Domaine Henri Boillot 2018 – en primeur

I leave you with the 2017 pricing in brackets. There’s not much pricing restraint here, despite the very high yields (for whites) in 2018. It’s pretty shocking really:

Bourgogne Chardonnay 2018 75cl 26.00* (23.00) Swiss Francs
Meursault 2018 75cl 55.00 (49.00)
Meursault Les Charmes 2018 75cl 95.00 (89.00)
Meursault Les Genevrières 2018 75cl 115.00 (108.00)
Meursault Les Perrières 2018 75cl 125.00 (115.00)
Puligny-Montrachet 2018 75cl 55.00 (52.00)
Puligny-Montrachet Les Combettes 2018 75cl 115.00 (108.00)
Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles 2018 75cl 115.00 (108.00)
Puligny-Montrachet Les Perrières 2018 75cl 115.00 (108.00)
Puligny-Montrachet Clos de la Mouchère 2018 75cl 115.00 (108.00)

Corton Charlemagne 2018 75cl 175.00 (168.00)
Criots-Bâtard Montrachet 2018 75cl 319.00 (296.00)
Bâtard Montrachet 2018 75cl 469.00 (455.00)
Chevalier-Montrachet 2018 75cl 698.00 (688.00)
Montrachet 2018 75cl 845.00 (795.00)

Volnay 2018 75cl 49.00 (49.00)
Volnay Les Chevrets 2018 75cl 89.00 (89.00)
Volnay Les Caillerets 2018 75cl 99.00 (99.00)
Pommard Les Rugiens 2018 75cl 99.00 (99.00)
Clos de Vougeot 2018 75cl 169.00 (158.00)
Latricières-Chambertin 2018 75cl 219.00 (not offered)
Echézeaux 2018 75cl 229.00 (not offered)
Bonnes-Mares 2018 75cl 319.00 (298.00)
Chambertin 2018 75cl 319.00 (298.00)

*The price you see is ‘delivered’ but ex 8% Swiss purchase tax.

Hot off the press today:

The Boisset family announces that it has entered into exclusive negotiations with a view to acquiring the Alex Gambal estate subject to compliance with the usual regulatory provisions.

Alex Gambal, founding owner of the Burgundy estate of the same name, announces his decision to sell his estate to the Boisset family.

The American Alex Gambal, newcomer to Burgundy and passionate about wine, created his ‘Maison’ in Burgundy in 1993, then his ‘Domaine’ in 1997, followed by a rapid development of his exploitation. Today with a dozen hectares of prestigious vineyards in Côte de Beaune and Côte de Nuits.

The pursuit of excellence will continue, in particular by maintaining the special attention paid to vineyard work and biodynamic viticulture practices.

It is envisaged in these discussions that Alex Gambal will continue to participate in the development of the estate alongside the Boisset family.

It seems that so many people knew that these discussions were taking place, that JC Boisset decided today to make it public – even though the final contract is not yet signed. As I alluded to here, three months ago – it was a surprise sale of Domaine Dublère, as I and others were expecting another US-owned domaine to be sold – i.e. this Boisset/Gambal announcement!

As previously noted, Baghera have a coup – from my perspective no less of a coup than their large sale of the remaining family stocks of Domaine Henri Jayer – today we are here for the wines of Domaine René Engel, once-more the remaining(?) family stocks of a famous Vosne-Romanée domaine.

I was too young to be a buyer of Jayer when the wines were released, but not so for Domaine René Engel, wines I’d bought from the 1995 vintage; mainly Grands-Echézeaux a) because the price was so reasonable given how delicious the wine was, and b) because my friends bought the domaine’s other wines – so I could drink their other cuvées and they could drink mine!

Of course we lost Philippe far too early – all were shocked – and without any ideas for succession the family sold the domaine to Château Latour (Pinault) for a ridiculously high price – though today that sum seems so cheap – and that was goodbye to Domaine René Engel after the grapes on the vines were sold to Albert Bichot in 2005.

