Lovely intensity of deep red fruits, dark currants and dark roses. Highly elegant and lifted. Richly textured with smooth satiny tannins, finishing with great persistence amidst herbal overtones. A wine of superb refinement.

2016 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos de La Marechale 1er Rouge. Beautiful color. Lovely layering of complex red fruits, red roses and cherries. Rounded and fleshy. Highly understated in minerality, intensity and structure. Superbly integral. Possesses more power and density than the 2017. Delicious but needs time.

2016 Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses 1er. Deeply coloured with a deep glorious highly aromatic bouquet. Possesses more power, inner detail and depth of dark fruits compared with the 2017, displaying great freshness and some early complexity. Highly integral with great structural definition and focus, layered with sophisticated tannins that impart velvety textures. Outstanding.

Another well-known domaine that, somehow, hasn’t garnered as much universal acclaim as it ought to is Domaine Henri Gouges. Still very much a connoisseur’s domaine, Henri Gouges is considered by those who know as the doyen of Nuits-Saint-Georges. Started by Henri in the 1920s, this domaine is now managed by Henri’s great-grandson Gregory Gouges, a very pleasant, courteous and knowledgeable gentleman who welcomed us warmly at No.7 Rue du Moulin on the cold morning of 26 October 2018. I had met Gregory several times in Hong Kong and Paris at dinners, and it was really good finally to be able to step into this beautiful domaine and pay homage.

The wines of Nuits-Saint-Georges, for various reasons, somehow tend to suffer some sort of inferiority complex. Perhaps it is because there are no grand crus at all in spite of there being 37 premier crus within this sprawling commune. Perhaps it could be as well that the wines, in general, tend to be more compact with a certain distracting sandy minerality that may be off-putting to some, lacking the lush opulence and charm of the best burgundy. However, the wines of Henri Gouges surpass all that. They are several notches above your usual Nuits-Saint-Georges, utilising biodynamic methods and vinification by gravity in its modern chai such that the grapes are gently pressed, not crushed. This domaine also pioneered the idea of growing ray grass between rows of vines, primarily to minimise soil erosion but it has the secondary effect as well of forcing the roots of the vines to delve deeper into the earth for nutrients. The reds of Henri Gouges are warm, ripe and beautifully nuanced as a seamless whole. I rate its very difficult-to-obtain Les Saint Georges 1er as grand cru standard and, in fact, Gregory told us that in the old days, Henri did indeed turn down the chance to label Les Saint Georges as grand cru as he did not want to upset his neighbours. Trooping down to its beautiful cellar, the 2017 reds tasted from barrel blew our socks off. Sensing our deep appreciation of his wines, Gregory proceeded to pop several back vintages that further affirmed the greatness of this domaine, culminating in a 1990 Les Saint Georges 1er that was still showing beautifully without any sign of dryness. This domaine is also unique in bottling a deliciously delicate and unique white burgundy from pinot blanc, actually a mutated form of pinot noir that Henri discovered many years ago.  This is really an outstanding address. Thank you very much, Gregory, for your time and generosity for such a memorable visit.

2017 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges. Good colour. Warm ripe dark plums  and red fruits on the nose, slightly reductive. Fleshy, medium-full. Good concentration and presence with fine acidity and balance. Less of the usual sandy minerality of this particular commune. Very fine.

2005 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos des Porrets 1er monopole. Popped and poured. Good color, exuding elegant red fruits and red roses Highly seamless, rounded and full, showing plenty of charm, superb balance and proportion. Still far from ready. Huge potential. Excellent

2015 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos des Porrets 1er monopole. Popped and poured. Rich perfumed feminine glow, beautifully seductive. Very charming on the medium-full palate as well, saturated with dark currants, rose petals and cherries, structured with supple pliant tannins with very well integrated acidity and subtle minerality. Juicy and delicious. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Clos des Porrets 1er monopole. Beautiful bouquet of delicious red and dark fruits and currants with warm ripe textures. Lovely with good concentration, great acidity and presence. Very well balanced with finely detailed subtle minerality. Good finish.

2016 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Pruliers 1er. Great colour. Shy on the nose though the palate is beautifully layered with abundant red fruits and dark roses, displaying superb presence and  great acidity amidst a pliant supple tannin structure. Very lovely.

2017 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Pruliers 1er. Good color. Delicious aromas of red fruits with a faint floral fragrance. Fleshy, excellent in fruit concentration and presence. Rounded with a distinct minerally tone but very well integrated with supple pliant tannins, finishing well.

2017 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Vaucrains 1er. Dark. A little shy though some lovely depth  may be discerned on the nose. The palate is well rounded with warm ripe dark berries and dark plums, very well balanced against subtle minerals, carrying good weight with a very natural unforced feel. Good linearity and finish. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Saints-Georges 1er. Gentle red fruits and rose petals, exuding a lovely feminine lift. Already open on the palate. Fleshy, highly seamless with great suppleness, displaying very fine inner detail of subtle minerals. Superb integration. Finished with great linearity and gentle persistence amidst a mild dryish sandy tone particular to this commune. Beautiful.

