Les Champeaux

The most northerly Premier Cru of Gevrey, the vineyard is both high and east-facing. This lends the bouquet a mouth-watering note of crushed berry and the palate a certain severity, leading to pinpointed fruit and sculpted tannins. One to keep. Drink 2023-2029.

It is fair to say that Ben is very happy with 2017, describing it as the kind of vintage he would sign up for every year. The whites, he says, are beautiful, and not far from 2014 in style, with purity, finesse, great definition and balance. He describes the reds as pretty, appealing and with body to support ageing, while highlighting the importance of lower-yielding old vines for serious ageing. He eloquently explains that there is no “black sheep” in 2017, that no village has underperformed. For reason of space, the limited volumes of Grands Crus have not been included in this brochure. Since the 2014 vintage, all white wines are bottled under screwcap.

Deeper in colour, with more purple to the fore, here the bouquet displays a beguiling combination of spicy, red-black cherry fruit and hedonistic floral aromas, rounded out with a touch of sweet vanilla spice. There is a charming richness of spicy mulberry fruit on the entry to the palate, which fills out gradually to display succulent raspberry and redcurrant. The richness of the fruit profile is kept neatly in check by an underlying freshness and focused energy which manifests itself in the form of chalky, persistent minerality on the finish. The tannin profile is refined with just a touch of charming rusticity and earthy spice which speaks vividly of Gevrey, but the overall profile is one of energy and vibrancy, with elegant red berry fruit. Drink 2022-2030.

I very much enjoyed Berntein’s 2017 Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cazetiers when tasted recently. There was great energy on a powerful nose that was persistent of red cherry, rose petal and white pepper. The medium bodied wine will need a couple of years to absorb the oak but the palate is silky and already somewhat fruit forward. From 80 year old vines, Les Cazetiers is complex, precise and has a fantastic length – this was my pick out of the two 1er Cru Gevrey’s and well worth picking up when released.
Felix Stubbings - Private Account Manager

Les Champeaux offers a fine, bright purple colour with good depth. There is a wilder bouquet to this wine compared to the Chambolle-Musigny; it’s tightly knit and mineral-infused, while a lovely structural thread supports the vibrant red fruit. The impression is of smaller, more compact berry notes and fine quality oak provides depth and added dimension. The cool site of Les Champeaux always contributes to the marvellous texture of this wine.
Jasper Morris, MW - Wine Buyer

One of the few cuvées in the cellar to have not suffered from frost. Lots of small, millerandé bunches from the 70- to 100-year-old vines have provided a wonderful complexity. The nose is so gorgeous one almost doesn’t need to taste: peony, rose, spice and truffle vie for attention. This is a gorgeous, multi-layered and ethereal wine with a smoky, stemmy finish. Drink 2022-2032.
Adam Bruntlett, Wine Buyer

The domaine was founded by Charles Mortet, but rose to fame with the exceptional 1993 vintage crafted by his son Denis who tragically died at the age of 51 in January 2006. Denis believed with a deep passion that the work in the vineyard was everything. He has been succeeded by his equally, indeed exceptionally, talented son Arnaud, now also with the assistance of his sister Clémence. At the domaine everything starts in the vineyard, where every measure is taken to produce the finest, ripest fruit possible, creating a style of wine which, as Denis used to say is “a pleasure to drink young or old”. Arnaud Mortet is very happy with the quality of the 2016 vintage, explaining that its balanced profile with a mixture of ripeness and elegance will please everyone. Yields are very variable across the range, with anything from 30 to 70 percent of the crop having been lost to frost. Fortunately, mildew was not an issue as he acted swiftly to treat the vineyard when conditions began to deteriorate. He has generally used fewer whole bunches this year than in 2015.