A taste of the bidding:
Lot 1 – 12x Villages Vosne 2004 – 5,000 swiss francs
Lot 5 – 3 magnums Villages Vosne 2003 – 2,800
Lot 9 – 3 magnums Villages Vosne 2002 – 3,400
Lot 10 – 12x Villages Vosne 2002 – 6,500
Lot 13 – 6x Villages Vosne 2001 – 2,200
Lot 15 – 3 magnums Villages Vosne 2000 – 3,500
Lot 20 – 3 magnums Villages Vosne 1999 – 4,200
Lot 22 – 3 magnums Villages Vosne 1998 – 2,200
Lot 25 – 3 magnums Villages Vosne 1996 – 3,500
Lot 53 – 12x Vosne Brulées 2003 – 9,000
Lot 68 – 6x Vosne Brulées 1999 – 9,000
Lot 69 – 6x Vosne Brulées 1998 – 4,500
Lot 81 – 12x Echézeaux 2004 – 13,000
Lot 81 – 2004 Echézeaux 12 bottles – 13,000
Lot 82 – 2003 Echézeaux 12 bottles – 12,000
Lot 103 – 12x Grands-Echézeaux 2004 – 20,000
Lot 113 – 6x Grands-Echézeaux 2002 – 13,000
Lot 115 – 6x Grands-Echézeaux 2001 – 11,000
Lot 117 – 6x Grands-Echézeaux 2000 – 13,000
Lot 120 – 12x Grands-Echézeaux 1999 – 30,000*
*I stop with this one – just as a placeholder – I bought this en-primeur, in-bond, for £41 per bottle – or 1,130 swiss francs for 12 as was the exchange rate in those days – nice that I found 6 in the cellar last year, but this 26 times growth of value pales when compared to that of Apple stock over the same period – that’s why wine’s for drinking, not speculating: “A mere $100 investment in the company’s stock at the beginning of 2002 would have grown to more than 95 times the original investment by mid-February 2019“

DOMAINE LEFLAIVE 2017 – Puligny-Montrachet
Mâcon-Verzé 2017 75cl 33.00 (Swiss francs*)
Mâcon-Verzé Les Chênes 2017 75cl 38.00
Mâcon-Verzé Le Monté 2017 75cl 38.00
Pouilly-Fuissé 2017 75cl 49.00
Rully 1er Cru Leflaive & Associés 2017 75cl 49.00
Image, right, ex-Domaine Leflaive

*As each year from the same merchant. These prices are delivered in Switzerland, without the additional 8% Swiss purchase tax which you should include. The Pouilly-Fuissé and the Rully were previously offered (same price, September 2018) so are presumably not sold out – it’s the first time that I saw the Mâcons offered though. Of these, I tasted only the Mâcon-Verzey Le Chêne when at the domaine in October 2018.

Good as the wines undoubtedly are, the Leflaive/Puligny tax is about 50%(+) versus fine makers from those regions…

Amazing that a (relatively) local auction house considers that this brace, to be worth many thousands of Swiss francs. Actually they have an estimate of 6,000-10,000 francs!

One horribly oxidised and the other in the lap of the gods – but maybe also with a ‘hint’ of oxidisation – not looking good, eh?!

Here.

It’s official, as from today: Domaine Dublère is no more, and Terres de Velle have grown.

You can read today’s press release here.

VINS ROUGES*
Beaune 1er Les Sizies 2016 75cl 53.55 (Swiss Francs)
Beaune 1er Les Grèves 2016 75cl 71.55
Volnay 1er En Champans 2016 75cl 107.10
Volnay 1er Taillepieds 2016 75cl 112.50
Corton Clos du Roi 2016 75cl 139.50

VINS BLANCS
St.Romain 2016 75cl 32.85
Meursault 1er Poruzots 2016 75cl 80.10
Puligny-Montrachet 1er Champs Gains 2016 75cl 80.55
Corton-Charlemagne 2016 75cl 134.10

*A similar pre-listing offer from the same Swiss merchant that offered the Château de Puligny wines – like before, after this ‘introductory offer’ the prices will be higher! Another late offer of the frost affected 2016 vintage.

Note that these prices include Swiss purchase tax.

VINS BLANCS*
Bourgogne Clos du Château 2016 75cl 29.50 (Swiss Francs)
St.Aubin 1er ‘En Remilly’ 2016 75cl 44.10
Chassagne-Montrachet 2016 75cl 57.60
Puligny-Montrachet 2016 75cl 62.10
Puligny-Montrachet 1er Folatières 2016 75cl 103.50
Chevalier-Montrachet 2016 75cl 377.10

*A pre-listing offer from this Swiss merchant, after this ‘introductory offer’ the prices will be higher! I note that this is a late offer of the frost affected 2016 vintage – maybe there are mitigating circumstances for these prices and the 2017s will be cheaper 😉

I laugh at the price in my local supermarket for the latest vintage of Drouhin’s (admittedly excellent) villages Puligny, which has jumped to nearly 60 swiss francs, the 2016 was 52. So, as you can imagine, excellent as these wines are, they certainly stretch pricing credibility at the lower end – for the Chevalier, there is never enough and this will quickly sell out.

Note that these prices include Swiss purchase tax.