1990 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Saints-Georges 1er. Popped and poured from library stock. This wine exudes a glorious complex weighty bouquet of dark fruits and currants amidst a gentle medicinal glow with a lovely sur maturite. Open, fleshy, cool and rounded on a palate layered with fine concentration, subtle acidity and minerals. Seamlessly structured with lovely fullness, finishing with gentle intensity. Very very lovely. What a treat!

2017 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges Bourgogne. Unique pinot blanc. Open, displaying good freshness and presence of gentle white fruits with subtle acidity. Good seamless integration, finishing with fine intensity. Not the creamy chalkiness of Chardonnay. More focused and transparent.

2017 Domaine Henri Gouges Nuits-Saint-Georges La Perriere 1er. Unique pinot blanc. Lovely perfumed floral fragrance. Very good concentration with greater focus and more depth than its preceding bourgogne, displaying great integration and lovely deep lasting intensity. Excellent and rare on the market.

In spite of numerous superstar estates in Burgundy already well-known to wine lovers, there are still a number of domaines that function quietly below the radar, so to speak, but whose wines can easily match up to any of the best. Domaine Ghislaine Barthod is one of these. When we arrived on the morning of 24 October 2018 amongst the hills of Chambolle, we were warmly welcomed by Madame Ghislaine Barthod herself. She wore a worried look though, as she feared her German hunting dog (I call it a hound) may have slipped out through the open gate. But all was well when the hound was found, and Mme. Barthod happily led us down to its spotlessly clean cellars for a tasting of its 2017 reds.

Ghislaine Barthod

Founded in the 1920s, this estate was formerly a joint-venture between the Barthod and Noellat families. Its wines began to be noticed in the 1950s outside of Burgundy when Mme Ghislaine’s father Gaston took over control of the entire domaine and quality improved. The baton was passed over to Mme Ghislaine in 1987 and, soon after, the domaine took after her name. Focusing entirely on Chambolle-Musigny, I found the wines to be richly layered, delicious, rounded and feminine, not in any sense flabby or weak, but highly elegant and poised with lovely depth. Perhaps unknown to many, the wines of many well-known estates nowadays are made by women, and I find that these wines tend to reflect, either unwittingly or by design, distinct feminine tones. At the end of the barrel tasting, Mme Ghislaine – friendly, charming, highly knowledgeable and efficient-looking – popped another two back-vintage bottles that further affirmed the outstanding quality of this domaine. There may not be any grand crus in its portfolio but who needs them when its premier crus are so good? This is truly a superb address. Bravo et merci beaucoup Madame Ghislaine!

2016 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Bourgogne rouge. Popped and poured. Deeply aromatic, recalling ripe red fruits, dark cherries with early nuances of cedar. Great concentration and fullness, very well layered with a deeper vein of fruit. Rounded, showing good sophistication. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny. Glorious color. Delicious red fruits and dark currants on the nose, displaying great presence and acidity. Well structured svelte finely grained tannins. Good finish.

2017 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny Beaux Bruns 1er. Beautiful deep ruby. Lifted aromas of dark roses and dark cherries with earthy tones. Rather full. Fleshy and rounded, showing good minerally presence and inner detail. Well layered with subtle sweet tannins that are very well managed, finishing well. Delicious.

2017 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny Les Charmes 1er. Great color. Delicious dark roses, cherries and dark plums dominate amidst gentle sweet red fruits, well set against gentle saline minerals on the palate, displaying excellent presence with understated acidity and structure, finishing well. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny Les Gruenchers 1er. Deeply aromatic with characters of raisins, dark currants, dark cherries, cedar and dark plums. Dominant minerally tone on the palate, very well integrated with very fine acidity and tannins, well layered with excellent balance that culminated in a soft gentle finish. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny Les Fuees 1er. Deep lifted aromas of dark cherries, raspberries and mulberries, highly perfumed. Racy in character, displaying very fine concentration and presence with velvety sexy tannins that imparted a certain feminine intensity. Very lovely.

2017 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny Les Veroilles 1er. Superb deep ruby. Ample bouquet of mulberries, dark cherries and dark roses of great purity. Full-bodied, glowing with great power and luxurious velvety tones tinged with a bit of savoury note, displaying deep intensity of dark fruits, finishing with gentle sweet tannins. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny Les Cras 1er. Glorious colour, exuding a great rosy fragrance. Open with a gentle minerally tone. Soft, rounded and fleshy, displaying gentle depth. Very lovely balance. Good finish.

2011 Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Chambolle-Musigny Les Fuees 1er. Popped and poured. Deeply aromatic with a lovely lifted fragrance of abundant dark fruits, currants and dark plums. Open, rounded, soft and fleshy. Very lively in its focused acidity and intensity, finishing with good linearity. Excellent.

