2017 Red Burgundy

This hidden gem is located up in the village of Meloisey, high in the hills behind Pommard. Brother and sister Martial and Gaetane Carré have recently taken over running the estate from their father, Denis, and have focused on making wines which are fruit-forward but with structure and complexity.

Bright ruby in colour with some youthful purple highlights, the nose is an absolute joy with an explosion of inviting summer pudding aromas. The palate doesn’t disappoint, with juicy cranberry and redcurrant and a fresh acidity that will leave you wanting another glass. Drink now to 2021.

This is the second vintage of Claire’s fabulous Gamay, made from grapes grown by her friends in the Allier département (Auvergne). So pleased was Claire with the 2016 – born of necessity when her vines in the Hautes-Côtes were severely frosted – that she repeated the experiment. In our view, the ’17 is even better. It’s slightly hazy in the glass and brick red in colour. The nose is intensely varietal, with red berry and floral aromas to the fore. As for the palate, it’s ever so slightly spritzy, but clean as a whistle. This isn’t a wine for laying down, or one to savour over consecutive nights – no, it’s an exceptionally expressive, energetic wine to drink with great gusto but minimal ceremony. Drink now to 2020.
Adam Bruntlett, Buyer (summer 2019) 

This is from young vines which come from cuttings of old Pinot Fin taken from the Clos des Epeneaux around 20 years ago. The class of the plant material shows on the nose, which is packed with pretty red berries. The palate is nice and juicy, with lots of ripe strawberry and cherry fruit, and chalky tannins. Drink 2019-2024.

Olivier is taking many steps to counteract the warmer summers and earlier harvests; managing the canopy to protect grapes from sunburn, using late-ripening rootstocks, reducing the amount of new oak he uses to keep the wines feeling fresher, and bringing harvest dates forward to retain acidity. The 2017 crop is around 15 percent down due to the dry summer which stressed the grapes. Picking began on 27th August and Olivier feels the wines are a little richer than 2016, but still with very good balance and well-integrated oak.

The Clos de la Perrière is one of the outstanding sites of the Hautes Côtes de Beaune, facing south on stony and shallow soil. The nose has a lovely, lifted perfume which leads on to a textured palate packed with pure red-cherry fruit and dense tannins. This will truly hit its stride with a few years in bottle. Drink 2020-2024.

A short tour of one of Sébastien Magnien’s vineyards tells all you need to know about his philosophy; each vine is perfectly manicured, with not a leaf out of place.  This attention to detail is reflected in his wines, which are precise, steely and mineral. Sébastien’s choice of picking date is guided by acidity rather than sugar levels, putting the emphasis on freshness. He declared himself very happy with 2017, comparing the white wines to 2014 but with perhaps a touch more flavour ripeness, and praising the accessible, moreish character of the reds.

These are David’s oldest vines, with two parcels planted in 1947 and 1943, on red clay and decomposed granite respectively. The slightly younger plot is Premier Cru land and makes up 45 percent of the blend. Vivid ruby in colour, the crunchy red-berry fruit mingles with chalky tannins to produce a very drinkable wine. Drink 2019-2023.


David began picking on 7th September for his Pinot Noir, pointing out that while this was the same date as in 2015, the two vintages have contrasting profiles. David used the word digeste to describe the 2017s, suggesting these are wines which will have you reaching for the next glass. The character of the vintage is one of freshness, purity, bright red fruit and floral notes, a combination which marries perfectly with Davids precise and confident winemaking style.

Situated just above the vineyards of Nuits-St Georges, Les Dames Huguettes is at an altitude of 300 to 450 metres, giving the wine a vivacious freshness and vibrancy. The fruit is crunchy with a cool freshness, chalky tannins and a touch of spice which gives a nod to Nuits. Drink 2019-2024.

Patrice explains that the hard work they did at the start of the year in pruning short and carrying out a severe de-budding, as well as a little green harvesting on younger vines, paid dividends in terms of avoiding excessive yields and consequent dilution. The dry and warm conditions towards the end of the season allowed them the luxury of choosing when to harvest, in fact beginning on 9th September. Patrice compares the vintage to 1979 and 1989, highlighting the wines’ impeccable balance and freshness (the latter he prefers over power) as particular strengths. Our notes indicate whether the wines are domaine or négoce bottlings.

After the frost of 2016, Patrice is relieved to have this back on form and reports that the vines are in good health. The nose has a pretty, floral profile, which along with the charming, supple fruit and silky tannins, confirms this wine’s reputation as a mini Chambolle. Always great value. Drink 2019-2024.

Patrice explains that the hard work they did at the start of the year in pruning short and carrying out a severe de-budding, as well as a little green harvesting on younger vines, paid dividends in terms of avoiding excessive yields and consequent dilution. The dry and warm conditions towards the end of the season allowed them the luxury of choosing when to harvest, in fact beginning on 9th September. Patrice compares the vintage to 1979 and 1989, highlighting the wines’ impeccable balance and freshness (the latter he prefers over power) as particular strengths. Our notes indicate whether the wines are domaine or négoce bottlings.

