Cellar Raids: Day Four

This is undoubtedly one of the greatest premier cru sites in the Côte de Nuits. Clos Frantin are the proud owners of 1.75 hectares.

Clos de Vougeot might be a grand cru, but in the wrong hands it can be ungainly and heavy. In the hands of the Grivots, however, it is a finely woven, detailed and poised wine with beautiful power and length. Blood orange and violets perfume the nose, with a little tobacco spice and pepper on the palate spicing up the ripe red berry fruit. So sweetly tender, but also so powerful, with nicely detailed tannins.

From the middle of the slope, from vines 45 years old which Brian says act like they’re 75 years old, given how little fruit they yield. 30% whole bunch. Smells so good: expressive, fine, and good delicacy.Floral, slightly peppery and seductive with lovely tannins. There’s a slightly tonic note on the finish, and wonderful length. Very impressive.

From the original Rhone Ranger John Alban comes this benchmark Viognier. John fell in love with Viognier after a glass of Condrieu and he was likely the first person to bring the grape to California vineyards, at a time when there was only 50 acres planted globally. The wine is full of musky, heady, stone fruit aromas with an oily rich texture.

From a vineyard on the shoulder of the hill, that gets the morning light, this is a really lovely Dolcetto: one of the best we’ve tried. There’s amazing freshness here, and then a finish that lasts beautifully, too. Just just a joy.

Almost Gruner Veltliner like: there’s pepper spice here, and lots of grippy freshness. Nascetta is a grape variety that almost disappeared: tasting this, we’re glad it didn’t. Creamy fruit and a long and fresh finish. Impressive. And will age very nicely.

A beautifully balanced Nebbiolo from Manuel. There’s blood orange and strawberry fruit on the nose, with brilliant complexity and a lovely, fine thread of acidity. This is vibrant, with lovely salinity on the finish. Very long and fine-boned: a real charmer.

From the vineyard behind the house, the 2016 Barbaresco from Manuel Marinacci is a joy. Vibrant yet concentrated, with notes of spearmint, straweberry, and a hint of quinine, it's a long, pretty, delicious nebbiolo.

Bramble fruits,red cherry and violets are supported by licorice and pepper spice aromas on the nose. There is a silkiness on the palate and the tannins are fine grained in this accessible and delicious wine.

Slightly closed but fresh and silky, with lovely energy to the fruit. Very nice energy, here, good weight and power, but with a fine thread of acidity, very silky and pure, really good dry extract, and fine balance. So driven and saline and focussed. Love the phenolics here, incredibly complex and long.

Like La Bretonnière, this vineyard is also within Vouvray, but cannot use the AOC name since it is vinified in Montlouis. It comes from a south-facing slope, and Jacky and Jean-Philippe are careful to get the picking date right here. Too early and it loses its drama, too late and it feels overweight. In 2020 it is distinctly pithy and dry, agile and long.

The domaine might have 15 hectares in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but a wine you shouldn’t miss is this cuvée, from lesser-known Châteauneuf-de-Gadagne just to the south. The name is a nod to their ability to throw off the constraints of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape regulations in this peppery and fragrant wine. It is mainly Grenache with some Mourvèdre, Carignan and Syrah thrown in for good measure.

Crozes-Hermitage is the sweet spot of the Delas offering. This is their no-nonsense, great value, fruit-driven Syrah with notes of anise and red berries. Sadly in 2019 some of the parcels were badly hit by the June hailstorm, so volumes are severely reduced. But thanks to the fragmented layout of the holdings, some were left unscathed, and quality remains as high as ever.

This vintage’s Gaby rouge has really impressive energy, with the smoke and texture of the oak enlivened by fresh acidity and peppery Syrah.

The 2021 Monts Luisants, from one of Morey's most celebrated vineyards, is lovely in 2021. Lots of whole bunch spice, and there's a fragrance and purity here, too. Very nicely balanced.

Tasted April 2022. Rich, powerful, and inky with concentration of blackberry, raspberry, pepper, and dark chocolate flavours. Spicy, clove notes from 50% new oak. There’s a real lift and elegance to this to carry that generosity, possibly from some careful use of whole bunch fermentation. It finishes long, with saline flavours balancing the richness of this seriously impressive Moulis.

From two vineyards on Craig & Anne’s estate, the 2019 Main Road and Dignity features incredible depth of fruit, with beautiful blackcurrant, red currant, graphite and cedar notes. The finish is mineral and long, and the potential for ageing is spectacular. Yet again, this is a star of the cape. Don’t miss this.

The first single vineyard they made was the Skaliekop, from a vineyard planted in 1985 on the Paardebosch farm. This vineyard is an anomaly: an island of schist on the normally granite Paardeberg. Indeed, the name means hill of Shale, and this gives a mineral, reserved character to the wine. This has notes of fennel and lime blossom, and the potential here is outstanding.

