Wine Producing Countries

wines

This village-level appellation enjoys a prime position just underneath the premier crus Perrières. In 2022, the grapes delivered a charming wine with forward aromas of lemon peel, flint and flowers. The texture is fresh and lively, and there is considerable extract that draws it out to an impressive finish, particularly for a village wine. The grapes are from 1.17 hectares at the northern edge of the climat; they are crushed and firmly pressed before fermenting in cask (15% new) to produce this delicious wine.Decanter Magazine | 94 DECThe 2022 Puligny-Montrachet Les Nosroyes has a similar reduction to the Les Levrons, focused and perhaps even more concentrated. The palate is well-balanced with impressive depth. There’s not quite the mineralité of a Premier Cru, but ample concentration with a lively, spicy finish. Delicious.Vinous Media | 91-93 VMPale lemon in colour. The bouquet is open and expressive, slightly more in fresh orchard fruit than floral, but with a pleasing elegance. There is just a little more intensity on the palate, with a racy fresh fruit quality and good length. A little fuller bodied all the way through, and keeps on going. Tasted Oct 2023.Jasper Morris | 90-93 JM

Grown on red soil on hard limestone, planted partly in 1985 and mostly in 1995 at 14,000 vines per hectare. There’s a smoky touch to this, reminding me of my childhood overheated Scalextric set. This apart, the Clos du Meix offers linear intensity, fresh apple, a slight bitterness behind, then kicks on to a concentrated finish. Drink from 2027-2034. Tasted Nov 2024.Jasper Morris | 92 JMModerately firm reduction renders the nose impossible to assess. More interesting are the caressing, delicious and more subtly mineral-driven flavors that deliver fine persistence on the compact, youthfully austere and built-to-age finale. Once again, this is very good though a wine that’s also going to need at least a few years of keeping.Burghound | 91 BH

The 2022 Chablis Vau de Vey 1er Cru is very composed on the nose with white peach, Vervane and light waxy scents. Fine delineation. The palate has a sapid entry, quite a keen line of acidity, fresh and marine-influence. A light tang of oyster shell emerges on the finish. Very classy.Vinous Media | 92 VMCooler notes here, as expected from the steep, east-facing slopes of Vaudevey. Decidedly more edgy, with a touch of smoke balanced by ripe fruit on the palate, which is almost tropical in character. A very good end result that’s both classy and complex.Decanter Magazine | 92 DECMore lime than lemon. A very clean and pure bouquet, less grassy. This fattens out well on the palate with a little more grip than the Jean-Marc Brocard version, though one can see a family resemblance. Tasted Jun 2023.Jasper Morris | 91-92 JM

Complex smoky and nutty character, excellent concentration with a wonderful mineral acidity that keeps this very bright through the long, multilayered finish. No hint of anything exotic or overly ripe in spite of the ample depth.James Suckling | 96 JS

This almost perfectly interweaves vanilla oak with a wide spectrum of citrus and stone fruit aromas in a way that’s totally compelling, and this is most striking on the front palate. Then comes a golden richness on the very concentrated mid-palate, followed by a huge wave of chalky minerality. Incredibly long, focused aftertaste. Drinkable now, but best from 2025.James Suckling | 99 JS

