Spring was particularly dry and hot, with vegetative growth starting very early, from the end of March. These very favourable conditions lasted until the end of June, bringing about hasty vine flowering during the first week of June, then rapid swelling of the grapes, which reached the stage of fully-formed bunches by 1st July, some 2 weeks ahead of normal. The months of July and August were much cooler and damper, which slowed vine development.
At the end of August, then throughout the month of September, the weather remained dry, hot and sunny, allowing good grape ripening.
The harvest started at the domain on 15th September and ended on 1st October in the Hautes-Côtes, in ideal conditions.
The weather profile is very close to that of the 2011 vintage and the wines naturally show a lot of similarities: these are wines of intense colour, with well-integrated tannins thanks to complete ripeness and acidities that are mid-range, enhancing roundness on the palate. Aromas are precise and the character of each climat well defined.
All things considered, a vintage that is well-balanced, easy to appreciate in its youth, but with nevertheless an ageing potential of some ten years.
A cooler aroma, slight lemon; fresh and juicy and more savoury mineral. On the palate some tension. It is zesty and fruity, but savoury and stoney too. And it has a breadth as well……this is a wine for a meal. “Yes,” says Michel “it’s very good with snails.”
Light yellow. Refined, expressive floral and fruity nose with faint toast and a mineral sensation. Lovely fat, silky texture, freshness and savoury mineral and oak persistence on the palate. An ultra premium generic Burgundy. 89/100 (tasted in 2016)
A fleshy and juicy white, with substance that presents a heart of peach and apple notes wrapped in cooking aromas. There is a hint of tannins on the finish. Drink now through 2020. 89 points
Superb wine, showing a lovely mix of dried and orchard fruit, touches of spices, a lively texture and mineral finish. 90 points
The nose shows hints of fruit and sour dough bread. The palate has a juicy satsuma acidity on the finish with hints of buttered toast. A very attractive wine.
From the parcel is the other side of the R74 in VR. Very nice juicy fruit; quite sprightly. The fruit is red and zesty..it is lively on the finish. Light and crunchy tannins. Appetising.
Heavy reduction blocks an assessment of the nose. Otherwise there is good vibrancy to the delicious, round and detailed flavors that finish with a touch of tang that I suspect is more gas related than too much acidity. This should drink well almost immediately.
Fresh and red and a touch of black fruit. High toned. Soft and fruity; plenty of red fruits, juicy and supple and energetic. Very nice forward fruity wine with sappy acidity at the end.
A supple and juicy style with flavors of cherry, cassis, spices and licorice. Intense and engaging, with a firm and enticing finish.. 88 points
An agreeably fresh and cool mix of earthy red berry, dark currant and floral hints leads to rich and fleshy flavors that culminate in a clean and slightly more complex finale. Here too there is a hint of tang but again I don’t believe that it is due to under ripeness.
The aroma is deeper and denser. This is much stricter. Pure tense and straight. Clipped at the edges, much more mineral and vibrant…put also more channelled and tense…More potential, less easy going..I like the tight finish.
Light yellow. Refined, expressive floral and fruity nose with faint toast and a mineral sensation. Lovely fat, silky texture, freshness and savoury mineral and oak persistence on the palate. An ultra premium generic Burgundy. 90/10 (tasted in 2016) – Gold Medal 90+
It is tight, fresh and long, with a silky texture and firm tannins covering aromas of violets, berries and undergrowth. 90 points
Here the nose is airier and more elegant with its slightly more complex array of rose, violet and dark berry fruit that it trimmed in just enough wood to notice. There is good vibrancy to the textured middle weight flavors that deliver equally good complexity on the saline-inflected finish.
