Côte de Beaune 2022

Les Hâtes sits in the middle of the village, surrounded by premiers crus on well-draining soil. It makes for a floral, ethereal style of Pinot with lovely proportions. This floral character is a natural expression of the site which David sees emerge every year. It makes for a compelling introduction to Santenay for first-timers.

Maranges is the final limit of the Côte d’Or, and a source of crunchy, great value reds, if you follow the right grower. This is actually a blend of village and premier cru fruit (from 1er Cru Clos Rousseau), which David declassifies to give his village Marange more volume and quality. It’s a smart move, and a smart buy. It’s light-bodied, lithe, crunchy, juicy and vibrant.

This is the first year we’ve picked up some Chassagne Rouge from Alex, so impressed we were when tasting from barrel. The vintage’s natural charm and ease suit his style well. While the focus of attention will remain on his whites, his reds offer up an approachable and delicious expression from this talented winemaker.

This comes from a blend for the domaine’s young vines with a small dash of extremely old vines, from multiple parcels scattered around the village of Nantoux. It has a crunchy acidity giving it a fresh profile, which is twinned with the ripe blueberry/raspberry fruit character. Whole-bunch has been upped to 60% in 2022 giving it a spiced, graceful length.

This is a new addition to the list in 2022: we just couldn’t resist. It’s made from old vine Gamay grown on the steep slopes of Nantoux (true to its name, unlike many other Coteaux Bourguignons which are grown on the flat plains on the other side of the route nationale). It was vinified with 50% whole-bunch fruit, gently handled in the cellar with low extraction. Some of the vines are getting on for ninety-years-old, and the concentration and kick this gives to the wine is notable. It’s gorgeous: juicy, fruit-forward, and joyful. Don’t miss this little rocket.

The Bignon parcel has red clay soil, not dissimilar to that found in pockets of Pommard. It usually produces an easy-going, fruit-forward wine, but I’m struck by the excellent structure found in this 2022. It still has the signature smooth fruit, but with fine, lightly grippy tannins from well-handled 60% whole-bunch fruit.

Boris Champy burst onto the scene in 2019, and is now a leading light of the Hautes-Côtes and of biodynamic viticulture in Burgundy. Le Clou is a single vineyard in Nantoux sitting at a precise 377 metres elevation. Its soil is similar to Volnay, with chalky, rocky topsoil over limestone marl bedrock. 100% whole-bunch has been used to great effect here: it has a fine, elegant aroma of red berries and cinnamon spice, with silky tannins and impressive concentration on the poised finish.

This Volnay is so balanced and complete. Pillowy, gently spiced red fruit leads to a silky, aromatically complex palate, spiced through with wild strawberry fruit. It is a blend of two parcels, Les Famines and Les Grands Champs, in the centre of the commune. There is a touch of sweetly-scented dry extract, making it both tender and mineral.

This Volnay is floral and gently spiced, with layers of delicate aromatics. It comes from a blend of two parcels: the evocatively named Les Famines, whose paucity of soil makes the roots dig deep; and a small dash of the tiny lieu-dit, La Gigotte, which lifts this village wine up a notch. It’s entirely destemmed and the wine has a sapid, fruity, and accessible profile, with nicely grippy tannins.

This is one of many Volnay premiers crus that Marc-Olivier has at his fingertips. The site’s generous topsoil makes for a wine of appealing charm, marking it out as one of the earliest drinking of the Buffet Volnay premiers crus. The fruit is completely destemmed, and the wine has a sumptuous, succulent texture on the palate. It is sweetly scented, with intense purity of fruit. That aromatic fruit is enrobed in plush tannins, and the finish is graceful and long. Cellar for a few years, then don’t hold back.

This is arguably the greatest site in Volnay. Marc-Olivier is lucky to have two parcels here. The ‘young vines’ are a mere 50 years old, and the old vines very much older. Their concentration and natural complexity are honed through one third whole-bunch used in this cuvée. It is pretty racy in 2022 with an edgy freshness and a little more structure to the tannins than in Carelle sous la Chapelle.