Albarello is the Italian for bush vines, and this comes from 100% Nerello Mascalese from up to 90 year old vines planted at 650 metres. It sees no oak, but is complex, silky and vibrant. This will age brilliantly: such a pure, mineral expression.

To truly understand what Luca’s all about, look no further than the 2016 Lessona, from a great vintage. This is incredible pure and energetic. There’s a lightness and delicacy that you don’t find in the Langhe, but also a nobility to the tannins. Long, mineral, and incredibly pure: remarkable.

From one of the most famous sites in Neive, this shows the classic character of the commune. Very delicate and fragrant, there’s so much rose petal character, and a lovely salinity on the finish. This is a very pretty Barbaresco.

This comes from a spot at the very top of the Bussia vineyard, producing a fresh, elegant expression of this great vineyard. There are notes of peach skin and fresh cherry, with mulberry fruit, and a touch of orange peel adding complexity. The finish is complex and very long, with notes of crushed rocks and tar. Very impressive.

Exotic and smoky and spicy. Lovely fruit and juice, amazing purity and silky fruit, lovely tension and finesse, comes in waves with salinity and length, this is just so elegant and finessed, with outatanding poise. Wonderful.

Just 4,000 bottles are made of this delicious, vibrant, mouthwatering fizz from Gianmario. Notes of orange blossom and citrus peel on the nose, on the palate there's a hint of peaches, too. The palate has verve and vibrancy, and so much precision on the finish, too. This is brilliantly balanced, and oh-so-delicious. Make sure you grab a case or two.

The 2014 Tillington is just the fourth vintage of this defining single vineyard wine released by Nyetimber. It is now firmly established as the British Isles’ greatest wine. The site is found in West Sussex, and the vines here thrive in the greensand soils. The nose is shy at first, but very pretty, with a delicate floral note, and with some air, a vinous energy. The palate shows, of course, supreme acidity twinned with creamy texture which holds the orchard and hedgerow fruit notes together in perfect harmony. This is a superb release from Nyetimber, with the greatest ageing potential of any English Sparkling Wine we know.

The 2012 Blanches Voies comes from a single parcel of sixty year-old vines, from Laurent's most expressive parcel of Chardonnay. It's an astonishing fizz, full of verve and energy, and remarkable saline precision. The finish lasts for minutes, with just a hint of brioche and fresh hazelnut coming through. Outstanding.

For those seeking sleek Cornas that has the body and structure to age but the open fruit to approach from youth, this is your wine. It is the most refined of the Courbis Cornas wines, and with a well-judged 40% new oak wrapped around the sweet fruit, giving it savoury, toasty depth.

This comes from four neighbouring lieux-dits on the Côte Blonde: Lancement, La Triote, Le Combard and Le Mollard. They share a high proportion of white schist in their soils, making for an intense and savoury expression. It is glossy, black-fruited, with a fresh, tense length.

Pure is 100% Grenache, all from 100 year old vines on sandy soils. The result is very intense, and, as the name suggests, pure. There's tons of black fruit here, surrounded by rich, chocolately textures and spicy flavours. This needs time in bottle to weave together, but already impresses.

Coming from a range of vineyards, including Le Plomb, Montmains, and Bas de Coteau, Les Schistes is the benchmark wine from Clusel-Roch. Spicy and textured, with lots of floral character and a blood orange note, it’s an elegant, refined, impressive Côte-R

The most powerful, intense wine in the Courbis cellar. This is planted straight onto the granite, and has deep, brooding fruit, with notes of iron oxide and lots of spice on the finish. Brilliantly balanced.

Blagny sits high up, above the heart of the Meursault commune. This altitude brings a focused freshness to the wines. It has notes of honeydew melon, with a richly mineral seashell note - not unlike Chablis - on the nose. The soil is very white limestone up here, and this makes for a scintillating palate. It feels straighter than the Grands Charrons, in many ways, more like a Puligny in profile than a Meursault.

This is a steep site with very high limestone soils. It always produces a nervous, tight wine that can do with a year or two in bottle before the floral notes can blossom.

This is pale ruby and has a deliciously cool crystalline nose of blue and red fruit. It’s a restrained and understated Pinot. The palate is peppered with some grippy tannins which support the earthy fruit well. A nice minty lift on the finish gives it a mineral tang.

A simply gorgeous cuvee, we couldn't resist this when we tried it in Burgundy. There's dark, cool berry fruit and a chalky texture, with a precise finish that lasts for minutes. A great vineyard produces a great wine.

This Prulier's deep core of black cherries is very much a testament to the great age of the vines there - at 80 years old, the fruit they produce certainly does not lack density or richness. Behind this full body, tannins take a back seat, but are still very much doing their job in the background, bringing a lot of precision to the wine. The finish is powerful and spicy: an excellent Pruliers.