The old vines of the 0.62-hectare parcel that Dujac farms in Puligny have produced a wine of great intensity and concentration in 2022, with aromas of lemon peel and nectarines and a smoky, flinty character that is more typical of Puligny than it is of the nearby Meursault Charmes. The structure is linear and taught, but there is enough extract to ensure that this should age exceptionally well. For best results, give this wine three to five years in the bottle before opening.Decanter Magazine | 95 DECThe 2022 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes is a touch more reductive out of the gates, unwinding to reveal notes of toasted hazelnuts, pear, apple, white flowers and buttery pastry. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and chiseled, it’s more concentrated and more incisive that the Folatières and concludes with a saline finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92-93 RPThe 2022 Puligny-Montrachet Les Combettes 1er Cru is more nuanced on the nose than the Les Folatières, with more sharpness and a touch more nervosité coming through with aeration, which is often the case when the two are compared side-by-side. The palate is well-balanced with a vivid entry, spicier than the Les Folatières with touches of lemongrass towards the intense finish. Just need to muster a little more refinement.Vinous Media | 92-94 VMFrom 75 year old vines. Full yellow, with both some wood and some reduction on the nose. Clearly denser fruit, evident even on the nose. A broad fruit, ripe apples, with a thread of acidity which is useful given the ripe style of the fruit. Slightly longer at the finish. Drink from 2028-2035. Tasted Nov 2023.Jasper Morris | 92-95 JMA whiff of exoticism is present on the aromas of poached apple, lychee, white peach and mineral reduction. The finer and classier medium-bodied flavors possess good underlying tension on the stony bone-dry finish that displays slightly better length.Burghound | 91-93 BH

For many years now I have felt that Alex Moreau produces the very finest example of Chassagne-Montrachet villages in the entire commune and his 2022 is once again, an outstanding bottle of wine. The bouquet is deep, precise and complex, wafting from the glass in a refined blend of apple, pear, a touch of almond, a beautiful base of chalky soil tones, vanillin oak and a topnote of orange blossoms. On the palate the wine is bright, full-bodied, focused and complex, with a beautiful core of fruit, excellent soil signature and grip, a fine spine of acidity and a long, well balanced and youthful finish. Like many of the best 2022 white Burgundies, this wine is already quite tasty, but it will be an even better drink if given three or four years’ worth of bottle age to allow it to fully blossom. Fine juice. (Drink between 2025-2050)John Gilman | 92 JGAn even lemon and lime colour. Energy on the nose, not yet so much detail. The palate delivers its usual resounding success, a mass of pure white fruit which builds in intensity to the back and finishes with the lightest of toasty notes which is complementary. Excellent length. Not only is this really good, there are 100 barrels of it! Drink from 2026-2032. Tasted Nov 2023.Jasper Morris | 91-94 JMMoreau’s production has diminished to the extent that space is no longer a constraint, meaning that he can afford the 2022 Chassagne-Montrachet Blanc a longer élevage on the lees than was hitherto the case. The wine is shaping up nicely, revealing aromas of pear, green apple, white flowers and toasted nuts, followed by a medium to full-bodied, lively and attractively complete palate.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 89-91 RPThe 2022 Chassagne-Montrachet Village has a very composed bouquet with yellow plum, fresh pear and light lemon verbena scents that gain momentum in the glass. The well-balanced palate is harmonious and focused, with a keen line of acidity and a dab of orange rind and peach skin on the finish. A delight.Vinous Media | 89-91 VMSmoke and petrol nuances add breadth to the aromas of rosemary oil, pear and soil tones. There is impressive volume to the dense and seductively textured medium weight flavors thanks to the abundant amount of dry extract that imparts a sappy quality to the lingering, powerful and balanced finale. This is noticeably less refined, indeed it’s mildly rustic, but offers excellent quality for its level. Recommended.Burghound | 89-92 BH

This delightful wine is among the liveliest of the vintage from village-level Meursault. They boast a bright lemon peel and nectarine fruit with hints of white flowers, smoke, and an undercurrent of salty minerality. The texture is clean and fresh, with the acidity carrying the wine to a lingering finish. The grapes are from the older vines in the lieu-dit Perchots, just north of En La Barre. The combination of old vines and used casks has produced a wine of great purity of fruit.Decanter Magazine | 93 DEC