It is well worth following Olivier’s reds, particularly in recent vintages. This vineyard had previously been owned by M. Duvault-Blochet, former owner of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. Today, high density planting and organic farming mean low yields, which does a great service to the fruit - red berries with a smoky graphite scent lingering over them. Mineral and defined.

Le Charmois is on a hill just next to Chassagne-Montrachet’s 1er Cru Les Chaumées. Its cool, poor limestone soil makes for a tightly powerful wine with straight, chalky freshness. There’s a spicy, fresh ginger twist to the fruit, perhaps thanks to the playful reduction going on here. It’s salty, taut and extremely good.

The Bachelets have four parcels in this premier cru, the oldest of which were planted in 1927 and 1960. It carries the superb concentration of old-vine fruit, with juicy pineapple intensity. Harmonious, deep and precise.

There are many who consider Bachelet’s Blanchot-Dessus on a par with its grand cru neighbours, Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet and Le Montrachet. The vines were planted in 1927, and this old-vine wine has the presence and stature of its grand cru neighbours. Its shyness in youth will be transformed into majesty with age. Put it away for a few years to see what it can really do.

Jean-Marc makes some of the best Chassagne Rouge around. With many old vines planted on the clay soil pockets around the village, he has produced a great example in 2022. This old vine cuvée has a fabulous spiced plum aroma on the nose, with textural red fruit detail on the palate. You’ll find lacy, fine-grained tannins of the highest order here.

This is a brilliant example of what Pinot Noir can do in Chassagne when you combine old vines and serious winemaking. The poor soils of Clos St Jean have long been one of the hotspots for Pinot in the village, and Jean-Marc counts himself lucky to have inherited this parcel of 100+ year old vines. He likes to make a gourmand style you can approach from youth, but don’t let that make you think this is lacking in concentration or sophistication. This 2022 is sitting emphatically in the elegant red fruit spectrum, and the wine shows a level of freshness, detail and precision that lifts it up to great heights.

This vineyard bordering Pommard did once produce wines with some robust, muscular tannins. But now that they have reached 70+ years, the tannins have begun to soften, becoming distinctly finer in recent years. It shows a touch of blueberry fruit, with plush, structural tannins.

This comes from the family’s best parcels in the village - in Les Grands Champs, Les Pluchots, La Gigotte, and Ez Echards, all of which border the premiers crus just above. It has a dialled up complexity and depth of fruit, with slightly more emphatic tannins, making it a great candidate for ageing.

Only in years of relative abundance and quality do the domaine make this cuvée which is a selection of fruit from only the oldest vines (70-75 years old). They sit just below Santenots-du-Milieu, and the wine shows an even greater level of intensity and length than the already impressive village Meursault.

This parcel, right in the centre of the village, has been owned by the Lafarge family since 2005. It has an ideal mid-slope position, and produces a floral wine with great tension and an intense fruit core: quintessential Volnay. So pure and long, with a velvety structure.

In 2022 the vines celebrated their 101st birthday (not that anyone’s counting), and lay claim to being oldest vines of the domaine. And although their home village of Volnay is what many people think of when they hear Lafarge, their noble Beaune holdings are equally highly regarded, with Grèves the finest. This is a complete thrill in 2022.

Les Pitangerets straddles Chassagne-Montrachet and St-Aubin, and sits just above Les Chenevottes. It’s a St Aubin of considerable tension, with the signature Pillot energy running through the middle. Racy and so long.

This south facing parcel is tucked up the valley slope, so on the Beaune (i.e. north) side of the village, facing directly towards Volnay. It’s a cool site, thanks to the fresh breeze that is drawn down through the vines, but the white soil and south-facing exposure means it can heat up pretty quickly when the sun shines. Joannes has used 50% whole bunch fruit in 2022 in contrast to previous vintages that have tended to 100%. It strikes a brilliant balance between ethereal juiciness and mineral bite.