Bourgogne Blanc

Our 2018 White Burgundy has been made in collaboration with our good friends Jean-Luc Terrier and Christian Collovray. This delicious expression of mineral Burgundian Chardonnay has delicate floral aromas, while the palate abounds with ripe citrus and peach fruit, finishing on a subtle, smoky note thanks to well-judged oak. An excellent Apéritif, or an ideal match for salads, seafood and lighter meat dishes.
Adam Bruntlett, Wine Buyer, Berry Bros. & Rudd

This excellent example of unoaked white Burgundy comes from our friends at Domaine des Deux Roches. Its fresh, citrussy character owes much to the north-westerly aspect of the vineyard, which ensures the grapes here ripen slowly and retain plenty of acidity. Winemaker Jean-Luc Terrier (a committed gastronome) suggests pairing it with shellfish, creamy chicken dishes or goats’ cheese. Drink now to 2020.
Will Heslop, Burgundy Buying Assistant (summer 2019)

The yield here was just 28hl/ha on average and the resultant concentration is noticeable. The fruit profile is more citrus-driven than one often expects from this wine, with a hint of grapefruit and lime. Saline and a touch austere at present, this will fill out in time. Drink 2019-2023.
Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy Buyer

Fichet’s big step forward came in 2000 when he moved the whole operation to splendid cellars at Le Creux du Coche by the Hôpital de Meursault. Jean-Philippe is looking for purity in his wines. He deals mostly with lieux-dits in Meursault with just one Premier Cru in Puligny. Constantly experimenting and refining, his wines have real definition and individuality, with the individual terroirs clearly exposed. The wines are raised in barrel for the first year, using larger demi- muids for the lesser appellations, then assembled in tank. A maximum of 30 percent new oak is used on any cuvée. It is hard not to be infected by Jean- Philippe’s enthusiasm and positivity. Despite being 40 percent down in 2016, he remained upbeat, explaining that he sees the variability of vintages as part and parcel of a vigneron ’s lot. The losses could have been much worse, but the domaine is equipped with candles which protect against frost and they work hard in the vines to keep grass low to reduce the risk of frost damage. He declared himself happy with the quality, but feels it is a vintage which will require patience on the part of the consumer, as many of the wines will be more austere in youth than those of 2015.

From vineyards in Meursault, this wine is fermented and raised in larger, 600- and 500-litre oak barrels to preserve freshness. It offers plenty of fresh citrus fruit on the nose and some riper peach on the palate, before bright acidity kicks in at the middle and carries through to a crisp finish. Drink 2020-2024.

Jean-Philippe explained how he and his vineyard team had to work extremely hard in the aftermath of the 2016 frost, managing the vines to make sure that the following year’s growth would not be compromised. Meticulous marathonrunner Jean-Philippe is just the man for such an arduous task. He is delighted with the results, explaining that quality is excellent and the yield was neither too big, nor too small. These wines are as reliably fresh and precise as you would expect, with each vineyard’s character shining through.

This is a blend of fruit from Meursault, PulignyMontrachet, Vosne-Romanée and the Hautes Côtes. Ben makes this wine in large foudres, the aim being to preserve freshness and give a gentle oak character without dominating the delicate fruit. Crisp and refreshing, this is benchmark Bourgogne Blanc. 

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.

This year there is 30 percent village wine in the blend. Clear and bright in colour, it has a few attractive lemony notes. There’s some soft fruit but it’s nicely balanced, a more interesting wine than before. It displays high quality fruit and excellent nervous tension. Drink 2018-2020.
Jasper Morris MW, Wine Buyer

With prices in Burgundy still rising, even if often for understandable reasons, the appellations Bourgogne Blanc and Bourgogne Rouge are great places to look for affordable wines. You get the opportunity to drink wine from a top winemaker, from vines which are adjacent to the famous villages, and which will be accessible earlier. The 2005 Bourgognes Rouges are still delicious and youthful more than 10 years later, but most wines have been drinking well for a few years now. 

Effectively this aims to be the equivalent of a village Puligny-Montrachet. The wine has more impact than the frosted 2016 and there is very good balance provided by ripe acidity, which appears as less penetrating than usual. Drink 2021-2025.

Since our visit last year, Patrick’s dream of an appellation exclusively for generic wines from the Côte d’Or has been realised and the label of the estate’s estimable Cuvée Oligocène proudly announces its new status. For 2017, Patrick’s daughter Marion explained, they didn’t need to keep too much of the lees, as the musts were already rich and they preferred to use bâtonnage for complexity. Harvesting began on 28th August and Marion feels there is a purer expression of terroir this year than last.

Volumes are about half of last year’s, as the plot in Meursault suffered from frost, with just one barrel made from 0.6 hectares. The wine has a gorgeous, marine character to the nose, while the palate is nicely balanced between juicy citrus fruit and fresh, restrained minerality that gives a saline finish.  Drink 2019-2022.


After the famine of 2016, this year is something of a feast, at least in the case of the reds. Sadly, the whites, which Dominique praises as having excellent clarity, are in slightly smaller volumes than 2016. The good news is that the full range of red wines has been made, and in good volume too. Dominique is effusive in his praise for the 2017 reds, describing them as appealing, with beautiful balance, a lightness of touch, refined tannins and a floral character with stunning red fruit.