There is generic Bourgogne in this, but there is also Hautes Côtes de Nuits (from Dames Huguettes), Monthélie and also declassified Premier Cru fruit contributing 20 percent of the blend. This is benchmark stuff, as always, with bright violet perfume and a satisfying redcurrant crunch. Drink 2019-2023.

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.

From a site with thin pebbly soils, this is the domaine’s most mineral, angular cuvée characterised by bright red and black fruit aromas and crunchy acidity. About 10% of the final blend is aged in new oak, which tends to mark the wine in its youth, but whose influence is now perfectly integrated. A cracking example of what top growers are achieving in the up-and-coming Côte Chalonnaise. Drink now to 2023
Will Heslop, Buying Assistant (summer 2019)

Half of the vines for this cuvée suffer from court noué (fanleaf virus), which reduces the yield and causes millerandage; small berries which make concentrated wines. The nose offers subtle spice notes while the palate gives richness and density with some darker fruit flavours and rocky grip. Drink 2020-2024


David began picking on 7th September for his Pinot Noir, pointing out that while this was the same date as in 2015, the two vintages have contrasting profiles. David used the word digeste to describe the 2017s, suggesting these are wines which will have you reaching for the next glass. The character of the vintage is one of freshness, purity, bright red fruit and floral notes, a combination which marries perfectly with Davids precise and confident winemaking style.

This site can count itself very unlucky not to be classified as Marsannay, a quirk of the process when the appellation was created, one which hopefully will be rectified soon. It’s a mix of 1940-planted vines with some young, but very high-quality young vines. Floral and spicy on the nose, the wine is rich, concentrated and pure on the palate with chalky limestone minerality. Outstanding. Drink 2020-2026.


The scars of the 2016 vintage appear to have healed, although with Laurent’s positive attitude that was never in doubt. Having had to compromise his organic status last year to fight the mildew which followed the frost, he has begun organic certification again. Since 2016 Laurent has made a conscious effort to “have faith in the grapes”, and extract less from them, allowing the terroir to speak clearly. The results are exciting, the wines showing more grace, elegance and purity. It is clear that this is one of the success stories of the vintage.

This is a blend of vineyards around the village itself, along with middle-aged (10- to 30-year-old) vines from the best single-vineyard sites of Clos du Roy, Longeroies and Es Chezots, aged in 500-litre barrels with around 20 percent whole bunches. With very pretty red fruit on the nose, this is juicy, crunchy and succulent – just classic, fresh Burgundian Pinot Noir. Drink 2019-2025.

This is deliciously moreish, with sweet strawberry fruit and cranberry bite for lift. The final blend will also include some wine aged in large foudre, which adds a heartier, richer texture and rounds out the wine. Simple but not one-dimensional. Drink 2019-2023.

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

There are 20 barrels in 2017 of this utterly delightful, exuberant expression of Pinot Noir. Jean-Yves has removed all of Rully’s rusticity with some subtle, intuitive winemaking; colour and fruit mostly come from infusion, not extraction. The vines are 40 years old, and 100 percent whole-bunch gives a lovely succulence. Drink 2019-2023.

It was a “normal” harvest here this year which, in Jean-Yves’s world, is still a relatively paltry 30hl/ha, due to his scrupulous organic and biodynamic vineyard management. Jean-Yves is increasingly interested in the role and importance of sulphur dioxide in a wine’s evolution. He found that a trial bottling made without SO2 had little expression of the vineyard, yet he finds that adding SO2 too early in the winemaking process makes the wines more fragile and prone to oxidation. A fine range from a reflective winemake

One of the outstanding vineyards of the Santenay appellation, Clos Rousseau produces deep-coloured and powerful wines. David’s 2017 has an intense and sweetly spiced perfume with some floral touches courtesy of the inclusion of a good proportion of stems. The palate delivers rich, dense fruit which envelops the firm, chalky tannins. Drink 2020-2025.

David began picking on 7th September for his Pinot Noir, pointing out that while this was the same date as in 2015, the two vintages have contrasting profiles. David used the word digeste to describe the 2017s, suggesting these are wines which will have you reaching for the next glass. The character of the vintage is one of freshness, purity, bright red fruit and floral notes,  a combination which marries perfectly  with David’s precise and confident winemaking style

This wine is made from three parcels selected for their excellent exposition and quality vine material, which allows zero-sulphur vinification of whole bunches. The nose is charming, with notes of blackcurrant, peony and rose, and just a touch of white pepper. The palate has sweet fruit initially, but it is the clean and crisp acidity that prevails, along with a haunting, verdant perfume. Drink 2019-2023.

