Standing in Jean-Noel Gagnard's cellars at 8.45am this morning seems like a long time ago. A long but rewarding day has passed.
Often intense but distinctly 'adolescent' when tasted from barrel, Caroline Lestime's white wines are serious, often backward and always take a couple of years in bottle to blossom. The 2008s, though, are a really impressive range that already show tremendously well, offering a great balance between "gras" and freshness, the Bâtard was sublime. A tour of the Marquis d'Angerville vineyards followed. Guillaume d'Angerville's commute to and from his vines is enviable, within minutes we were admiring the view from the sun-kissed Champans vineyard, followed shorty afterwards by a trip to the even higher, stonier Taillepieds, all the while the steep tilt of Clos des Ducs to the north stayed in sight. All were within minutes of each other yet so different, this is the essence of Burgundy. The difference between the terroirs was amplified further during our tasting of 2008s, each wine was very clearly defined. On the day Champans was the stand out, so seductively Volnay - Guillaume's accession to duties at Domaine the d'Angerville has definitely coincided with the big qualitative resurgence of this classic Volnay vineyard. Dominique Lafon was next and did not disappoint, he is such an enthusiast and perfectionist. 2008 is a small crop here for reds and whites alike (the smallest ever that Dominique can recall for his Volnay.) Exciting wines from top bottom, the Macons were quite possibly his best yet, the Meursaults and Montrachet were as smart as usual, the pick of the cellar,though, went to Perrières. Finally we braved the back streets of Beaune in search of the Hospices de Beaune cellars. Confronted by a vast chai like room of new wooden barrels of seriously embryonic wine, we picked our way through an interesting but not necessarily homogenous 2009 crop. The best red wines are powerful yet already highly flattering to taste at this very early stage. Tomorrow sees a change of Cotes as we head for Gevrey and Nuits.