The 2022 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Pruliers is unusually supple and suave for this site, offering up aromas of dark berries, orange zest, peonies, vine smoke and grilled squab, followed by a medium to full-bodied, supple and velvety palate with lively acids, sweet tannins and a saline finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92-93 RPThis is aromatically similar to the Perrières with perhaps just a touch more sauvage character in evidence. The powerful if slightly less concentrated flavors pack first-rate punch on the moderately austere, vibrant and compact finale that is also built to repay longer-term cellaring, indeed 20 years would not be a surprise.Burghound | 92-94 BHDense youthful purple, with an exceptionally youthful bouquet in concentrated fresh raspberry mode, vivid but plentiful tannins and good acidity excellent tension - this one always needs time says Bertrand. Drink from 2031-2039. Tasted Nov 2023.Jasper Morris | 92-95 JMThe 2022 Nuits Saint-Georges Les Pruliers 1er Cru offers a mixture of red and black fruit on the nose, with background touches of wild mint and menthol, quite ripe and opulent. The palate is medium-bodied with a succulent opening. Again, overtly fruit-driven with a sorbet-fresh finish. Maybe it needs a little more finesse and Pinoté to develop in barrel? Give it three or four years.Vinous Media | 91-93 VM

The 2022 Chablis Montée de Tonnerre 1er Cru has a very impressive bouquet with wonderful marine-inflected malic scents, quite strict and focused, leaning more to traditional old school Chablis. The palate is very well balanced with a sapid entry, linear and strict with a twist of sour lemon on the finish. Excellent.Vinous Media | 93 VMCool and restrained, not showing a lot at the moment, but has a fine balance between fruit ripeness and a fine thread of acidity. Precise, this will need time. Samuel Billaud has one plot in Chapelot and one in Montée de Tonnerre.Decanter Magazine | 93 DECFresh mid lemon. Very classy on the nose, with the extra fruit-driven intensity. A brilliant core with the extra fruit from this sunny site making it more accessible. A tropical take on grapefruit promotes a lovely aftertaste Drink from 2027-2036. Tasted Jun 2024.Jasper Morris | 93 JMAn elegant, pure and beautifully airy nose presents ripe but wonderfully fresh aromas of mineral reduction, acacia blossom and oyster shell trimmed in enough wood to merit mentioning. The racy and borderline painfully intense middleweight flavors exude a bracing minerality that adds a sense of lift to the detailed, focused and lingering finale that is neither especially dry nor austere. Other than a trace of backend warmth, this is a classic MdT though one that could use better depth, so a few years of patience will be necessary.Burghound | 92 BH

There is good Chablis typicity present in the form of iodine, seashore and petrol along with citrus zest top notes. The delicious, vibrant and precise middle weight flavors flash good minerality on the clean, dry and saline-inflected finish. This is very good for its level and worth considering.Burghound | 89-91 BHThe 2023 Chablis Village was assembled for my visit by Didier Picq from 10 vats. It has an attractive if light bouquet with apple blossom and fresh pear aromas. The palate is well balanced with a fine bead of acidity, a little creaminess towards the finish. This will drink well for 4-6 years.Vinous Media | 88-90 VMBlend made up. Fresh pale yellow, immediate energy on the nose, this keeps growing in the glass, with good tension, even a little pleasing bitterness at the finish. Very promising. Drink from 2026-2030. Tasted Jul 2024.Jasper Morris | 87-90 JM

The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Clos Saint-Jean 1er Cru was picked a couple of days earlier than the Clos des Murées. Despite being opened the evening before my visit, there is still some reduction on the nose. The palate is taut, fresh, quite nutty and Meursault-like in style with an energetic, persistent finish. Give this a year or two in bottle—it is very promising.Vinous Media | 91+ VM

The 2023 Gevrey-Chambertin Champerrier is very pure and sensual on the nose, with generous red cherry and crushed strawberry fruit tones that envelop the senses. The palate is well balanced with a gentle grip, but there is more energy and greater frisson toward the finish than the Vieilles Vignes, which beckons you back for another sip. This is excellent.Vinous Media | 93 VMHere too there is just enough wood to merit pointing out suffusing the compositionally similar, if less expressive, nose. The succulent and rounded medium weight flavors still manage to retain good detail on the solidly powerful, youthfully austere and moderately rustic finish that is both compact and robust. This is an excellent Gevrey villages that is worth your interest.Burghound | 90 BH

