($26, Louis Latour, USA): 
Côteaux Bourguignons is a relatively new appellation, replacing Bourgogne Grand Ordinaire, an appellation I’ve never seen in the U.S., perhaps because a “grand ordinary” wine is hard to sell. Grapes for this appellation can come from anywhere in Burgundy, from Beaujolais in the south to Irancy in the north. … Read more
Category Archives: Reviews
Domaine P-L & J-F Bersan, Cuvée Marianne, Irancy, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029Though they have a hectare of vines in Irancy, their Cuvée Marianne comes from Pinot Noir—and a tiny amount of César—from two lieux-dits, Les Rez and La Grande Côte Est, that they buy from a neighbouring grower.
Domaine de Mauperthuis, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2029
The stony character of the appellation offsets the ripeness imparted by the 2019 vintage. The inclusion of César adds a savoury and enchanting rusticity that contrasts nicely with the more black-fruited, as opposed to red cherry, notes.
Clotilde Davenne, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2029
Davenne’s village Irancy shows her talent. While it does not command the same presence as her Paradis bottling, there’s plenty to like here. Great aromatics, a bit of red fruits, some minerality, freshness and a polished texture come together in this beautifully balanced wine.
Domaine Colinot, Veaupessiot, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
Veaupessiot lieu-dit sits adjacent to Palotte, but lower on the slope. The 2019 Veaupessiot is a good contrast with their riper 2018 from the same site and demonstrates a clear distinction between these two hot vintages.
Domaine Colinot, Palotte, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
From Palotte, a south-facing lieu-dit that many locals and critics, alike, consider to be one of Irancy’s best site, Domaine Colinot has combined both a fruity and minerally expression of Irancy. Colinot’s Palotte bottling exhibits good ripeness—both the site and vintage speaking—with sufficient balancing acidity that keeps it lively.
Christophe Ferrari Domaine St. Germain, Irancy, Burgundy 2019
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2029
Nicolas Ferrari, one of the leading young producers in Irancy, succeeded admirably with his 2019s. Subtle spiciness is a welcome counterpoint to the more black than red fruit flavours displayed here. The sunshine of the vintage explains the wine’s succulence, while the cooler nights and Irancy’s northern locale capture balancing acidity.
Maison de la Chapelle, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
Here’s a great example of the high-quality wines from Irancy that a newly established small domaine can produce. Made entirely from Pinot Noir, this Irancy is a terrific expression of the appellation. Dark cherry-like fruitiness offsets the wine’s stony, iron-tinged side.
Maison de la Chapelle, Les Bâtardes, Irancy, Burgundy, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
This wine made exclusively from Pinot Noir from the Les Bâtardes lieu-dit makes an excellent comparison to Maison de la Chapelle’s multi-vineyard Irancy bottling. As with their Irancy village bottling, Les Bâtardes is refined and pure, albeit expressing riper, more lush fruit character and less stoniness at this stage.
Isabelle & Denis Pommier, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2029
Unsurprisingly, this top Chablis producer has also produced a winning village Irancy. Polished tannins enrobe this lively mix of herbal, cherry-like fruit, and minerals. There’s a little bit of everything and not too much of anything.
Domaine Verret, Fût de Chêne, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
Many wines, especially from lesser-known appellations, proclaiming Fût de Chêne (aged in oak) are askew with prominent wood flavours and tannins. Not Verret’s Irancy. It was aged for 11 months in used – four to 12-year old- barrels, which helps explain why the oak is seamlessly incorporated into the wine.
Domaine Ternynck, Palotte, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2029
A field blend of Pinot Noir and César, this Palotte was aged in older oak barrels for 18 months, gravity-racked, and bottled without fining or filtration. This mid-weight wine displays a plethora of red fruits and distinct, almost tarry, minerality, reflecting the stature of the lieu-dit and the care and talents of the winemaking team.
Domaine Ternynck, Mazelot, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2029
Ternynck’s Mazelot bottling, made entirely from Pinot Noir, shows the wonderful diversity of the lieux-dits of Irancy. Fermentation with indigenous yeasts and judicious aging in mostly used French oak barrels allows the wine to convey the Janus-like duality of Burgundy – black cherry-like fruitiness and an earthy, savoury side.
Domaine Colinot, Cuvée Soufflot, Irancy, Burgundy, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
This is a masterful blend of Pinot Noir and César that Colinot has co-fermented since the varieties are planted and harvested together. A hint of minerality peaks out from underneath the wine’s firm and fruity red cherry-like profile.