This has some seductive aromatics. Quite scented. plumptous and juicy. Elegant and appealing. It has a succulence and juiciness. Soft tannins, smooth texture. Summer fruits on the finish..which is fresh and just nicely long enough. “This is always a more approachable cuvee than the Morey St Denis”. Score 16.15
A blend of floral, cherry, strawberry and spice flavors underline this elegant and structured red wine. Balanced and bright, with notes of fruit and spices echoing on the long finish. 90 points
Ripe cherry and blackberry with notes of cured meat and spices on a silky texture and savoury finish. A wine that will give enormous pleasure. 93/100
This too is highly expressive with its ripe and fresh combination of wood toast, tea, dark pinot fruit and an impressive array of spice elements. I like the refined palate feel of the medium-bodied flavors that possess a bit more volume if not necessarily more depth or length on the attractively textured finish where a touch of wood surfaces.
This is somewhat sumptuous on the attack..very juicy and and aromatic at first and then it tightens and the core is racy…tight and zesty and mineral and the tannins show a little more… there is a finesse and energy at the end. (this has just finished the MLF). score 16.25
Fragrant elegant nose with ripe bramble smoky oak. A huge concentration of ripe dark fruit, with elegant integration and a delicious long finish.
Tight and crunchy, showing ample generosity as it opens. It offers flavors of ripe cherry, eucalyptus, spices. Smoky final note. 89 points
Reduction and wood toast make for a potent if unreadable nose. Once again there is a lovely mouth feel to the lightly mineral-inflected flavors that possess a satiny texture that continues onto the dusty, sappy and balanced finale that offers fine length if perhaps a bit less overall depth. This is very Chambolle in style and I really like the refreshing finish that makes you feel like having another sip.
A blend of parcels between Vosne and NSG. It is supple and smooth. A very Vosne style NSG. Soft and juicy dark fruit. Splashing and easy, but also very fresh. It is appetising and bright. A little rounded in the mid palate. The tannins are present and correct, supportive and twangy and fresh. Score 16
Seductive black cherry on the nose, a broad palate of dense fruit with firm tannins with a fresh finish.
A powerful and sweet red wine with flavors of black cherry, cassis, violet and mineral. It’s lively and concentrated, with a long stone and spice finish. 93 points
Deep ruby with garnet shades. Nicely open nose showing a harmonious mix of red fruits and lightly spiced oak. Ample, full-bodied, generous and mellow palate. A mouth-filling Nuits, still under oak influence. Would benefit from a little more bottle time. 89/100
Noticeable if not dominant wood toast fights slightly with the earthy and sauvage-inflected dark berry fruit scents. There is a lovely sense of energy and freshness to the medium weight flavors that are not especially dense but they do possess both good balance and persistence on the mildly rustic finale. A competent villages.
The top soil is 1m deep – agile and the flint stones. This is deeper and richer and ‘stronger’ than the Vosne side NSG. It is quite compact and has a smoky dark note…colder in feel and a savoury cool sappiness on the finish..somewhat austere and certainly straight. “This cuvee ages very well” It is edgy. Score 16.25
Heavily toasted oak frames flavors of cherry, raspberry and spice in this tight, linear red wine. It shows intensity and the finish is prolonged by notes of fruit, spices and graphite. 91 points
Here too the pungent nose displays plenty of wood toast on the strongly reduced aromas. By contrast there is both good freshness and detail to the relatively sleek, even refined, medium-bodied and lightly mineral-suffused flavor that possess better overall depth and length on the nicely balanced finale.
2014 Red Tasting notes
A lifted pure aroma.. pure and rippling, silky and elegant…fine minerality and tension. It hits that trebble note…pure and singing….salty finish. Love it. Score 16.5
It is elegant and racy, with basic flavors of cherry, accentuated by numerous notes of spice, mixed with oak, reminiscent of sandalwood, a touch of vanilla and toast. Long spicy finish. 90 points
The highly expressive nose consists of notes of wood toast and menthol along with cool red currant and violet scents. Here too there is an attractive mouth feel to the precise and even stonier middle weight flavors that possess a dusty, balanced and utterly delicious finish. Note that this should drink well young.
2014 Red Tasting notes
Dark fruits, brambles; succulent and juicy on the attack. A quite fleshy wine. Plenty of soft tannins. Ample middle. But darker and straighter on the finish. Touch of liquorice. Bit of a bite to the tannins, but an appetising, fresh bite after the lush fruit. it freshens at the end. This is just 4 barrels together…and the parcels are 200m apart and the same altitude. Score 18.