Like the 2023 les Minots, the la Forêt chez Piuze is nicely expressive and generous right out of the blocks this year and will drink beautifully from the moment of release. The beautiful bouquet wafts from the glass in a mix of lemon, pear, chalky minerality, fruit blossoms, beeswax and a topnote of citrus peel. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and succulent at the core, with lovely mineral drive and grip, bouncy acids and a long, seamlessly balanced and zesty finish. Fine juice. 2025-2055.John Gilman | 93 JGThe more giving, fruit-forward 2023 Chablis 1er Cru Les Forêts offers a lovely contrast to the pronouncedly mineral Séchet. “It comes from the bottom of the valley, where the soils are deeper,” observes Piuze, and it’s evident in the glass, as the wine wafts with a deep bouquet of beeswax, peach skin and pear mingling with savory tones. Flamboyant, elegantly muscular and enveloping, it’s fleshy yet laden with lively acidity, concluding with a saline finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RP

From a site within the climat of Les Vaillons, where the vines are planted east to west and the grape skins are never kissed by the sun, Patrick Piuze’s 2023 Chablis 1er Cru Les Roncières has turned out very well. Opening in the glass to reveal a bouquet of beeswax, peach and lemon zest, it is medium-bodied, textural yet racy, with lovely tension and a long, mineral finish. It retains a classically Chablisien profile even in this warm year.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RPI have never seen another vigneron who bottled their Chablis “Les Roncières” on its own. As this premier cru can also be bottled as Vaillons, most producers choose this direction for labeling of this wine. As I have mentioned before, Pat’s parcel in the les Minots section of Vaillons has a completely different exposition than his vines in Roncières, so the two are bottled separately for a very good reason. The 2023 version is lovely, offering up a complex nose of lemon, pear, a complex base of chalky soil, paraffin, orange peel, a touch of anise and a topnote of lemon zest. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and impeccably balanced, with a very good core of fruit, fine transparency and grip, zesty acids and lovely nervosité on the long and precise finish. Fine juice. 2027-2055.John Gilman | 92+ JG

Derived from over 60-year-old vines growing in very shallow soil, with limestone bedrock close to the surface, Patrick Piuze’s 2023 Chablis 1er Cru Séchet is one of the highlights of the broad 28-bottle tasting across many different climats and appellations. Opening in the glass to reveal a bouquet of oyster shell, green apple and lemon zest mingling with beeswax and iodine, it’s medium-bodied, bright and precise, with mouthwatering acidity and ample structuring extract, concluding with a searingly chalky finish. If one wants to pick a bottle that’s unmistakably (even when tasted blind) Chablisien, look no further than this beautifully defined and incisive interpretation of Séchet.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RPThe 2023 Chablis “les Séchets” from Domaine Piuze is also a fine example of the vintage. The wine’s aromatic constellation delivers scents of apple, pear, lemon blossoms, a lovely base of limestone soils, beeswax and a nice touch of Chablisienne straw in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and nicely structured out of the blocks this year, with a fine core offruit, excellent mineral undertow and grip, bright acids and a long, complex and very well balanced finish. This will want a few years in the cellar before drinking with abandon. 2028-2055.John Gilman | 92+ JG

The 2023 Montmains is one of my favorite premier crus in the Piuze cellars this year. The wine’s bouquet is pure, precise and complex, offering up notes of lemon, pear, a touch of tangerine, beeswax, spring flowers, lemon peel and a beautiful foundation of chalky minerality. On the palate the wine is crisp, full-bodied and deep at the core, with great soil signature and grip, a fine spine of acidity, lovely balance and a long, focused and complex finish. Most impressive. 2028-2055+.John Gilman | 93 JGPatrick Piuze’s 2023 Chablis 1er Cru Montmains has turned out well, opening from the glass with notes of acacia, pear, peach and youthful reduction. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated and tensile, built around a chalky core, it’s laden with bright acidity and concludes with a long, saline finish. It’s produced from a parcel just next to Raveneau’s.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92+ RP