Domaine Céline & Frédéric Gueguen, Les Mazelots, Irancy, Burgundy, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
This new and tiny domaine, founded less than a decade ago, produces only about 6,000 bottles from one hectare of Pinot Noir in the Les Mazelots lieu-dit. This Mazelots reflects the care they put into their wines.
Clotilde Davenne, Paradis, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
With her 2019 Paradis, Clotilde Davenne shows why the Paradis lieu-dit has potential for 1er Cru status. She does not want wood marring the wine, so she uses no new barrels, noting that ‘César does it all’.
Stéphan & Marie Podor, Les Mazelots, Irancy, Burgundy, 2015
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2025
From 75+ year old vines, the 2015 Podor Mazelots shows that the wine from the top lieux-dits in Irancy need time to show their stuff. There’s good density here and a touch of charming rusticity, no doubt from the five or so percent of César in the blend.
Simonnet-Febvre, Paradis, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2018
Drinking Window: 2024 – 2032
Wine from this south-southwest facing lieu-dit shows the importance of terroir. As much as I liked Simonnet-Febvre’s straight Irancy, this one is just better, although not for current drinking. Tighter and, despite no César in the blend, it’s more tannic than their straight Irancy.
Domaine Verret, Palotte, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
Made entirely from Pinot Noir, this cuvée reflects the stature of the lieu-dit. This mid-weight wine displays excellent richness without a trace of heaviness or over-ripeness. Verret captured riveting acidity, imbuing the wine with energy. Minerals and red fruit flavours dance on the palate, intermingling seamlessly.
Domaine Colinot, Les Mazelots, Irancy, Burgundy, 2012
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2026
When tasted with Anita Colinot in 2019, she felt this bottling was just coming into its own. Though I hadn’t tasted it at a more youthful time, I can see what she means. Any rusticity that César may have imparted during its youth has morphed into an alluring complexity of earthy leafiness.
Domaine Benôit Cantin, Cuvée Emeline, Irancy, 2015
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2025
Benoit took over this multi-generational family estate based in Irancy itself in 1994. This cuvée, named for his daughter, is a multi-parcel blend that contains a bit of César and shows how beautifully these village wines can develop.
Dampt Freres, Irancy, Burgundy, France, 2019
Drinking Window: 2023 – 2029
This well-regarded Chablis-based winery has hit the bullseye with their 2019 Irancy. Both elegant and firm, it displays the alluring Burgundian sensibility of what I call, flavour without weight. A floral element complements its red-fruited profile.
Jean Hugues & Guilhem Goisot, Les Mazelots, Irancy, 2017
Drinking Window: 2022 – 2029
Goisot, a top-notch producer of white wines in the Auxerre, also shows their talents with this red from nearly 100-year old vines planted in the Mazelots lieu-dit. Goisot says they don’t need César in this cuvée because the terroir provides plenty of structure.
Mastrojanni, Brunello di Montalcino (Tuscany, Italy) Vigna Loreto 2011
($86): 
Though not the current release, Mastrojanni’s 2011 single vineyard, Loreto, is still available on the retail market and those who want to know why Brunello is such a revered wine should try it. The only problem with the 2011 vintage in Brunello is that it followed 2010, a great one. … Read more
Château Yvonne, Saumur Blanc (Loire Valley, France) 2017
($52, Oz Wine Company): 
Most of the wine made from Chenin Blanc, the primary white grape in Saumur, went into sparkling wine or non-distinguished still wine. That has changed over the last couple of decades, with talented and focused producers, such as Château Yvonne, and others. … Read more
Domaine Guiberteau, Saumur Blanc (Loire Valley, France) Clos de Guichaux 2016
($41, Becky Wasserman & Co.): 
Domaine Guiberteau is one of Saumur’s top producers. As much as I hate to say it because it diminishes my role as a critic, I will: It’s hard to go wrong just picking their wines blindly. … Read more
Paumanok Vineyards, North Fork of Long Island (New York) Chenin Blanc 2018
($25): 
Under the leadership of winemaker Kareem Massoud and his father Charles, before for him, Paumanok Vineyards has made consistently stunning dry Chenin Blanc. The emphasis is on dry, because consumers often avoid Chenin Blanc because they can’t predict what’s in the bottle since the grapes can make a diverse range of wines from dry to gloriously sweet. … Read more
Comm. G.B. Burlotto, Verduno Pelaverga DOC (Piedmont, Italy) 2017
($25, Vineyard Brands): 
