2008 Dubreuil-Fontaine, Beaune 1er Montrevenots
Medium colour. The herbal background of many 08s is here in relatively small measure, but more importantly, the entrancing clean fruit note of its youth is pretty much gone now. In the mouth this remains a big mouthful of energy – growing mid-palate intensity is borne on good acidity and ever so faintly astringent tannins. A wine that remains a big bundle of tasty energy despite losing the fabulousness of its youth. If you are paying more than €15 for your Bourgognes, you really don’t want to know what this great wine costs…
Rebuy – Yes

This bottle had something in common with this week’s Bruno Clavelier – furry mold on the top of a cork which is soaked right through with wine – hopefully (once more) it will be okay. In this case the cork seems a little creased, rather than caused by a mal-formed neck.

2001 Hudelot-Noellat, Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Suchots
Medium colour – looks fine. Sometimes (02s for instance) H-N’s wine quickly take on a sous-bois quality, but here it is very modest, with a gorgeous sweet, partly-roast red fruit note – like jam tarts. I could sniff this all evening, which is just as well, the wine seems flawed on the palate: spiky harsh acidity though sweet enough fruit behind. I can drink it, with a wince. In this condition, certainly not a wine to buy.
Rebuy – No

The entry price for Bruno’s wines has significantly increased since (say) the early 2000’s. Even his Marsannays have caught this bug – well, all except one – his Marsannay Blanc. Should we take advantage of this (still) slightly unfashionable label?

2009 Bruno Clair, Marsannay (Blanc)
This may be a ‘cheap-er’ wine, but it’s clearly had plenty of oak thrown at it – lots and lots of toasty bread notes that initially smother something sweater at the core of the nose. You need at least 1 hour for the fruit to come through – though it lacks a bit of style. For the vintage this is quite fresh, and that’s despite the wood – eyes closed I could sweat that there’s raspberry in the mid-palate! There’s a decent core of concentration in the mid-palate, though it’s a little unyielding (similar to the manner of a 2005). As an aperitif, I think I’d prefer quite a number of Bourgogne Blancs, so why not bring on the food: I have to say it’s not really improved – there’s an added richness that’s not really to wine’s advantage. Overall, it’s the flavour profile that I’m not enjoying – there’s more than a hint of the savoury-ness of Fixin about this wine. It’s drinkable, but I wouldn’t consider buying any more.
Rebuy – No

There’s a vieilles-vignes cuvée from this producer, and then we have this one.

2010 Jean-Marc, Volnay
We have a deep shade of cherry-red here, which despite its colour, remains rather transparent. The nose – for a non-vv – is more profound and open than I anticipate, just a hint of musk surrounds the darker-red fruit – clean and very pretty this, and no obvious excess of CO₂. Modest tannin lurks if you want to search for it, otherwise it seems rather silky. Again, reflecting the nose, there is a fine and impressive depth of dark-red fruit flavour – it is clean and bright but not too glossy. A really and excellent choice this if you are looking for a basic villages. Highly recommended.
Rebuy – Yes

What a contrast with yesterday’s wine: here the cork is dirty and damp under the capsule and is completely soaked through with wine, it’s also very spongy and crumbly. It looks more like a wine from the 1960s/70s – not opened a day too soon it seems…

2000 Bruno Clavelier, Vosne-Romanée 1er Aux Brûlées
Medium, medium-plus colour. The nose begins with a bang – perhaps a little over the top – with bright warm fruit and plenty cocoa/chocolate. After an hour the nose is (fortunately) a bit thinner but retains a warm spicy base of fruit. The flavours are pure, sweet Vosne fruit and the glass empties very quickly. Clearly this is less structured than yesterday’s Clos de Vougeot, perhaps with an extra width of fat too but it remains bright enough – and, it seems, it was just drunk in time!
Rebuy – Yes

Postscript: I think I worked out why the cork was in such bad shape – my usual glass stopper which I always use for the last 1/3 to 1/2 a bottle, simply would not fit in the neck. It’s my only experience like this – clearly a miss-shaped bottle-neck.

Such a beautiful long cork – really a thing of beauty(!) – I hope the wine is okay!

2000 Vougeraie, Clos de Vougeot
Medium, medium-plus colour. The aromas are deep, including baked dark red fruit framed with a faint leafy note. There is heft in the mouth to match the impact of the aroma; good acidity whisks you into the mid-palate and there’s clearly the dimension of a grand cru here, there’s also a bitter-chocolate flavour and slight astringency that comes from the oak tannins. If the tannins are a little astringent, the fruit has ample sweetness. Never a great Clos de Vougeot, but a tasty and worthy Clos de Vougeot.
Rebuy – Yes

2006 Camille-Giroud, Gevrey-Chambertin En Champ
Only medium colour. Round, with sweet, high-toned rather red fruit. Across your tongue this is a lithe wine of energy and slightly (only slightly…) forward acidity that holds onto the acid-cherry flavour in the finish – but there’s a ripe sweetness to the core of this wine too, so the balance is undisturbed. A little grainy tannin hides in the depths of this wine. Overall a very elegant style – whilst there is energy there isn’t outright power – very moreish and very pretty.
Rebuy – Yes

It’s 3 or 4 years since I paid this a visit, so…

1999 Guy Castagnier, Clos de la Roche
Medium, medium-plus colour. The nose is assertive, offering a depth of graphite mineral, very faint pyrazine and a lovely acid-cherry top note – creep up on the glass (don’t swirl!) and you have a heavier creamy note to add to the fruit and a subtle violet floral note too. Last time out, I thought this a very middle-weight wine, but the concentration and intensity seem quite obvious today; there’s dark red, quite fresh, fruit in the mid-palate and a slowly lingering finish. The lovely acid balance of the vintage is here, and still plenty of ripe tannin too – should you wish to search it out. Overall a taught, wirily muscled wine, that is more about the rock, than the fruit it bore. Enjoyed!
Rebuy – Yes