Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - 102

Focus Burgundy
94 | Joseph Drouhin

$150

2018 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru ^ Drouhin owns small plots in several Chambolle
premiers crus-Noirots, Haut Doix, Borniques, Plantes and Combottes-and rather
than attempting to vinify tiny lots of each,
they harvest and ferment them together, a
process that consistently produces a grand
and graceful wine. If you want evidence of
Philippe Drouhin's prowess as a farmer, consider the tannins of this wine, how they keep
the extravagance of the red and black fruit
fit and muscular, and how the undertones of
sour cherry and mineral keep the wine cool
and zesty. A beautiful vintage for the expression of Chambolle. § Dreyfus Ashby & Co., NY
524066

94 | Domaine Michel
Magnien et Fils

$167

2018 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Sentiers ^ This grows at the north end of Chambolle, below Bonnes Mares where it crosses
into Morey-St-Denis. Farmed under biodynamics, aged in a 50-50 combination of used
barrels and clay pots, it's a wine that delivers
satisfaction both in its power and grace. The
ripeness of the vintage comes in the service
of the wine's elegant beauty-its restraint
shown in the delicacy of the aroma that turns
almost explosive at it coasts through a lasting perfume. Tart apple, red pear skin and
umeboshi plum are some of the highlights,
while ripe tannins provide a lean, albeit luscious texture, a prediction of what's to come
with age. § Winebow Imports, NY
524063

93 | Domaine Michel
Magnien et Fils

$112

2018 Chambolle-Musigny Les Argillières ^
This village Chambolle grows at a lieu-dit
bordering Musigny on the hill to the north,
where Frédéric Magnien farms vines averaging 50 years old, certified under biodynamics. Between his farming, the aging regimen
of used oak barrels (82 percent) and clay pots
(18 percent) and the limestone-clay marl
soils, this wine is invested with the power
to seduce in its fragrance and its seemingly
boundless length of flavor. The limestone
influence is present from the beginning, in
the lift of the floral perfume, in the vibrant
acidity that brings a sunny feel to the deep
raspberry savor. The tannins convey the feel
of a cool cellar, still carrying a glimpse of the
sun from above. It's a little Amoureuses fix
for a lot less money. § Winebow Imports, NY
524061

92 | Jean-Claude Boisset

$111

2018 Chambolle-Musigny ^ At first, you
might mistake this Chambolle for a New
World pinot noir, the fruit so forward, the
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WINE & SPIRITS

APRIL 2021

generous texture sleek. But wait a moment,
and the black-raspberry juiciness adds a
layer of fresh herbs, a hint of stem spice. The
wine keeps giving more of its energy, firmly
grounded, emanating from this village nestled between the ethereal pleasure of Vosne
and the earthier riches of the northern Côte
de Nuits. § Boisset Collection, Napa, CA
524065

92 | Dom. Antonin Guyon

$95

91 | Pagnotta

$210

2010 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru ^ Scents of
dried strawberries, dried forest mushrooms
and roses infuse this mature Burgundy, spicy
and long. Christy Frank of Copake Wine
Works in Copake, NY, described it as " the
definition of umami " and suggested serving
it with leg of lamb with black-olive tapenade. §
Regal Wine Imports, Moorestown, NJ
523992

90 | Dom. de la Vougeraie $370

2018 Chambolle-Musigny Les Cras ^ From
the north side of town, high up the hill, this
wine is lean, its flavors hidden behind some
tarry reduction in the tannins. It begins to
open with air, revealing notes of pomegranate and licorice, turning toward bolder, supple riches in the ripe fruit. Decant this to
immediately turn a charcuterie plate into an
event. § Taub Family Selections, Boca Raton, FL

2018 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru ^ Pretty up
front, this wine's lifted scents of rose hips and
hibiscus add to its bright feel. Then it turns
in on itself, youthfully austere and closed off
in the end. If the aromas lengthen out with
bottle age, it should develop into a beauty. §
Boisset Collection, Napa, CA

CLOS DE VOUGEOT

524166

523993

95 | Jean Grivot

$369

93 | Albert Bichot

$456

2018 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru ^ Gaston
Grivot acquired 4.6 acres of Clos de Vougeot
in 1919, his parcel reaching from the middle of the vineyard down to the lower wall.
Mathilde Grivot, his great-granddaughter,
made this 2018, having taken over from her
parents the year before. If this wine is any
indication of her talents as a vigneron, she
is a young Burgundian to watch. The fruit
has an earthy complexity that resonates like
atonal church music, or, in fruit terms, sour
cherries, ripe cherry tomatoes and fleshy
black cherries layered without sweetness. It's
tense, even as it's plump and delicious. Hard
to resist. § Winebow Imports, NY
524072
2018 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru Domaine
du Clos Frantin ^ Bichot farms two plots in
Clos de Vougeot, one toward the top of the
vineyard, the other lower down the slope, 1.5
acres in all. In 2018, the wine's cool, zesty
summer-cherry flavors and green-peppercorn spice fill a clean, fragrant wine. Sébastien Piekutowski of the Dream Away Lodge
in Becket, Mass., commented on its textural
delicacy, between chalk and licorice. " It has
the potential to amaze once it has aged, " he
said. § Albert Bichot USA, Glen Allen, VA
523994

92 | Louis Jadot

$228

2018 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru Domaine
Louis Jadot ^ Saturated with sunshine in its
red-currant flavors, yet tense as a rosebud
waiting to open, this is high-toned and tannic, emphasizing its edges more than its
middle. This is a wine that should reward
ten years of cellaring. § Kobrand, Purchase, NY
523990

CORTON

94 | Tollot-Beaut

$162

93 | Pierre Guillemot

$129

93 | Tollot-Beaut

$190

2018 Corton-Bressandes Grand Cru ^ Tollot
cousins Nathalie, Olivier and Jean-Paul tend
several grand crus on the Corton hill, their
Bressandes powered by red-fruit freshness
in 2018. Treated to 50 percent new oak in its
barrel aging, the wine developed a sleekness
that gives it a thoroughly modern feel, down
to the charcoal-black richness of the tannins.
But the oak seems to elevate the wine rather
than tamp it down, as rose petal scents pour
from the glass, chasing flavors of berries and
red plums. Its gentle touch makes it accessible now, though the tannins are structured
to shape the wine for long aging. § Winebow
Imports, NY
524163
2018 Corton Grand Cru Le Rognet et Corton ^ An eighth-generation farmer in Savignylès-Beaune, Pierre Guillemot tends threequarters of an acre of vines on the northern,
Ladoix side of the Corton hill. He offers a
tightly focused wine, succulently ripe and
generous in 2018, and yet sleek and airy.
What pungent reduction there may be integrates into the wine and lends it lively direction and staying power. § Kermit Lynch Wine
Merchant, Berkeley, CA
524169
2018 Corton Grand Cru ^ Textural suppleness is the main attraction of this Corton for
the moment, its plummy fruit less expressive
than Tollot's Bressandes (also recommended
here). Delicious as a young wine, this may
reveal depths and layers of flavor for those
who wait. § Winebow Imports, NY
Wine & Spirits - April 2021

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