Corton-Charlemagne

The grapes for this are purchased, from parcels facing Aloxe-Corton, Ladoix and Pernand-Vergelesses, which gives a complete reading of the terroir of the vineyard. The nose has notes of stone fruit, a little pineapple and just a whiff of bacon fat. The palate is rich and dense with a warming ripeness, but all the while underpinned by a citrus core of acidity. An excellent Corton-Charlemagne. Drink 2022-2028.
Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy Buyer

After studying at business school, Olivier Leflaive headed to Paris to live a rather bohemian life during the 1970s, working in music and television. He returned to Burgundy in 1981 to manage Domaine Leflaive with his uncle Vincent and later his cousin Anne-Claude. Having long-aspired to work for himself, he set up his own négociant business in 1984 and, upon leaving the family domaine a decade later, he gave 15 years’ notice that he would take back his share of the family vines from 2009. Experienced winemaker Franck Grux now makes between 85 and 90 different cuvées, vinifying the equivalent of 120 hectares, of which 17 are estate. The focus here is on elegance and finesse over power. Winemaker Franck Grux is very pleased with the quality of the 2016 vintage, although he explained that the frost damage caused grapes to ripen at different times, which required a great deal of patience and necessitated extending the harvest to three weeks, as opposed to the normal two. The Puligny vineyards were relatively lucky in terms of frost damage, giving good yields. Franck explained that he carried out more lees stirring in 2016 than in 2015 to give the wines more weight, feeling that 2016 is a vintage with comparatively modest body and ripeness. Unless otherwise stated, all wines are domaine.

Made from a blend of En Charlemagne and Le Corton, this has a fine, pale colour with a faint straw tint, and some green hints. The nose shows Grand Cru quality while remaining discreet. Subtle notes of ripe fruit, some peach and a little bit of banana give way to rich fruit and some powerful structure which does not yet quite knit together. There is a huge amount of weight here and this will all integrate.

This was a near-perfect harvest for Sylvain, with scarcely any need to sort the healthy grapes, and better volumes across the piece apart from a little hail in Ladoix. He has cut back on his négociant activities and all the wines below are from his own domaine. The whites are predictably beautiful this year and the reds much less reductive than in the past.

The first vineyard to be picked, this is pale yellow in colour, with an orange blossom nose that is ripe and charming. Some stony elements appear underneath the floral notes. There is good acidity to the finish and certainly persistence. Drink 2019-2026.
Jasper Morris MW, Wine Buyer

This is a vintage to buy from Domaine de Montille without hesitation, whether it be the Bourgogne Rouge, a Grand Cru or indeed anything in between, such as his marvellous Volnays and Pommards. The whites are very smart, too. In common with other vignerons, Etienne and his cellar master, Brian Sieve, have opted for a higher proportion of whole bunches this year. The grapes were picked between 1st and 5th September, with alcohol levels coming in below 13 percent.

Grown on the Pernand side of the appellation, this is a brilliant Corton-Charlemagne. It has an exceptional density of flavour, a bit like licking lemon infused stones, and is really vibrant and stylish.
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Director

Patrick Javilliers south-facing holding of Corton-Charlemagne never has any trouble in ripening sufficiently to make superb wine. This Corton- Charlemagne is a rich, powerful, fleshy wine with an all-important mineral core lying just under the surface which will be revealed over the years to come.

A golden style Corton-Charlemagne from Domaine des Croix with attractive ripe fruit aromas, including traces of banana and coconut. This wine has a delightful freshness behind, followed up with attractive mineralty.

Clean, bright and fresh in all departments, this Corton-Charlemagne from Bouchard is positively linear after the broad-based Meursaults but it has the typical 2009 quality of a fine rich finish, and sensational length.

Burgundy 2011 En Primeur Best Buys - Grand Crus

Whilst this is as full and powerful as you’d expect from a Corton, it is the precision of the apple, pear and citrus fruit, and the steely minerality that really impressed me. Very expressive and vibrant with huge energy, it is a remarkable Grand Cru white.
Martyn Rolph, Private Account Manager

Striking and displaying a sparkling, stony character on the nose, there is plenty of energy here. It is medium bodied on the palate, with ripe fruit underpinned by a classical stony feel. Once again, this is a very fine example of Corton-Charlemagne.
Jasper Morris MW,Berrys' Burgundy Director

Pierre Vincent’s reputation has been blossoming over the last few vintages, as critic’s rate his wines increasingly highly and repeated success at the International Wine Challenge has been rewarded with the Len Evans Trophy for consistency over 5 years. Pierre is looking to major on delicacy while building persistence, to which end the new oak component is being reduced and the whole bunch fermentation percentage increased. The Vougeraie 2011s were picked over 12 days, beginning on the 31st August.

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The nose of this Corton-Charlemagne is rich and sun drenched with a touch of bananas, mirabelle plums and the occasional citric note. It is deliciously opulent on the palate with a fine rich finish.
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Director

After several years surrounded by building works, David Croix now has a smart new cellar to play with, as well as the three new vineyards from the hill of Corton which arrived just in time for the 2009 vintage. This year all the vineyard work has been done by Davids own team which has made a difference. It is a beautiful range of wines overall, everything delivering just a little bit more than the appellations suggest. The Beaunes were picked from September 21st to the 23rd, the Cortons the following week.

