Domaine de la Vougeraie Reviews

The 2021 Vougeot Les Cras 1er Cru has a well-defined nose. Red berry fruit and distant sea spray scents gently gain intensity in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly gritty tannins, compact and firmer in grip than Vougeraie's other cuvées with a pleasing saline finish. Enjoy this over 12-15 years.

The 2021 Charmes-Chambertin les Mazoyères Grand Cru comes from 114-yearold vines and is one of the few to contain stems this year, just 10%. It has an open-knit bouquet with red fruit, bay leaf and Earl Grey, nicely defined but certainly missing some power. The palate is clean and fresh with crunchy red fruit, slightly ferrous with a bit of dryness towards the finish. But there is a sense of complexity here, and I find this Charmes-Chambertin has plenty of character and sapidity.

The 2021 Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru comes from three plots. It takes time to unfurl on the nose, eventually offering citrus fruit, popcorn and hints of Mirabelle. The palate is balanced with an attractive, slightly waxy texture. It shows fine depth with the mineralité eventually surfacing with aeration. Afford this three or four years in bottle.

The 2021 Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru is slightly more oxidative in style compared to the Bâtard-Montrachet, with grilled walnut and a subtle florlike scent emerging with time. The palate is balanced with a vibrant opening. It has a little more horsepower than the Bâtard-Montrachet and a spicier finish. This gains intensity in the glass and does eventually overtake the Bâtard.

The 2021 Charlemagne Grand Cru comes from two parcels, the En Charlemagne lieu-dit picked a week after Le Charlemagne. This has one of my favourite noses from Vougeraie; it's quite refined and complex, more mineraldriven with hints of dried white flowers. The palate is well balanced with a tangy opening, fresh and crisp with a touch of bitter lemon and orange rind towards the finish. This should age well in bottle and conveys a sense of class.

The Boisset family domaine, based in Vougeot, included some white parcels with long histories tied to the Abbaye de Cîteaux, as well as some prime plots of pinot noir. Their main parcel, 2.59 acres, is close to the top of the vineyard, with vines dating from the 1940s and ’50s to the early ’90s. A second parcel, at the bottom of the Clos, is just under an acre of vines planted in the mid-’80s. Their biodynamically farmed fruit comes together in a fragrant 2019, subtle rather than super-concentrated, bright, and rose-scented. Instead of weight, it offers length, continuing for minutes as it will continue for years in the cellar.

The monks of Cîteaux used this walled vineyard as their source of white wine for 700 years before the Revolution; it has remained planted to white grapes and remained intact, now in the hands of the Boisset family. The parcel is across the road from Clos Vougeot, northeast of the entrance to the château; the 7.53 acres of chardonnay, along with a little pinot gris and blanc, grow in white, calcareous soils, producing an ornate wine, saturated with honey and mineral power. It’s creamy and taut, needing time to show its layers of flavor, a sophisticate white take on Vougeot.

Silky and loaded with black cherry, black currant and wet earth flavors. Delivers dusty tannins along with tar and iron accents. Compact, yet it lingers nicely on the finish. Best from 2025 through 2043. 169 cases made, 24 cases imported. — BS

Bright cherry and raspberry fruit flavors hold court in this light-bodied red, which is firm and persistent, gathering accents of earth and tomato leaf as this delivers a long finish. Best from 2024 through 2038. 385 cases made, 24 cases imported. — BS

The 2020 Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru has 100% whole bunch, though stems neatly enmeshed on the nose with hints of blueberry and cassis infusing the red fruit. A little timid at the moment, it will open with bottle age. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy red fruit, fine acidity, just a little chewiness on the entry. Structured on the finish, this is quite a "serious" Bonnes-Mares that just needs to muster more charm on the finish

The 2020 Nuits Saint-Georges Clos des Thorey 1er Cru comes from three-hectares of vines with thte 50% whole bunch courtesy of the old vines. The nose offers dark cherries, crushed strawberry and wild hedgerow scents, fine delineation and vigour. The palate is slightly creamy in texture on the entry, quite plush and fruitdriven, pure red cherries and strawberry fruit with a sleek and caressing finish. Predesigned to seduce, this should age well in bottle.

The 2020 Corton Clos du Roi Grand Cru contains 100% whole bunch this year. I appreciate the aromatics here - well-defined, fragrant and quite floral, there offers fine mineralité and tension. The palate is mediumbodied with supple tannins, very harmonious with a bead of acidity that lends finesse and elegant towads the finish. This is clever winemaking and a successful Corton. Excellent.

The 2020 Pommard Les Petits Noizons includes 80% whole bunch. This has a well-defined bouquet, a mixture of red and black fruit mixed with damp loamy aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with chalky tannins, quite linear and strict with bitter cherry towards the finish. Correct and très Pommard. Enjoy over the next decade.

The 2020 Gevrey-Chambertin La Justice was completely-destemmed this year. It offers brambly red berry fruit laced with rose petals and peony on the nose. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, lithe in the mouth, no hard edges here with a lightly peppered, quite finessed finish. Worth seeking out.

From eight different parcels including 20% whole bunch with some Premier Cru fruit, the 2020 Chambolle-Musigny Village has an attractive, well-defined bouquet with brambly red fruit, white pepper and a touch of tobacco. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, cohesive, fine build in the mouth towards a lightly spiced finish with a slight gamey aftertaste. This should age well in bottle.

A powerful and serious red Burgundy, this is a blend from two parcels in Gilly-lès-Citeaux, near the domaine’s base in Vougeot, and two parcels in Beaune. It layers rose scents and flavors of cranberry and anise over substantial tannins, the structure sophisticated and firm.

 

North of Clos de Vougeot, close to the village and the Vouge, the stream that gives the village its name, this two acres of chardonnay on pebbly limestone produced a juicy 2015 with flavors of fresh-cut pear. It expands from lean to opulent, finding a sweet and salty balance. Not as long-lived as Le Clos Blanc, this should be ready to drink after a year or two in the cellar.

The 2016 Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru Les Damodes contains 80% whole bunch fruit and was one of the last to finish its malo (it had been racked three weeks earlier). The nose is clean and fresh, nicely focused with fine delineation. The palate has a pastille-like purity on the entry, supple tannin, quite powerful but with wonderful finesse and focus toward the finish. This is a clear step up from the Clos de Thorey for me. Superb.

Black cherry and toasty vanilla aromas and flavors are the hallmarks of this muscular red. Hints of tobacco and chocolate linger. The firm structure begs for patience. 

Cherry, currant and spice flavors are the hallmarks of this dense red. A mineral note adds interest as this builds to a long, sinewy finish. Echoes fruit and spice details on the long aftertaste. 

This is supple and spicy, with flavors of vanilla and sweet baking spices framing the strawberry and currant fruit. Shows light touches of earth and mineral as this finishes with a chalky sensation. Elegant. 

An exotic style, boasting sandalwood and floral aromas. Flavors of wild cherry, black currant and spice follow through. Ends with a long aftertaste of fruit and spice.

Bright medium red. Aromas of redcurrant, cherry and spices. Offers more energy and definition than the Clos du Roi, with higher-pitched flavors of spices and red fruits. A juicy Beaune wine with a touch of youthful bitterness on the back end, but sound acids and tannins give grip to the finish.

This enticing white, offering apple, lime, floral and mineral aromas and flavors, with a touch of oak spice, is balanced, with moderate length. Drink now through 2018. –BS

Soft notes of petrol sit atop the mostly floral and white orchard fruit scents. The rich, round and very generously proportioned flavors are forward o the point of being almost soft and this easy-to-like effort should drink well immediately.