The 2023 vintage of “Vaillons” Les Minots from Patrick Piuze is excellent. The wine’s aromatic constellation offers up a superb blend of fresh lemon, pear, tart orange, chalky soil tones, anise, spring flowers and a topnote of beeswax. On the palate the wine is deep, zesty, complex and full-bodied, with a succulent core of fruit, superb mineral undertow, bouncy acids and lovely balance on the long and vibrant finish. This will drink beautifully upon release and has the balance to age gracefully for several decades. 2025-2055.John Gilman | 92+ JGDerived from one of the warmest places in the valley, Patrick Piuze’s 2023 Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons Les Minots is flamboyant and demonstrative, soaring from the glass with a bouquet of marzipan, peach and dried white flowers mingling with passion fruit. Enveloping and underpinned by racy acids, it’s full-bodied, rich and gourmand and, unsurprisingly, in the context of the warmer site, is among the first that is harvested. While it offers immediate appeal, it has proven to be an age-worthy bottling.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91 RP

The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Morgeots 1er Cru has a little more mineralité on the nose than the Vergers. Its bouquet contains light hints of clementine and beeswax aromas. The palate is well balanced, fresh and concentrated with a slightly viscous opening. It just needs a little more terroir to shape the finish.Vinous Media | 90 VM

Mid lemon yellow. Grilled almonds Marjolaine suggests, and I agree. Once more the flesh and the oak on the nose are apparent. All the requisite weight and white fruit, silky length, a little salinity, understated but very long indeed. Rather hidden at the moment. Drink from 2030-2040. Tasted Nov 2024.Jasper Morris | 93-96 JMThe 2023 Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru, from vines planted in 1996, had quite a bit of that matchstick reduction on the nose when I tasted it from barrel, but you can discern the concentration here. The palate is well balanced with a slightly honeyed opening. Acidity counters its richness as hints of ginger and white pepper emerge toward the finish. Powerful compared to its peers, this Grand Cru will require two or three years in bottle.Vinous Media | 91-93 VM

More yellow in the colour, a waxy flesh, slight evolution in the sample, I cannot quite see the stones up front. They do appear on the palate and the wine extends very well through to a flinty finish, with some saline notes right at the back. Drink from 2028-2034. Tasted Nov 2024.Jasper Morris | 91-93 JMThe 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet En Cailleret 1er Cru has a strict, almost sullen nose that demands coaxing from the glass, with hints of chamomile interlacing the orchard fruit, though I seek just a little more mineralité. The palate is well balanced with tropical notes of passionfruit and guava on the entry. Smooth in texture with countervailing acidity, the 2023 finishes open and easy-drinking. Drink just a year after bottling and enjoy this in its youth.Vinous Media | 89-91 VM

The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Les Houillères is a level up from the regular Village, with more mineralité and terroir expression. The palate is well balanced and linear in style, with a keen line of acidity, fine weight and a sapid, chamomile-tinged close. Maybe the 2022 had a touch more depth on the finish, but this is worth seeking out.Vinous Media | 91 VMOld vines with a younger plot as well. Mid lemon yellow. The bouquet has a discreet distinction, more in minerals than flesh, one jar again. Tighter and more precise on the palate, with a light ripe citrus note added to the orchard fruit. In bottle. Drink from 2027-2030. Tasted Nov 2024.Jasper Morris | 91 JM

