Vinous (90-93)

(from a single unfrosted parcel on the mid-slope on the Vosne-Romanée side, the yield was 35 hectoliters per hectare in 2016): Dark red with ruby highlights. The nose displays a rather cool aspect as well as some spicy oak to the aromas of black cherry, licorice and botanical herbs. Densely packed and very ripe but a bit disorganized in the early going, even brutal, with its medicinal cassis, black cherry, herb and bitter chocolate flavors enlivened by pungent minerality. Today the tannins come across as a bit tough and drying. This wine finished its malolactic fermentation very late and Liger-Belair told me that he may bottle it last, as he did with the 2015 Clos Vougeot.

Vinous (92-95)

(two-thirds Les Cruots and one-third Les Champs Traversins, with both climats losing about 35% of their fruit to frost): Healthy dark red, but not ruby like the Clos Vougeot and Reignots. Lovely subtle carnal perfume to the aromas of raspberry, smoke and mocha. Ripe, sweet and wonderfully refined on the palate; a bit less black fruit in character than most of this estate's other 2016, and nicely leavened by spicy oak and a floral element. Spreads out horizontally and vibrates on the back end, finishing with a late note of dark cherry and subtle floral lift. Classically dry, classy Echézeaux with outstanding potential. (Liger-Belair did not bother to present his Vosne-Romanée Les Brûlées, as he made just a single barrel in 2016.)

Vinous (97)

The 2016 La Romanée Grand Cru has a lilting bouquet of crushed strawberry and red cherry on the nose, perhaps missing the ambitions and the complexity of the very best vintages that I have tasted over the years. That said, it is very pretty and more open. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin and a fine bead of acidity. It gains complexity with aeration and reveals its hidden mineralité, becoming spicy and slightly peppery towards the finish. Excellent, although I would not place it top of the class. Tasted blind at the 2016 Burgfest tasting.

Vinous (92-95)

Bright red-ruby. Aromas of black raspberry and pungent minerality show a deep note of coffee reduction. Large-scaled, dry and classic, and quite backward and uncompromising today, with flavors of dark berries, smoke and crushed rock saturating the palate. Dusty tannins spread out horizontally on the vibrating, stony back end. Here's another 2016 that will require patience. Superb potential.

Comtes Lafon Les Six Climats Original Wooden Case:

• Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Les Boucheres
• Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Goutte d'Or 2016
• Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Perrieres 2016
• Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Genevrieres 2016
• Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Charmes 2016
• Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Porusots 2016

Vinous (91-93)

(just 2-1/2 barrels produced, or 15 hectoliters per hectare): Bright dark red. Vibrant aromas of black cherry, violet and dark chocolate. Richer and rounder than the Monthélie-Les Duresses, with more power and framing acidity to its slightly medicinal black cherry fruit. At once thick and elegant, this highly concentrated, long wine finishes with very classy tannins.

Crafted in the esteemed Burgundy region of France, the Comtesse de Cherisey Meursault 1er Cru Blagny La Genelotte 2016 is a masterful example of viticulture finesse. This radiant white wine embodies the time-honoured traditions of its monopole vineyard, nestled within Meursault's Blagny sub-region. With meticulous cultivation practices, Comtesse de Cherisey yields immaculate Chardonnay grapes that capture the region's terroir exquisitely.

Undergoing cautious vinification in French oak barrels, this enticing nectar lends itself to elegant complexity. Predominantly mineral, the palate unravels with tropical fruit and floral notes, sung alongside a harmonious, creamy length. The 2016 vintage, marked by its favourable growing conditions, delivers an exceptional balance of opulence and acidity.

The ensemble of traditional and avant-garde techniques undertaken by the revered Comtesse de Cherisey Meursault 1er Cru Blagny La Genelotte estate manages to create a truly distinctive tasting experience with the 2016 vintage. One that will captivate white Burgundy aficionados and discerning collectors alike.

Vinous (90-92)

Bright red-ruby; a bit less saturated than the Nuits-Saint-Georges but still deep for the year. Lively aromas and flavors of black raspberry, violet and minerals. Dense, very ripe and juicy, conveying a lovely combination of sweetness and energy. Finishes very long, with a serious mass of ripe tannins and enough ripe acidity to leaven its pronounced sucrosité and stimulate the salivary glands. Like a Spanish lady educated in Switzerland is how Confuron described this very ripe but lively wine.

Vinous (91-94)

Healthy dark red with ruby tones. Black cherry and licorice aromas are lifted by a violet topnote. Tight and minty on entry, then a bit more pliant in the middle, conveying an impression of medicinal reserve to its dark flavors of black cherry, spices and minerals. Finishes with substantial tooth- and tongue-dusting tannins. This wine also had a late malo and comes off as very backward today, in need of more élevage to gain in flesh and sweetness.

