Not in this case for burgundy wine, but certainly wine IN Burgundy.

Apparently it happened in 2012; ‘Les Frauds’ visited a négoce bulk wine producer in Morey St.Denis and decided to test some samples of SAS Corbet’s Vins de Table – red and white. Both are blends of wine from various regions of France – the grape varieties were deemed, after analysis, not a problem.

But apparently the water they contained was a problem – 20% too much for the red and 15% for the white. Two of the company’s 4 tanks were at fault. I’m impressed that analytically they can tell that this water’s source wasn’t grapes. It’s an easy way to add 20% to your top line – eh?

Well it was. This afternoon The ‘Tribunal Correctionnel de Dijon’ handed down it’s judgement that they had ‘falsified the quality’ of their Vins de France, by diluting them with water.

The company was fined €20,000…

Well, this retailer is back on the email trail – it was only in August that they made an offer of the 2014s from this producer.

I won’t make this list even more unintelligible than the prices in the link above, I’ll just bring it down to the 2015 and the 2014 prices as a comparison:

VILLAGES BLANCS 2015
BOURGOGNE Chardonnay 75cl 23.00 (22.00 – price for the 2014) Swiss francs
MEURSAULT 75cl 45.00 (44.00)
Saint Aubin 75 cl 34.00 (32.00)
PULIGNY-MONTRACHET 75cl 49.00 (48.00)

PREMIERS CRUS BLANCS 2014
MEURSAULT Les Charmes 75cl 78.00
MEURSAULT Les Genevrières 75cl 99.00 (79.50)
MEURSAULT Les Perrières 75cl 99.00 (89.50)
Puligny Les Perrières 75 cl 89.50 (79.50)
Puligny Les Combettes 75 cl 99.00 (89.50)
Puligny Les Folatières 75 cl 99.00 (89.50)
PULIGNY-MONTRACHET Clos de La Mouchère 75cl 89.50
PULIGNY-MONTRACHET Les Pucelles 75cl 99.00

GRANDS CRUS BLANCS 2014
CORTON CHARLEMAGNE 75cl 145.00 (139.00)
CRIOTS BÂTARD MONTRACHET 75cl 268.00 (249.00)
BIENVENUES BÂTARD MONTRACHET 75cl 349.00 (319.00)
BÂTARD MONTRACHET 75cl 419.00 (389.00)
MONTRACHET 75cl 698.00

VILLAGE & PREMIERS CRUS ROUGES 2014
VOLNAY 75cl 46.00
Volnay Les Chevrets 75 cl 78.00 (73.00)
VOLNAY Les Caillerets 75cl 89.50 (79.50)
POMMARD Les Rugiens 75cl 89.50 (79.50)

GRANDS CRUS ROUGES 2014
CLOS DE VOUGEOT 75cl 139.00 (129.00)
BONNES-MARES 75cl 248.00 (229.00)

The 2014s went down a little vs the previous highest prices for the 2012 vintage. The 2015s return to the 2012 prices, or even higher!

Vincent Bottreau, currently the winemaker at Bouchard Aîné has been confirmed as the new winemaker at Domaine Ardhuy. Vincent tells me that he’s hoping to be in place by mid-December.

Of-course this all started with:

• David Croix moving from Camille Giroud to Jean-Marc Roulot
• Carel Voorhuis moving from Ardhuy to Camille Giroud
• Now Vincent Bottreau moving from Bouchard Aîné to Ardhuy
• So, who next will be moving from ‘xxxx‘ to Bouchard Aîné?

The Boisset group have a habit of employing young new talent, so I’m looking forward to see who will be stepping in Vincent’s shoes!

Anyway, Carel, who has been working part-time at Camille Giroud during the harvest should be fully installed in November – so I have to visit him before that date in Ardhuy, and until December to visit Vincent at Bouchard Aîné – to look at their last vintages – the 2015s…

Quite an important announcement I think – at a time with very few transactions:

http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/Burgundy-Wine-Producer-Maison-Champy-Sold

Advini are also the owners of Domaine Laroche in Chablis – and frankly, despite their ‘factory size’ Laroche have been making outstanding wines for a few years now. Smaller Champy will have much to benefit from, I think…

Returning to my ‘very few transactions’ comment. Burgundy pricing, including land prices are at historic highs, so Advini must have paid a very good (high!) price for this entry into the Côte d’Or. It seems that they have a lot of confidence!

And here is the press-release from Advini:

From a merchant in Switzerland, today – and even a discount for buying 3 at a time – some of the wines, anyway!

Don’t cases of 12 now sound so 20th century?

Bourgogne Cuvée de Noble Souche 2014, 32.00/bt, 3 bts 27.20/bt (CHF)
Marsannay Les Longeroies 2014, 41.00/bt, 3 bts 34.85/bt
Fixin, Vieilles Vignes 2014, 46.00/bt, 3 bts 39.10/bt
Gevrey-Chambertin Mes Cinq Terroirs 2014, 65.00/bt, 3 bts 55.25/bt
Gevrey-Chambertin Champonnet 1er Cru 2014, 114.00
Gevrey-Chambertin Les Champeaux 1er Cru 2014, 124.00
Chambolle-Musigny Aux Beaux Bruns 1er Cru 2014, 124.00
Gevrey-Chambertin Lavaux St-Jacques 1er Cru 2014, 135.00
Clos Vougeot Grand Cru 2014, 250.00

The Noble Souche is a great Bourgogne, indeed simply a great wine, but the argument about buying it reminds me of the case of the (Domaine) Leflaive Bourgogne; the price of this wine is so high, that its peer group is not other Bourgognes, rather village Gevrey-Chambertins…