The 2023 Clos des Chevaliers from Domaine Chartron was one of the most brilliant wines I tasted during my entire nearly three weeks in the cellars here in Burgundy. The wine is utterly brilliant on both the nose and palate, with the bouquet offering up a pure, beautifully complex and elegant blend of apple, pear, fresh almond, crème pâtissière, a complex foundation of limestone minerality, lemon blossoms, a refined framing of vanillin oak and a topnote of lemon zest. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and seamlessly balanced, with a great spine of acidity, a gorgeous core of fruit, great mineral drive and cut and a very, very long, vibrant finish. Pure magic. (Drink between 2030 - 2075)John Gilman | 98 JGThe delicious Clos du Chevalier is the top wine in the Chartron cellar, boasting intense aromas of lemon peel, mandarin and passionfruit, with nuances of acacia flower and a pronounced saline minerality. The texture is lively and vibrant but rich as well, with a superb balance between the extract and the racy acidity. The clos, a former monopole of the Chartron family, is above the Montrachet from Marquis de Laguiche; although they sold 0.16ha to Lalou Bize-Leroy for its Domaine d’Auvenay, Chartron still owns a half-hectare of Chevalier here. Cellar this for at least a decade before opening.Decanter Magazine | 96 DECThe 2023 Chevalier-Montrachet Clos de Chevaliers Grand Cru is Charton’s best Grand Cru this year. Intense and flattering citrus fruit notes commingle with crushed stone and light undergrowth scents blossoming in the glass. The palate is fresh, vibrant, beautifully balanced and very harmonious with a long and tender finish. Cohesive and multi-layered, très bon vin!Vinous Media | 95-97 VMAn attractive pale colour with a lime streak. Pure and stylish on the nose, with the white limestone feel of classic Chevalier. The bouquet will express itself more later on, I suspect. On the palate, the terroir also reverberates, with a very fine-boned acidity alongside the nuanced white fruit and flowers, with just a little well-judged oak bringing up the rear. A high-class finish. Very distinguished. Drink from 2030-2037. Tasted Oct 2024.Jasper Morris | 94-97 JMA markedly more floral-suffused nose speaks of distinctly cool white orchard fruit aromas, mineral reduction, Asian-style tea and a lovely range of spice nuances. The gorgeously textured and notably denser medium weight plus flavors exude a prominent stoniness on the sappy bitter citrus-tined finale that goes on and on. Like the Clos du Cailleret, the mouthfeel is like sucking on a small pebble and overall, this superb Chevalier should amply reward extended cellaring.Burghound | 92-95 BH

Fantastic depth and length to this wine, showing aromas and flavors of sliced apples, stone, flint,matchstick and white pepper. It’s full-bodied and reserved, with very fine layers of bright fruit and minerals. Tight, structured and compact with a long finish. Already impressive, but best after 2027.James Suckling | 98 JSOpulent, creamy and expansive, this white fills the mouth, offering peach, apple, quinine and salty mineral flavors embraced by vanilla and toasty oak notes. There’s a tactile sensation, and this still lacks integration, yet all of the components are there, along with power and length. Best from 2027 through 2042. 3,800 cases made, 1,400 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 93 WSLatour’s 2023 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru wafts from the glass with notes of pear, mandarin oil and peach mingled with notes of struck match and freshly baked bread. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and seamless, it’s rich and textural, with a sweet, layered core of fruit and an expansive finish. Now bottled under Diam, it should age with grace.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92-94 RPCool, pretty and attractively layered aromas include those of Granny Smith apple, spice, wet stone and a plentitude of citrus elements. There is both more volume and richness to the bigger-bodied flavors that exhibit good power on the balanced, sappy and moderately firm finale. This also could use better depth but that should develop in time.Burghound | 90-93 BH

This is even cooler and more restrained as the nose only grudgingly reveals its aromas of mineral reduction, green apple, spice, acacia blossom and a deft touch of wood. The gorgeously textured medium weight flavors brim with both minerality and sappy dry extract that buffers the youthfully austere and even more persistent finish. This too is very classy and a classic Clos de la Mouchère of grace and poise. If you can find it, buy it.Burghound | 95 BHA fuller yellow here, and an extra degree of completeness, more weight and almost all the class. The oak is still at 50% new and is very well integrated. Gorgeously rich, with little fruits dancing through a meadow. Once again, I do see the magic of this. Henri was strongly advised by his father to look after “Madame de la Mouchère”. Drink from 2030-2038. Tasted Oct 2024.Jasper Morris | 94-97 JMThe 2023 Puligny-Montrachet Clos de la Mouchère 1er Cru is another very classy wine. Vertical in feel, the 2023 is super-bright from the outset. White pepper, flowers, mint, sage and pear reinforce that impression. Readers will find an airy, deceptively mid-weight Puligny that possesses remarkable depth.Vinous Media | 93-95 VM