Vinous (90-92)

Bright ruby-red. The most floral on the nose of these village wines, with its aromas of dark raspberry, licorice and bitter chocolate also conveying an almost minty coolness. Juicy but a bit bound-up, showing strong mint, spice and violet qualities as well as firm acidity; this is tough to taste following the exceptional Gevrey villages. Finishes bright and long, with savory mineral and spice notes and very suave, building tannins that eventually turn more dusty and granular.

Wine Advocate (88-90)

The 2016 Gevrey-Chambertin Villages also comes from three vineyards and is matured in one-third new oak. This has an impressive bouquet like the Morey-Saint-Denis, with delineated red berry fruit and fine mineralité considering this is only a village cru. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannin and well-judged acidity, dipping a little toward the finish but still equipped with fine detail and precision. Excellent, albeit maybe earlier drinking than the Morey-Saint-Denis.

Wine Advocate (87-89)

The 2016 Chambolle-Musigny Village comes from two parcels that Thomas told me were only slightly touched by the frost, and it matured in one-third new oak. It has a crisp, well-defined and very natural bouquet that unfolds gracefully in the glass with vibrant red fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy tannin and tightly knit red fruit. Maybe it misses a little weight toward the back end due to the difficulties in the appellation and the frost, but I admire the transparency here.

Wine Advocate (89-91)

The 2016 Vosne-Romanée Village comes from three vineyards covering 1.5 hectares and sees one-third new oak. It has a fragrant bouquet with ebullient strawberry and raspberry fruit entwined with cold stone aromas and discrete sous-bois aromas. The palate has a little more substance than its fellow village crus even if it does not quite deliver the same finesse as the Morey-Saint-Denis or the Gevrey-Chambertin. Still, I appreciate the deft spicy note that sustains the finish.

Vinous (92-94)

Bright ruby-red. Deep, ripe aromas of black cherry and chocolatey oak, plus a high-toned whiff of sherry. Then large-scaled and aromatic in the mouth, conveying stronger terroir personality than the foregoing wines. Complex and fine-grained, with a positive trace of bracing bitterness. Chewy, chocolatey, well-integrated tannins take over the entire mouth on the back end. This nuanced, fine-grained wine finishes with a trace of dried herbs and has the structure to age. The yield here was just eight hectoliters per hectare, according to estate manager Yves Confuron.

Wine Advocate (93)

Notes of citrus zest, white flowers and almond paste introduce the 2016 Pouilly-Fuissé Les Crays Vieilles Vignes, a medium to full-bodied, elegantly textural wine with lovely tension and vertical line, along with all the depth and concentration that Barraud's wines so routinely attain. It isn't as rich and full-bodied as La Verchère, but it's finer-boned and more precise.

The David Duband Clos-Vougeot Grand Cru 2016 is a distinguished Burgundian masterpiece produced by acclaimed winemaker David Duband. Synonymous with grace and complexity, this Pinot Noir from the illustrious Côte de Nuits offers a harmonious blend of fragrant blackberries and wild forest berries, underscored by delicate notes of dark chocolate, earth, and subtle spices.

The grapes for the David Duband Clos-Vougeot Grand Cru 2016 are meticulously hand-harvested from the prestigious Clos de Vougeot vineyard, and crafted via a fermentation process that allows both whole cluster and destemmed fruit. Employing biodynamic farming practices and minimal intervention vinification, this wine truly captures the quintessence of its terroir.

Duband’s expertise transpires superbly through this splendid specimen, which gracefully unfurls layers of complexity over time, promising longevity and aging potential. A stand-out addition to any cellar, David Duband Clos-Vougeot Grand Cru 2016 is indeed an embodiment of the finest Burgundy has to offer.

The 'David Duband Gevrey-Chambertin 2016' is a fine specimen of immaculate French winemaking. This cohesive and exquisite Pinot Noir originates from the famed Gevrey-Chambertin appellation in Burgundy. Its creator, David Duband, recognised globally for his artisanal approach and commitment to organic farming, moulds this sumptuous offering from 45-year-old vines, imbuing the wine with robust depth.

Highly lauded in wine circles, the 'David Duband Gevrey-Chambertin 2016' is a fitting testament to the 2016’s famous long and sunny growing season. It boasts a generous infusion of red fruit notes, underlined with a restrained intensity of cocoa and spices. This delightfully fresh, balanced wine is dense, with silky tannins and impressive linger.