From the west-facing Le Charlemagne, the vines are planted on marl soil which gives an almost tannic, mineral structure to the wine. This has lovely fruit ripeness and lots of energy, culminating in a very chalky, pithy finish. The absence of new oak serves to preserve the freshness of the pristine fruit. Drink 2020-2027.
Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy Buyer

The former Domaine Duchet in Beaune was bought in 2005 by American Roger Forbes and his co-investors, and entrusted to the care of David Croix, the gifted winemaker for Camille Giroud. The estate has been renamed Domaine des Croix, in honour of David and also the numerous stone crosses to be found in the vineyards. The original Beaune and Corton-Charlemagne vineyards have since been supplemented by Aloxe-Corton, Corton La Vigne au Saint and Corton Grèves. The vineyards are farmed organically. The only thing David Croix doesn’t like in 2016 is the lack of volume. He was full of praise for the quality of the vintage, explaining that the grapes were very healthy at harvest despite the difficult season, and said the aromas in the winery during fermentation were glorious. He describes the wines as “harmonious, with nothing that is out of balance”. No Bourgogne was made this year, there are tiny volumes of village wines and several of the Beaune Premiers Crus have been blended to make a single wine. In fact, only Corton-Charlemagne has achieved anything like a normal yield.

This year, this is a blend of Le Corton, facing Ladoix to the southeast, and Les Languettes, which looks south towards Aloxe-Corton. With one-third new oak, this represents a benchmark style of Corton-Charlemagne; there is ample weight and the initial punch of apricot fruit one looks for, before a spine-tingling thread of lime and chalky freshness kicks in on the finish. Delicious. Drink 2023-2030.
Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy Buyer

In January 2002 Maison Camille Giroud was bought by an American consortium led by banker Joe Wender and winery-owner Ann Colgin, and a new chapter began. David Croix was installed as the winemaker/ technical director and tasked with a major revamping of the winemaking facilities and especially replacement and renewal of the old barrels to make wines in a much purer, more modern style. The company also owns 1.2 hectares of vineyards in and around Beaune. The 2016 vintage was a collaborative effort between the outgoing David Croix and his replacement, Carel Voorhuis, formerly of Domaine d’Ardhuy. The transition is a smooth one, with Carel’s gentle touch following on seamlessly from David’s elegant style. Carel described the 2016 vintage as lighter than 2015, with more elegance and better balance. It is clear he has a preference for 2016, highlighting the expressive, aromatic characteristics of the wines and calling them “ethereal”. He explained that it was important to avoid over-ripeness by picking in good time, and emphasised the value of gentle extraction to prevent obtaining hard tannins.

When purchased in 2004, the vineyard was planted with Pinot Noir but, being southeast facing and with a light and slightly gravelly soil, it was felt it would be a better suited to Chardonnay. Nevertheless, a vineyard capable of ripening red grapes will endow a white wine with a certain opulence and, against the stricter style from Corton-Charlemagne round the hill towards Pernand, this is veritably exotic. The vineyard wasn’t frosted and the wine is positive and direct. Drink 2020-2027.
Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy Buyer

Domaine de Montille was developed by Hubert de Montille (1930-2014), a prominent Dijon lawyer, who inherited 2.5 hectares of vineyards in Volnay in 1947. Over the years he acquired further parcels in Volnay, Pommard and Puligny-Montrachet Les Caillerets. Today the business is run by his son Étienne who has extended the domaine by purchases of vineyards in Beaune, Corton and the Côte de Nuits, including some marvellous Vosne-Romanée Les Malconsorts. The vineyards are farmed biodynamically and the red wines are increasingly vinified with whole bunches. Following the splendid successes here in 2015, this vintage provides a contrast in style, but with reasons to buy that are just as compelling. Volumes are down in certain appellations and winemaking has been tempered to release more of the vintage’s purity of fruit and definition of terroir. Use of whole bunches for the reds continues, but not by rote, with proportions being adjusted according to each cuvée’s requirements.

Grace and power define this wine. There is a gentle nuance of lime flower and oak on the nose yet the palate displays a huge, round ball of fruit backed by scintillating minerality and a very persistent finish. Drink 2015-2025.

Just two barrels were made this year, instead of six. It has a very attractive bouquet with some fresh pineapple notes and an impressive density, with ripe apples and a generous middle, leading to a fine-boned finish.
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Wine Director

As far as supply is concerned it’s a topsy turvy position in 2012. Overall, Ben has made plenty of wine but some cuvées are missing this year. The best volumes are with the Chassagne-Montrachet Premiers Crus, which are always a strong point chez Benjamin. From a standing start in 2007 Benjamin has made truly exciting progress, and has grown his business a little more quickly than expected as great opportunities have come his way. Yet each year he still doesn’t seem to have quite enough wine to satisfy demand. Wines marked † are bottled under stelvin screwcap closures.

The wine from Patrick’s south-facing Corton-Charlemagne vineyard is matured in one year old barrels to avoid any overt new wood effect. The fruit has great energy here, some greengage character, real intensity through the middle, stony intensity behind, and lovely finish.
Jasper Morris, MW - Wine Buyer

Patrick chose to begin early around 26 September in order to pick while the grapes were still healthy, the relatively high acidity encouraged him to stir the lees a little more than usual and the wines were racked into tank just before the new harvest, apart from the Corton-Charlemagne which is back in barrel.