This comes from the five hectares immediately in front of the château, a park until it was planted in 1986. Brian did not use any SO2 until after the malolactic fermentation, and the wine is only aged in minimum 500-litre barrels. The whites are very good at this address this year, with this a lovely, juicy and pulpy introduction to the range. Drink 2020-2024.

Winemaker Brian Sieve draws comparisons between the white wines of 2017 and 2014, explaining that the texture, weight and freshness are very similar in both years, although 2017 has perhaps a little more fruit ripeness, along with excellent tension and persistence. He believes that this same freshness and brightness in the reds will provide ageing capacity, pointing out that they worked hard to restrict the yield of Pinot Noir to achieve riper grapes. Overall slightly less whole-bunch fermentation was used as Brian felt the stems and fruit were not as ripe as in richer vintages.

Although it has vines up to 80 years old, the vineyard used to be an orchard, so cannot claim Puligny village status. The fruit was harvested on 18th September, then went into 600-litre barrels (10 percent new) and stainless steel. The resultant wine carries the village character with minerality over body or obvious fruit – austere in an appropriate way. A neat and purposeful wine. Drink 2019-2021.
Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy Buyer

The Château de Puligny-Montrachet was a slumbering force until finally being awoken by the arrival of Étienne de Montille in time to oversee the 2001 vintage. Under Étienne, yields have been drastically reduced and the wines are handled much more sympathetically in the cellar so that the quality of the fruit dominates the oak. In 2012 Étienne and investors purchased the property and have radically reformed the estate, dropping unsuitable vineyards, converting to organic (and indeed biodynamic) farming, and further improving the winemaking. It was a successful vintage here in terms of quality, under the eye of cellar master Brian Sieve. He recounts how the lower slopes of Puligny-Montrachet and the Bourgogne Blanc vineyards on the plain escaped nearly all the frost, but the lower Meursault vineyards were almost entirely affected. For Château de Puligny-Montrachet, this is a good vintage – maybe lacking the flesh of a truly great year, but equally delicious in its accessibility. Not all the vineyards suffered, but there were, nevertheless, some serious reductions in certain sites.

This is sourced from vineyards below Meursault and Puligny, and has been in bottle since September. The wine is completely beautiful – a lovely expression of fruit, with just the right amount of flesh and absolute precision. It’s electric. It is hard to envisage a better example.

Production of the Dominique Lafon wines has now moved to large cellars at the Château de Bligny, providing much better working conditions than previously. As a result of the hail, there is unlikely to be any village Volnay or Beaune Épenottes for us to offer. However, Dominique has found an excellent source of Beaune Vignes Franches this year to make up part of the shortfall. This cuvée apart, all the vineyards are managed by the Les Héretiers du Comte Lafon viticultural team, using the same methods. Starting this year, the wines will all be bottled using Diam30 corks. From vineyards below Meursault and Puligny, In bottle since September. This is completely beautiful, a lovely expression of fruit, with just the right amount of flesh, absolute precision, very electric. It’s hard to envisage a better example.
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Director

The average vine age is around 55 years for this wine. Pale straw, with a more backward nose but with notable substance, there is a surge of fruit on the palate, with some peaches, ripe pears, white fruit and good acidity. A charming wine for the medium term. Excellent!
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Director

Its fine, bright colour heralds an elegant bouquet: a perfect mix of fruit and gentle oaking. This is exuberant – perhaps even beguiling. Some old vines form the backbone of this cuvée, helping to provide the lovely mineral thread.

The progress we noted with the 2013 vintage here has been further developed with an excellent range of 2014 wines. Extra details apparent this year are the enhanced use of lees after racking and the minimal use of sulphur without risking oxidation. The Château de Puligny rises a further few notches up the ladder. Étienne de Montille notes that, in 2014, “there was super clean fruit and we could pick at leisure”. Fine and bright in colour, this has a lovely, elegant bouquet, a perfect mix of fruit and gentle oaking. Exuberant, perhaps even beguiling, some old vines form the backbone of this cuvée, helping to provide a lovely mineral thread.
Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Director

Two-thirds comes from below Puligny and the rest from below Meursault. This is a refreshing 12.5 percent alcohol wine with very pretty floral notes yet still some flesh on the bones. It’s light on its feet yet very persistent. Drink 2017-2019.
Jasper Morris MW, Wine Buyer

With prices in Burgundy still rising, even if often for understandable reasons, the appellations Bourgogne Blanc and Bourgogne Rouge are great places to look for affordable wines. You get the opportunity to drink wine from a top winemaker, from vines which are adjacent to the famous villages, and which will be accessible earlier. The 2005 Bourgognes Rouges are still delicious and youthful more than 10 years later, but most wines have been drinking well for a few years now. 

The produce of 48- to 52-year-old vines and more importantly from the best plots on stony and marly soils, this has an impressive dramatic tension, mineral and linear with fresh lime notes at the back. Proper job. Drink 2018-2022.
Jasper Morris MW, Wine Buyer

With prices in Burgundy still rising, even if often for understandable reasons, the appellations Bourgogne Blanc and Bourgogne Rouge are great places to look for affordable wines. You get the opportunity to drink wine from a top winemaker, from vines which are adjacent to the famous villages, and which will be accessible earlier. The 2005 Bourgognes Rouges are still delicious and youthful more than 10 years later, but most wines have been drinking well for a few years now.