Harvested by hand and matured in French oak barrels (30% new), it encapsulates Duband’s minimal intervention philosophy, allowing the expressive terroir to shine. An absolute must-have for connoisseurs of refined Burgundy wines.

Vinous (89-91)

(20% new oak and one-third vendange entier; the average vine age here is 50 years): Medium red. More delicate on the nose than the Les Sizies, offering scents of strawberry and stone. Then juicier and more energetic on the palate, showing lovely precision and penetration to its red fruit and saline mineral flavors. On the lean side but the firmly tannic finish leaves behind a salty tang. Winemaker Brian Sieve describes the estate's Perrières holding as our most active limestone site along with the Nuits-Saint-Georges Aux Thoreys. This wine started its malolactic fermentation sur marc--i.e., in the tank before the alcoholic fermentation finished.

Wine Advocate (93-95)

The 2016 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru is one-third whole cluster, less than in recent years according to winemaker Brian Sieve, with almost 50% new oak. It has a beautiful bouquet with scents of blackberry, raspberry coulis, crushed strawberries and seams of wet limestone underneath. The oak is seamlessly integrated here. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, very focused and taut with pure black cherry and crushed strawberry on the tensile finish. This is a very stylish, quite ambitious Clos de Vougeot. Excellent.

Vinous (91)

The 2016 Corton Clos du Roi Grand Cru has quite a lot of oak on the nose, although it seems in sync with the redcurrant and cranberry fruit underneath. It is fragrant and become increasingly floral with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with plenty of red fruit and impressive mineralité. This is one of the most terroir-driven Cortons of the vintage, presumably its limestone soils are expressed on the finish. Promising. Tasted blind at the 2016 Burgfest tasting.

Vinous (92+)

Bright yellow. Musky pineapple and lemon aromas offer a bit less lift today than the Cailleret but plenty of allure. Less sweet and pristine in the middle palate than the Cailleret, but a bit thicker in texture, with the stony underpinning and spine of lemony acidity to give it a seriously penetrating quality. A sexy element of reduction adds to this young wine's considerable appeal. Conveys a strong, tactile impression of dry extract without any rough edges and finishes salty and long. A year ago, the Cailleret seemed creamier and more harmonious than this wine but this has put on weight without any loss of tension.

Vinous (88)

(winemaker Brian Sieve used a bit less young oak for this wine in 2016 than in '17): Medium yellow. Nectarine and smoky oak on the fresh nose, plus a hint of hazelnut. Rich, silky, showy wine with subtle sweetness to its peach and apricot fruit. A soft, classic Meursault with good material and thickness as well as sound acidity and definition.

Vinous (91-93)

(from the north side of Pommard above Les Grands Epenots on active limestone soil; vinified with one-third whole clusters and aged in one-third new oak): Good dark red. Tight aromas of black cherry, redcurrant and rust (there's a bit of iron in the soil here as well), lifted by a floral quality. Savory and fine-grained, with red berry flavors enlivened by saline minerality. Not a big wine but offers an attractive blend of sweet, savory and acidic elements. This minerally, salty wine finishes with big, mouth-dusting tannins.

Vinous (92)

Bright yellow with a green tinge. Aromas of nectarine, white pepper and spices are lifted by a hint of lavender. Brisk, energetic wine with noteworthy definition and delicacy to its complex flavors of citrus fruits and crushed-stone minerality. Very fresh for 2016, showing no dried-fruit character. This infant still needs time to knit but should evolve gracefully. Finishes very long and scented.

Vinous (91-93)

(two-thirds whole clusters; one-third new oak; the sand on top of the limestone here typically yields relatively soft tannins, according to winemaker Brian Sieve): Good dark red. Cool black cherry aroma lifted by a stony quality. A step above the preceding samples in both juiciness and finesse; in fact, a real high-wire act of captivating sweetness and bright acidity. Very fine-grained, serious wine with excellent grip and length. These 45-year-old vines avoided the frost but yielded very little fruit, as they were very sensitive to rain and wind during the flowering.

Vinous (91-94)

(vinified entirely with whole clusters and aged in 35% new oak; the average vine age here is 65 years and the soil features gravel on limestone): Bright medium-deep red. Deeply pitched, fruit-driven aromas of black raspberry and dark cherry, plus a hint of smoky minerality. Wonderfully plush yet lively, displaying more volume and depth than the Mitans. Lovely silky Volnay without any impression of undue weight. Really fills the mouth and echoes on the finish while maintaining superb vivacity. Here the acidity is ripe and the broad tannins distinctly suave and fine-grained. This is showing beautifully considering that it only finished its malolactic fermentation in September.