Another pairing of Roumier and Mugnier within the same week for EUR300, this time on Chambolle-Musigny village off the list of La Cabotte in Nuits-Saints-Georges on the evening of 26 October 2018. As the vintages were dissimilar, both were drunk open label.

2013 Domaine Georges Roumier Chambolle-Musigny. Dark deep colour. Deeply aromatic, exuding delicious dark cherries and dark currants. Medium-bodied and fleshy right off the blocks, displaying superb acidity and excellent presence. Quite seamless, developing a more intense minerally tone after an hour, finishing with good length albeit with a trace of glare. Doesn’t quite possess the deep lush opulence usually associated with this famous domaine, probably a function of the difficult vintage.

2015 Domaine Jacques-Frederic Mugnier Chambolle-Musigny. Equally dark, the Mugnier sported a sharper masculine profile from the first pour with a distinct minerally tone over dark fruits, dark currants and traces of red cherries on the firm palate, structured with dark tannins, slightly sweet. It opened very well after more than an hour, more fleshy and balanced, displaying excellent resolution at the finish, fleshing out with great open intensity. Excellent.

We had the distinct privilege of visiting one of the kings of Puligny, the Domaine Etienne Sauzet, on 24 October 2018 where we were welcomed by Benoit Riffault (married to Emilie Boudot, grand-daughter of Etienne himself who passed on in 1975) who takes charge of the winemaking there. Occupying only 10 hectares of vines scattered throughout Puligny with some additional buy-in grapes (but this has reduced significantly as the domaine has expanded its direct holdings), Etienne Sauzet is highly sought after for its delicacy, power, elegance and precision, a recurring theme as Benoit took us through an extensive line-up of its portfolio, culminating generously in Montrachet Grand Cru. Deploying about a third of new oak for its premier cru and slightly more for grand cru, production has been entirely biodynamic since 2010. I was mightily impressed by the 2017 whites, an outstanding vintage to rival the whites of 2014. In fact, Benoit summed it up succinctly, saying that 2017 is an amalgam of 2010, 2012 and 2014, wines that carry superb ripeness, acidity and structure. Merci Benoit, for your time and generosity.

2017 Domaine Etienne Sauzet Bourgogne Blanc. Beautiful full bouquet of white citrus and dense minerals with traces of grassy elements. Deft and lively in spite of its full body, teasing the palate with its fine acidity and fleeting intensity, imparting great freshness. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet. Blend of 12 village plots. Classic nose of gravel minerals, grassy elements and nutmeg. Lovely fullness and vigour, yet poised with delicate crisp acidity. Cleanly focused, displaying good depth and understated intensity, finishing well.

2017 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet La Garenne 1er. Slightly forward bouquet of white fruits though more minerally on the palate with traces of white pepper. Rounded with excellent texture and mouthfeel. Fine elegance.

2017 Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet Hameau du Blagny 1er. Crisp clean nose of white fruits and fig, nicely lifted. Highly supple and seamless with great purity of fruit, caressing the palate with luxurious oily textures amidst understated intensity. Very lovely.

2017 Domaine Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet Les Referts 1er. Apricot, peaches and pears dominate on the nose though the palate is infinitely more minerally. Gentle in depth, displaying good density of fruit with crisp acidity, very cleanly focused, finishing well.

2017 Domaine Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet Les Perrières 1er. Highly effusive in intense yellow citrus. Highly supple and deft, displaying superb balance between fruit and minerals, rather understated in intensity with traces of earth. Very well integrated, transgressing the palate with great linearity and cohesion. I like it.

2017 Domaine Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet Champ Canet 1er. Good intensity of honeysuckle and fig on the nose, producing lovely aromatic lift. Beautiful minerally palate, quite full, poised with quiet intensity and acidity. Drinking very well.

2017 Domaine Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet Les Combettes 1er. Wonderful rich bouquet of creamy chalkiness and understated minerals. Rather full-bodied. More forward with more density but the balance is immaculate, beautifully proportioned with delicate yellow fruits. Wonderfully textured, rounded and poised, finishing with lasting persistence. Gorgeous.

2017 Etienne Sauzet Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru. Highly refined and poised on the nose. Medium-full. Open and rounded with quiet elegance and sheer refinement, displaying plenty of quiet charm, ease and understatement. Regal, befitting its status.

2017 Etienne Sauzet Montrachet Grand Cru. Nicely layered with gentle yellow fruit and minerals on the nose with a quiet lift. Very rounded and smooth on the palate, displaying great detail and definition throughout with a lovely deeper vein of minerality that was very seamlessly integrated. Resplendent with an ethereal feel. Flows through palate entirely as an absolute entity, never out of place, finishing with lasting persistence. Superb.

2017 Etienne Sauzet Montrachet Grand Cru