2011 Burgundies from Bottle -- Part III

Part I of this review is located here, and Part II here; Part IV here; Part V here.

Domaine FAIVELEY

2011 Mercurey    1^er Cru    Clos des Myglands   90(+)/B+

2011 Nuits-Saint-Georges     1^er Cru   Aux Chaignots   93/A

2011 Latricières-Chambertin   91(+?)/B

2011 Bienvenue-Bâtard-Montrachet  93/A-

Faiveley’s Mercurey-Clos des Myglands is medium-weight and pure with raspberry and red cherry fruit and plenty of sensuality. The Nuits-Chaignots seems always to be one of Faiveley’s most underrated wines. It is medium-weight, sensual, round with good depth and length, and spices suggesting nearby Vosne showing through. The Latricières-Chambertin is medium-weight and smooth but lacks a bit of the energy and precision of a better wine.

The Bienvenue-Bâtard-Montrachet is pure, mineral, and medium-weight. It is good for what it is, but not absolute top class.

Joseph FAIVELEY

2011 Chambolle-Musigny    1^er Cru     Charmes   91/A-

Joseph Faiveley is the name now used for Faiveley’s negociant wines, and estate wines go under the Domaine Faiveley label. This wine is medium-weight and smooth with red fruits, finesse, and some roundness, plus good length. It is a pretty wine. I’d look to 2023-2045 for peak drinking.

FOLLIN-ARBELET

2011 Pernand-Vergelesses   1^er Cru   Les  Fichots   89+/B

2011 Aloxe-Corton   90/A

2011 Aloxe-Corton   1^er Cru   Clos du Chapître   92/A

2011 Corton   93+/A-

Franck Follin-Arbelet’s Pernand-Fichots shows some tannins to go with good firmness, a smooth texture, and dark fruit that is long. I’d look to 2020-2045+ for best drinking. The Aloxe shows precise dark fruit, no heaviness, and it is precise, pure, and penetrating. I’d expect this wine to be at its best 2020-2045. The Aloxe-Clos du Chapître is firm and dark but also not heavy. The wine shows excellent penetration and here the tannins are more marked. I’d look to 2026-2050 for peak drinking. Finally, the Corton is light for a Corton (again, because of the white soils it is on) with pure, direct cherry fruit and notable tannins. Here, too, I’d look to 2026-2050 for peak drinking.

FOURRIER

2011 Gevrey-Chambertin   91/A

2011 Gevrey-Chambertin   1^er Cru    Cherbaudes   93/A

2011 Gevrey-Chambertin   1^er Cru    Combe aux Moînes   94/A

2011 Gevrey-Chambertin   1^er Cru    Clos Saint-Jacques   94+/A

Jean-Marie Fourrier’s wines here show outstanding consistency. The village Gevrey has earthy, complex red fruits, a smooth texture, and purity. The Gevrey-Cherbaudes is more complex and deeper with the nervosity that characterizes Cherbaudes. Wait a few years for this wine to develop further. Fourier’s section of Gevrey-Combe aux Moînes is in an old quarry, which acts as a heat trap for it. This wine is dense with darker berry fruit than the two previous wines, good concentration, and a fair amount of power. The Gevrey-Clos Saint-Jacques is still more closed with dark fruits and the gaminess that typifies Clos Saint-Jacques. Be willing to wait some years for this wine.

Camille GIROUD

2011 Beaune    1^er Cru    Les Avaux    88/B

2011 Pommard    1^er Cru    Clos de Verger   88/B

2011 Vosne-Romanée    86/B

2011 Gevrey-Chambertin    1^er Cru    Lavaut Saint-Jacaques   88/B

These wines aren’t bad but are below the expectations I have had for Camille Giroud based on recent vintages. The Beaune-Avaux is medium-light in weight and round with red fruits. There is no great precision here, although the wine is enjoyable. I’d drink over the next 5-10 years. The Pommard-Clos de Verger is medium-light in weight with reddish fruit that lacks focus. Like the Avaux, this is pleasant wine, but nothing special. Giroud’s Vosne is smooth and indistinct with some powdered fruit and spice. Finally, the Gevrey-Lavaut Saint-Jacques has dark, mineral fruits typical of the vineyard and is medium-weight, but it lacks the tension that the top wines here have.

Henri GOUGES

2011 Nuits-Saint-Georges    1^er Cru    Clos des Porrets-Saint-Georges    92/A

Gouges’s Clos des Porrets-Saint-Georges is sensual and easy to approach with red fruits, a fair amount of power, and good depth. The wine can be drunk with pleasure now, but also has very good aging potential.

HUDELOT-BAILLET

2011 Chambolle-Musigny   vieilles vignes    88(+)/B+

2011 Chambolle-Musigny     1^er Cru   Charmes    90(+)/B+

2011 Chambolle-Musigny     1^er Cru   Cras   90(+)/B+

2011 Bonnes-Mares    91(+?)/B 

I’ve heard about this estate for a number of years, but this was the first time I have tried the wines. I liked what I tasted, but the wines did not quite live up to the expectations that some others had created for them. The style is for wines of great finesse, but perhaps lacking just a bit in intensity, depth, and definition. The Chambolle, vieilles vignes is medium light with plenty of finesse to go with the salty red fruits. The Chambolle-Charmes has a bit more stuffing to go with a smooth texture and more darkness to the fruit. Plenty of finesse in this wine. The Chambolle-Cras is medium-weight with a bit more structure and depth than the Charmes, but still not standout definition. Last, the Bonnes-Mares continues along the same line, showing still more stuffing, but again, the definition of a still better wine is lacking.

Alain HUDELOT-NOELLAT

2011 Chambolle-Musigny        86/B

2011 Nuits-Saint-Georges    1^er Cru    Murgers     88/B

2011 Vosne-Romanée    1^er Cru     Suchots             90/B+

2011 Clos-Vougeot            89(+?)/B-

2011 Romanée-Saint-Vivant        90(+?)/B

These wines confirm what I had perceived from barrel: although the wines are not poor in this vintage, they are not up to what Charles van Canneyt turned out in vintages such as 2010 and especially 2012 and 2013 where the wines are magnificent. The Chambolle is light with red cherry and red currant fruit, good intensity, and enough acidity to retain freshness. The wine lacks a bit in focus, though. I’d drink it young. The Nuits-Murgers is not unpleasant – it is medium-light and salty, but it lacks precision and distinction that a better wine would provide. The Vosne-Suchots similarly is not up to the top Suchots in precision, although the wine is attractive for its finesse and red fruits with depth. The Clos-Vougeot is darker and shows more body and tannin. The wine is also somewhat salty. Alas, there is some muddiness in the flavors, though. Last, the Romanée-Saint-Vivant is spicy and light with red fruits, and here, too, the precision one expects of a better wine is lacking.