A historic estate founded in the mid-18th century by Giovan Battista Burlotto, Comm. G. B. Burlotto remains one of Piedmont’s top and most reliable producers. (The Comm. stands for il Commandatore.) The grape is Pelaverga Piccolo (a.k.a. Pelaverga di Verduno) because it is almost exclusive to the commune of Verduno, according to Ian D’Agata (Native Wine Grapes of Italy, University of California Press, 2014).… Read more
Foradori, Vigneti delle Dolomiti IGT (Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy) Manzoni Bianco “Fontanasanta” 2017
($38, Louis Dressner Selections): 
Manzoni Bianco is one of Italy’s botanical “crosses,” in this case a cross of Riesling and Chardonnay, made by Luigi Manzoni in the 1920s and 30s, according to Ian D’Agata (Native Wine Grapes of Italy, University of California Press, 2014). … Read more
Moser, Trento DOC (Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy) “51,151″ Brut NV
($23, Divino International Wine and Spirit): 
The name of the wine, “51,151”, refers to a cycling record that Francesco Moser set in Mexico City in 1984, according to their website. This 100 percent Chardonnay base bubbly is, indeed, racy (pun intended), but the elegance imparted by that grape shows, making for a lovely balance. … Read more
Cantine Leonardo da Vinci, Pignoletto Spumante DOC (Emilia-Romagna, Italy) “1502″ 2018
($20): 
Cantine Leonardo da Vinci, a large Tuscan-based cooperative, makes this delightful sparkling wine from the Pignoletto grape, not one that is widely known outside of central Italy. Its inherently high acidity makes it a good choice for bubbly because growers can let it ripen, allowing its exuberant floral and fruity character to shine, without it becoming sappy or flabby. … Read more
William Fevre, Saint-Bris (Burgundy, France) 2018
($25, Maison Marques et Domaines): 
Saint-Bris, formerly known as Sauvignon de Saint Bris before it was elevated to appellation d’origine controllée (AOC) status, is curious and unique in Burgundy. Located in the far north, near Chablis and covering a mere 200 acres, it requires the use of Sauvignon Blanc, not Chardonnay, for its wines. … Read more
Maison Louis Latour, Côteaux Bourguignons (Burgundy, France) Pinot Noir “Les Pierres Dorées” 2017
($26, Louis Latour, USA): 
Côteaux Bourguignons is a relatively new appellation, replacing Bourgogne Grand Ordinaire, an appellation I’ve never seen in the U.S., perhaps because a “grand ordinary” wine is hard to sell. Grapes for this appellation can come from anywhere in Burgundy, from Beaujolais in the south to Irancy in the north. … Read more
Roederer Estate, Anderson Valley (Mendocino County, California) Brut NV
($24): 
Although I’ve not sampled every sparkling wine from California, Roederer Estate’s is my favorite. Part of the reason their wines are so good is, of course, the talent of Roederer, the French Champagne producer that owns it. But another important reason for their quality is that all of the grapes for their sparkling wines come from their vineyards, which means they have total control over the entire process from vineyard to winemaking to aging. … Read more
Jean Milan, Champagne (France) Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs NV
($42): 
It’s unusual to see non-vintage Blanc de Blancs Champagne in which all the grapes come from villages classified as Grand Cru and especially at this price. Though quite intense, the elegance of Chardonnay comes through. The spine of acidity keeps it fresh. … Read more
Pierre Gimonnet et Fils, Champagne (France) 1er Cru, Brut, Blanc de Blancs “Cuvée Cuis” NV
($55, Terry Thiese Estate Selection): 
Blanc de Blancs (literally, white from whites) has no legal meaning except in Champagne where it means that only Chardonnay, a white grape, can be used. The expectation, which is fulfilled dramatically with this wine, is a Champagne of purity and elegance. … Read more
Simonnet-Febvre, Saint-Bris (Burgundy, France) 2017
($20): 
Simonnet-Febvre, another superb Chablis producer, crafts a consistently balanced Saint-Bris. The initial whiff screams Sauvignon Blanc, but amazingly, within minutes, aromas and then flavors of wet stone appear. Clean and cutting, this edgy wine displays plenty of depth. Where are the steamed clams?… Read more
Domaine Paul Pernot et Fils, Bourgogne Aligoté (Burgundy, France) 2017
($33): Based in Puligny-Montrachet, Domaine Paul Pernot et Fils, a family-owned and run domaine, is one of Burgundy’s stars for white wines. No question, their Bâtard-and Bienvenue-Bâtard-Montrachet are stunning, albeit at triple digit prices. They put the same care that goes into those 
Grand Crus into their Bourgogne Aligoté. … Read more
Simonnet-Febvre, Irancy (Burgundy, France) 2015
($20): 
Irancy, a small red wine appellation in northern Burgundy, near Chablis, is a name to remember. Its northern locale has meant lean and angular wines in the past because Pinot Noir was tough to ripen. But climate change in general and the wonderfully warm 2015 vintage means it’s time to take another look at this under-the-radar area. … Read more
