2022 Bourgogne Pinot Noir, Domaine Bitouzet-Prieur
Critics reviews
No cuvée name as this comes from two plots. A flamboyant purple, with good fruit energy on the nose. A major concentration on the palate too, mainly raspberry fruit, enough acidity, this will be very good if it refines before bottling. The aftertaste is very classy.
Drink 2025 - 2028
Jasper Morris MW, Inside Burgundy (October 2023)
The 2022 Bourgogne Pinot Noir is more enticing than the Passetoutgrain this year with raspberry, wild strawberry and light floral aromas. The palate still shows a bit of gas, but there is an attractive succulence here and a nice twist of sour cherry on the finish.
All our vines are on the slopes, and we did not observe any stress in the Chardonnay,” Bitouzet-Prieur informs. “Beaune Les Aussy was the only vineyard that showed some signs of stress because the soils are so free-draining. We picked from August 25 until August 31. It was a normal length of harvest, even though the volume was higher. You didn’t have to look out for bunches that were not ripe.
I find the 2022s fresher than the 2020s, with slightly lower alcohol. The 2020 vintage was precocious, and I think those wines will drink younger.” This is another domaine where the Volnay Clos des Chênes forms a high point, closely followed by the Caillerets. Amongst the whites, I particularly like the superb Meursault Santenots, which had the audacity to outshine the Les Perrières and Les Charmes.
Drink 2024 - 2027
Neal Martin, Vinous.com (January 2024)
About this WINE
Domaine Bitouzet-Prieur
Domaine Bitouzet-Prieur – along with current winemaker François – was born of the marriage of Vincent Bitouzet (of Volnay) and Ann Prieur (of Meursault), bringing together two distinguished Burgundian families.
The domaine has a red cellar next door to Lafarge (who are distant cousins) and a white cellar in Meursault, with reds making up approximately 60 percent of production.
The estate’s notable vineyard holdings include a selection of the finest Premier Cru sites in Volnay and Meursault. The whites are elegant and restrained, rather than being broad-shouldered, old-fashioned Meursault. The reds are de-stemmed, with new oak kept to a modest level.
Bourgogne Rouge
Bourgogne Rouge is the term used to apply to red wines from Burgundy that fall under the generic Bourgogne AOC, which can be produced by over 350 individual villages across the region. As with Bourgogne Blanc and Bourgogne Rosé, this is a very general appellation and thus is hard to pinpoint any specific characteristics of the wine as a whole, due to the huge variety of wines produced.
Around 4,600 acres of land across Burgundy are used to produce Bourgogne Rouge, which is around twice as much as is dedicated towards the production of generic whites.
Pinot Noir is the primary grape used in Bourgogne Rouge production, although Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris and in Yonne, César grapes are all also permitted to make up the rest of the wine. These wines tend to be focused and acidic, with the fruit less cloying than in some New World wines also made from Pinot Noir, and they develop more floral notes as they age.
Although an entry-level wine, some Bourgogne Rouges can be exquisite depending on the area and producer, and yet at a very affordable price.
Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is probably the most frustrating, and at times infuriating, wine grape in the world. However when it is successful, it can produce some of the most sublime wines known to man. This thin-skinned grape which grows in small, tight bunches performs well on well-drained, deepish limestone based subsoils as are found on Burgundy's Côte d'Or.
Pinot Noir is more susceptible than other varieties to over cropping - concentration and varietal character disappear rapidly if yields are excessive and yields as little as 25hl/ha are the norm for some climats of the Côte d`Or.
Because of the thinness of the skins, Pinot Noir wines are lighter in colour, body and tannins. However the best wines have grip, complexity and an intensity of fruit seldom found in wine from other grapes. Young Pinot Noir can smell almost sweet, redolent with freshly crushed raspberries, cherries and redcurrants. When mature, the best wines develop a sensuous, silky mouth feel with the fruit flavours deepening and gamey "sous-bois" nuances emerging.
The best examples are still found in Burgundy, although Pinot Noir`s key role in Champagne should not be forgotten. It is grown throughout the world with notable success in the Carneros and Russian River Valley districts of California, and the Martinborough and Central Otago regions of New Zealand.
Buying options
Add to wishlist
Description
No cuvée name as this comes from two plots. A flamboyant purple, with good fruit energy on the nose. A major concentration on the palate too, mainly raspberry fruit, enough acidity, this will be very good if it refines before bottling. The aftertaste is very classy.
Drink 2025 - 2028
Jasper Morris MW, Inside Burgundy (October 2023)
wine at a glance
Delivery and quality guarantee