From ancient vines planted in 1904. The lovely mid purple colour gives way to a really sensual floral nose. Thereafter the fruit fills the mouth beautifully, with lovely structure behind, though the acidity is tamed by the fruit. There remains a touch of youthful bitterness but this is great wine.
Jasper Morris MW - Wine Buyer

The vines providing fruit for this wine were planted in 1904, which probably makes them the oldest in the appellation, and 100% stems were used in the vinification but with the thick ends cut off. This is a very fragrant Beaune Grèves with substantial stuffing and notable tannins. It is very mineral and should age very well.
Jasper Morris MW,Berrys' Burgundy Director

Made using 50 percent whole-bunch fermentation and healthy fruit this has a lovely crystal-clear purple colour with a beautiful fragrance. With dense fruit on the cusp of red and black, there’s more short-term tannins from the stems but these will integrate beautifully with the fruit. This will have a great future.

David Croix started picking here on 11th September, two days before he began at Camille Giroud. This was a much easier harvest than 2013, as there was much less hail than the previous vintage. The wines have an elegance and freshness to them that appeals enormously, and yet does not hide their impressive concentration.

Just one large barrel from a third of a hectare! Very dense dark colour, extremely dense fruit with a firmer structure than for the Bressandes, real stuffing on the palate with dark red fruit, and the balance of fruit, tannin and acidity clearly works. Powerful.
Jasper Morris, MW - Wine Buyer

From vines planted in 1904 comes this very dense, concentrated, fruit-rich purple wine. There’s some dryness from the stems and an immense weight of fruit on the palate. This is a really impressive expression of Beaune, marrying the seductive quality of the vintage with the intensity of old vines.

These are concentrated wines at Domaine de Bellene this year, and the vintage reminds Nicolas Potel of 1991. The wines came in with correct sugar levels, around 12.5 percent, and perfect acidities; they were vinified for a full month with minimal intervention, using whole bunches for the senior wines. The wines were due for bottling in early December.

Burgundy 2012 En Primeur - Staff Favourite
The Beaune appellation can conjure up old-style, sturdy, unforgiving Burgundy of old. In the hands of David Croix and others, it has become a much more desirable appellation. David's 2012 Grèves is always one to look out for; with its tenser, fresher, and more linear components than those beasts of old - give it 6 years min. to show its best.
Tom Cave, Fine Wine

The skins were so thick and tight that it needed nearly four weeks in the fermenting vat. It needed the extra time but is correspondingly backward now. The bouquet has shut down but suggests density. On the palate it is tense, dense and crunchy.
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Wine Director

The average yield across the domaine this year is 25 hl/ha, well below par, but not the catastrophe which was visited on some, and these 2012s are clearly David’s best wines yet. He found them easy to vinify, though they have required some careful management in barrel because they are so concentrated and compact. The grapes were completely healthy and showed the best analytical balance one could ask for, mostly between 12.5% to 13% alcohol and ideal acidity to preserve freshness.

Very dense purple with vibrant, heartwarming fruit, real density of the palate, a little black fruit but more deep red, some acidity, crunchy minerals. Very well put together, a wine which should sing in the medium to long term.
Jasper Morris, MW - Wine Buyer

This is the outstanding wine from the appellation of Beaune, made from a great site with a good proportion of 55-year-old vines. It has a beautiful, deep mid-red colour, and a very poised nose of concentrated – but not unduly powerful – fruit. Quite weighty in a good way, with plum and blueberry fruit, well-judged tannins and excellent length.
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Wine Director

In response to the very small concentrated berries which characterise the fruit in 2012, Philippe Prost, head winemaker, has opted for more whole bunch fermentation this year, up to 25% per cuvée. The wines are exceptionally intense, so a little leavening by the inclusion of some stems makes sense. The white wines are bursting with energy, clearly amongst the successes of the vintage.

From ancient vines, planted in 1904, this Beaune from Domaine de Bellene has rich, blackcurrant fruit, amazing length and a glorious silkiness. It is fresh at the finish, despite the evident richness of fruit. A magical, harmonious wine.

This wine, from the fabulous 2009 vintage, is only just starting out in life. The sunshine character of ’09 is such that the wines are enjoyable from the start, but will age brilliantly.

Domaine de Bellene is the private domaine of Nicolas Potel, established in Beaune since 2007. The title pays homage to the ancient pagan god Belenos, after whom Beaune takes its name.

The domaine is based in some marvellous old cellars, renovated to an ecologically admirable standard (‘Haute Qualité Environnementale’), on the Dijon road out of Beaune. The vineyards are being converted to organic farming, with some biodynamic elements and now cover 22hectares. The wines are made using a high proportion of whole bunches which helps build the structure of the wine to support the generous fruit.

The most powerful and complete of the Beaune vineyards, this has an impressively rich texture and a depth of fruit which is quite rare in the appellation in 2007. It is very impressive indeed.

A product of the absolute heart of the Grèves vineyard, this is a very complete and remarkable wine in 2010. The core of the fruit is based on rich, dark cherries, but it is the multi-layered aspect that sets it apart this year. Very intense and persistent, it is simply terrific.
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Director

Philippe Prost, long-time winemaker at Bouchard Père & Fils, is less flamboyant than his veteran opposite number at Jadot, but he still has firm opinions and he knows the detail of all his vineyard sites inside out. He clearly prefers his 2010 whites to the previous vintage, though we rather liked those too, while the fresh finish of the vintage has brought his excellent 2010 reds to life.

Most Exciting Value Red
Made from very old vines, in this vintage Nicolas Potel’s Beaune Grèves is packed with typical silky charm and approachability. It offers a great deal of complexity and concentration with very impressive rich, red fruit aromas and lovely ripe, melting tannins. This is most definitely the Beaune to buy in this vintage.
(David Jones, Fine Wine Sales Advisor)

From ancient vines planted in 1904, this Beaune Grèves wine has a really impressive depth of fruit tucked into a smart overcoat of well-judged oak. This has more power than Potel’s Savignys, while retaining the finesse; very fine.
(Jasper Morris MW, BBR Burgundy Buyer)