Lingua Franca, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Pinot Noir “Avni” 2016
($39): 
Lingua Franca is one of ever-increasing numbers of Oregon wineries that have a French connection. In this case, Larry Stone, Master Sommelier and wine consultant, purchased a vineyard in 2012 in the Eola-Amity Hills section of the Willamette Valley, originally planning to sell the grapes. … Read more
Domaine Drouhin Oregon, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Pinot Noir 2015
($45): 
The Drouhin family, one of Burgundy’s star producers, made history when they bought land in Oregon’s Willamette Valley and started Domaine Drouhin Oregon there in 1987. Over three decades later, they remain one of Oregon’s — and America’s — leading producers of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. … Read more
Dusky Goose, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Pinot Noir 2016
($65): 
John and Linda Carter, both successful in their respective careers — he in business and she in music — had the good sense to hired Lynn Penner-Ash to make their wine. She was the one who put the Rex Hill Vineyards’ Pinot Noir on the map in the late 1980s and 1990s before establishing Penner-Ash Wine Cellars. … Read more
Couly-Dutheil, Chinon (Touraine, Loire Valley, France) “Les Chanteaux” 2017
($25): 
Though the vast majority (>95%) of wine from Chinon is red and made from Cabernet Franc, noteworthy and distinctive whites made from Chenin Blanc also carry that appellation. This is one of them. Couly-Dutheil is one of the top Chinon producers, making a bevy of easy-to-recommend reds year after year, so it should come as no surprise that they can make this stellar white wine. … Read more
Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon, Saint-Véran (Burgundy, France) 2015
($40): 
Comte Lafon, one of Burgundy’s most talented and best producers, is known especially for his white wines from Meursault, which usually sell for triple digits upon release. Here’s a chance to get an insight into his talents with this one from Saint-Véran, appellation bordering Pouilly-Fuissé in the Mâconnais part of Burgundy. … Read more
Drouhin Oregon, Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Chardonnay Roserock 2016
($31): 
The Drouhin family, the famed Burgundy producer, is doing what comes naturally to Burgundy producers, focusing on the uniqueness of vineyards. They’ve purchased an additional vineyard in another part of the Willamette Valley and are making distinctive wines there that are different from the ones they produce in the Dundee Hills, showing that terroir is alive and well in Oregon. … Read more
Lingua Franca, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Pinot Noir “Avni” 2016
($39): Lingua Franca is one of ever-increasing numbers of Oregon wineries that have a French connection. In this case, Larry Stone, Master Sommelier and wine consultant, purchased a vineyard in 2012 in the Eola-Amity Hills section of the Willamette Valley, originally planning to sell the grapes. … Read more
Maysara, McMinnville, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Pinot Noir “Jamsheed” 2012
($33): 
The Momtazi family is not in a rush. In 1997, they purchased close to 500 acres — an abandoned wheat farm that had been free from chemical fertilizer since the beginning of that decade — and finally starting planting them in earnest two years later. … Read more
Maysara, McMinnville, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Pinot Noir “Asha” 2012
($50): 
Maysara’s Asha Pinot Noir comes from the same vineyard as the Jamsheed, but since the vineyard is large with multiple soils and numerous clones of Pinot Noir, they have the ability to create different blends. As enthralled as I was with the Jamsheed, this one is more spell-binding. … Read more
Brittan Vineyards, McMinnville, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Pinot Noir Gestalt Block 2015
($60): 
Founded barely 15 years ago, in 2004, by Robert and Ellen Brittan, Brittan Vineyards is a name to remember. Robert, who was the winemaker and estate manager at Stags’ Leap Winery for 16 years, must be a fast learner because that winery didn’t make Pinot Noir, or if they did, it was not a focus of their production. … Read more
Domaine Drouhin Oregon, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley (Oregon) Pinot Noir 2015
($45): The Drouhin family, one of Burgundy’s star producers, made history when they bought land in Oregon’s Willamette Valley and started Domaine Drouhin Oregon there in 1987. Over three decades later, they remain one of Oregon’s — and America’s — leading producers of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. … Read more