Floral, cherry, raspberry, spice and earth aromas and flavors characterize this well-defined succulent red wine. A solid structure supports and extends the lingering finish. Should be getting married in a few years. 94 points
Black cherry nose with sweet spices, a velvety texture and a plummy finish.
A beautifully complex nose offers up notes of red and dark currant, game, earth, spice and subtle floral scents that are trimmed in more subtle oak nuances. There is excellent richness and mid- palate density to the full-bodied flavors that possess a firm and powerful but not especially rustic finale. Worth considering.
Seductive for about 2 seconds and then it tightens in. Straight, clipped and much more austere. You sense the ripeness, there is density and my goodness it is compact and contained. The ‘richness’ is cold and channelled and the finish is long and more savoury. A more difficult wine right now, but with potential. Score 18.5. (Finished MLF 1 month ago)
Gérard Basset et Stephen Brook, February 2016
Lovely sweet blackberry fruit, cured meat notes, a velvety texture and savoury finish. A wine of great charm that illustrates well how this estate punches above its weight. 95 points
Intense perfume and dark berry cedery aromas. Beautiful dark fruit integration fine silky tannic concentration on palate. Complex with a great length on the finish.
A succulent and fluid red wine with flavors of black cherry, cassis, licorice and spices. Sophisticated and silky, with a beautiful harmony and a lingering aftertaste of black fruits and oak spices. 93 points.
A subtle but not invisible note of wood serves as a backdrop for the overtly spicy and quite floral aromas of lavender, lilac and violet that add breadth to the mostly dark berry fruit scents. There is excellent richness and volume to the suave and caressing medium weight flavors that brim with tannin-buffering dry extract, all wrapped in a fleshy if mildly austere finale that delivers very fine persistence. This is sufficiently structured to require at least a decade of bottle age.
The aroma is pure and straight. Silky texture and so refined. It is sensual and yet reserved…it is elegant and finely wrought. It has just a lovely balance and harmony…a long and fluid and fresh finish..it has its own personality which is apart. Balance and texture. Score 18.65
The flavors of black cherry, spice and earth are combined with a dense structure, with a subtle concentration and power developing until the end.
Deep red fruit- cranberry and raspberry with savoury intensity. Strawberry, cherry and rose notes, with crystalline quality and sensitively handled oak. This needs another 5 years and will give a delicious Vosne- Romanee 1er Cru with the extra age.
Very scented black fruit also some wild spices and a silky texture with a savoury finish. 94 points
Beautiful deep red. Racy nose displaying a delicate fusion of red berry fruits and fine oak. Very alluring presence on the palate combining fullness, finesse and ethereal character. A superb, harmonious and elegant wine, already very seductive. Gold standard. 97/100
Like several of the wines in the range the nose is a markedly pungent combination of wood toast and reduction that renders it impossible to assess. Otherwise there is a more refined mouth feel to the slightly less concentrated medium-bodied flavors that culminate in a velvety, dusty and palate coating finale that is a bit less structured.
An elegant expression of this terroir, supple, smooth and somewhat exuberant…very fruity..the juicy fruit covers the frame, but it is there behind…more muscle…it builds on the palate…it becomes larger in the mouth..but at the end fruity still. A more accessible Clos de Vougeots and I like it for being less burly and more elegant. score 19
A large and powerful version, whose aromas and flavors of cherry, cassis, smoke, spices and earth are supported by striking tannins. Tight on the finish, where accents of spicy oak and green olive reign. 93 points
Very scented black fruit but also some wild spices and a silky texture with a savoury finish.. 94 points
A cool and restrained nose exhibits less obvious wood toast on the subtle mix of earth, plum and violet aromas. There is both good energy and lovely detail on the powerful and solidly constituted big-bodied flavors that possess a more refined mouth feel than usual while displaying very fine persistence and complexity on the saline-inflected and youthfully austere finale.