Montmains is what the Chablisiens refer to as a “flag bearing” Premier Cru vineyard. That means that the less well-known Forêts and Butteaux, neighboring Premier Cru vineyards located on the same hill, can use Montmains, the more well-known name, rather than their own.… Read more

Although the 2023 and a few 2024 Chablis represent the current releases from that appellation, I draw consumers’ attention to Domaine Louis Michel’s stellar 2022s, which, inexplicably, are still available on retailers’ shelves. This Vaillons and their Montmains (also reviewed this week) show the wonderful diversity of Chablis.… Read more

Maison Louis Jadot, one of Burgundy’s venerable producers, is a grower, that is, they own or control vineyards, as well as a négociant. The Domaine Gagey designation at the bottom of the classic Jadot label means that the grapes came from a vineyard owned by the Gagey family, which has run the company since 1962 after the sudden death of Louis Auguste Jadot, who had no heirs.… Read more

Roland Masse was the winemaker for the Hospices de Beaune for years, so it’s not surprising that he should have turned out this balanced and engaging Pinot Noir-based Burgundy from the Côte Chalonnaise. As the price shows, once you leave the Côte d’Or, value in Burgundy is not an oxymoron.… Read more

With the prices for Burgundy at ridiculous levels, those 99-percenters of us who love the wines from the region must search wines from less prestigious appellations – like Bourgogne Côte d’Or – that are made by top producers, like Domaine Sylvain Dussort.… Read more

This bargain-priced Chardonnay-based white from the Hautes Côtes supports my opinion that Domaine Sylvain Langoureau is one of the unrecognized stars in Burgundy’s Côte d’Or. The grapes for this beauty come from vineyards above St. Aubin on the way to the village of La Rochepot.… Read more

The Hautes Côtes, as they are called, is the current hotspot for affordable Burgundy thanks to climate change. The rustic tannins due to unripe grapes are no longer an inevitable hallmark of wines from there. Based in the Côte d’Or village of Gamay in St.… Read more

Firmly established in Échevronne in the Hautes Cotes de Beaune, Domaine Jean Féry, still family run, has been making wine there since 1969. They were early advocates of organic farming, achieving organic certifications for all their vineyards in 2011. They do not receive the recognition they deserve, which is a good thing for consumers because it means their pricing is more reasonable.… Read more

A native of Champagne, Boris Champy spent a decade in California at Dominus and another decade as the technical director at Beaune-based Maison Louis Latour. It’s an understatement to say he knows something about wine. He’s rightly championing the Hautes-Côtes as an appellation for making affordable and high-quality Burgundy.… Read more

With his wines, Boris Champy shows the potential of wines from the Hautes-Côtes, the area just above and to west of the Côte d’Or. In the past, almost everyone dismissed wines from the Hautes Côtes because the elevation made it difficult to ripen the grapes.… Read more

The Hautes Côtes, as they are called, the area extending above the Côte d’Or, is making better and better wines thanks to climate change that allows the grapes at this higher altitude to achieve excellent ripeness. And since the appellations still have a distinctly down-market reputation, the prices remain reasonable — at least for Burgundy.… Read more

Droin, one of my favorite Chablis producers, made a spectacular Vosgros in 2022. This lesser known Premier Cru vineyard lies south of the town of Chablis itself, on the left side of Serein River. The vineyard has the best of both worlds, lying in a cool valley, yet mostly as a west-facing amphitheater that assures excellent ripening.… Read more