After the catastrophic 2016 vintage, which saw her lose around 70 percent of the crop, Claire Naudin is much happier with 2017. She still didn’t get a full crop, though, because the frost had damaged the vine, stunting the following year’s growth and limiting the crop to 80 percent of a full yield. The vintage certainly suits her style, with wines that are all about elegance, finesse and delicacy. These are appetising wines which always give great pleasure, on even the grandest occasions. As ever the wines are made with 100 percent whole bunches.

There was 50 percent whole-bunch here, to emphasise the already elegant and lifted profile of the vineyard. Lavières refers to the flat, limestone slabs (known as “laves”) which sit just under the topsoil of the vineyard, and which are also found in Les Épenots in Pommard and Cherbaudes in Gevrey. Some of the vines here are 80 years old, giving real intensity to what is an energetic, floral and delicate wine with a spicy, perfumed finish. Drink 2020-2026.

Our relationship with Domaine Tawse goes back many years, to the days of Domaine Maume, which was purchased in 2012 by Canadian Moray Tawse. Since then there have been shrewd additions of vineyards in Beaune, Savigny and Volnay, the winemaking has moved to MarchandTawse’s facility in Nuits-St Georges and a bright, affable English winemaker by the name of Mark Fincham has been installed. Having previously made wine at Domaine du Pegau in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Mark is realising his dream of making Burgundy. The vineyards are worked organically and biodynamically, often with the help of a horse. The style here is clean, precise and terroir-driven.

Mark feels the 2017s are simply lovely wines, with real freshness and a focus on red fruit. For the reds, he de-stemmed a larger proportion than in the past, feeling that the stems were slightly less ripe than he would like, particularly in the cooler Gevrey vineyards, and could impart some green character. All the vineyards are already certified organic, but they are in the process of obtaining biodynamic certification too. This was the first vintage made entirely in the cellars in Nuits, having left the Maume property in Gevrey shortly after the 2016 harvest.

This is a vineyard which was planted by David’s grandfather in the 1960s, having previously been scrub as its shallow limestone topsoil presented too great a challenge to vignerons. The delicate and perfumed nose gives the impression of a floral and elegant wine, but the palate offers surprising minerality in the form of mouth-watering tannins backed up by crunchy redcurrant fruit. Drink 2020-2026


David began picking on 7th September for his Pinot Noir, pointing out that while this was the same date as in 2015, the two vintages have contrasting profiles. David used the word digeste to describe the 2017s, suggesting these are wines which will have you reaching for the next glass. The character of the vintage is one of freshness, purity, bright red fruit and floral notes, a combination which marries perfectly with Davids precise and confident winemaking style.

Laurent selects only his oldest vines (up to 70 years old) from the Clos du Roy for this cuvée. The nose is sophisticated with red fruit and lifted, floral touches. The palate is cool, with bright red fruits, powdery tannins and a note of torrefaction which comes not from oak, but the vineyard itself. Drink 2020-2027.

The scars of the 2016 vintage appear to have healed, although with Laurent’s positive attitude that was never in doubt. Having had to compromise his organic status last year to fight the mildew which followed the frost, he has begun organic certification again. Since 2016 Laurent has made a conscious effort to “have faith in the grapes”, and extract less from them, allowing the terroir to speak clearly. The results are exciting, the wines showing more grace, elegance and purity. It is clear that this is one of the success stories of the vintage.

Anyone familiar with Beaune will know that this is typically a sunny and early-ripening site. Mark works hard to maintain freshness, picking the grapes relatively early and not removing too many leaves. The nose is explosively floral, with a beguiling perfume. The palate is packed with red-berry fruit and the silky, caressing structure adds charm to the dusty, chalky finish. This will surprise with its ageing potential. Drink 2020-2026.

Our relationship with Domaine Tawse goes back many years, to the days of Domaine Maume, which was purchased in 2012 by Canadian Moray Tawse. Since then there have been shrewd additions of vineyards in Beaune, Savigny and Volnay, the winemaking has moved to MarchandTawse’s facility in Nuits-St Georges and a bright, affable English winemaker by the name of Mark Fincham has been installed. Having previously made wine at Domaine du Pegau in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Mark is realising his dream of making Burgundy. The vineyards are worked organically and biodynamically, often with the help of a horse. The style here is clean, precise and terroir-driven.

Mark feels the 2017s are simply lovely wines, with real freshness and a focus on red fruit. For the reds, he de-stemmed a larger proportion than in the past, feeling that the stems were slightly less ripe than he would like, particularly in the cooler Gevrey vineyards, and could impart some green character. All the vineyards are already certified organic, but they are in the process of obtaining biodynamic certification too. This was the first vintage made entirely in the cellars in Nuits, having left the Maume property in Gevrey shortly after the 2016 harvest.

If possible, this is even fruitier than the village example and aromatically almost New World in style, but the gravelly tannins soon ground the wine back in Burgundy. Make sure you wave to the vineyard on the right-hand side as you head out of Beaune towards Paris on the A6. Drink 2020-2024.

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.