It was difficult to chose just ten of the many great bottles I’ve enjoyed this year, but these are some of the best, listen in no particular order. Reviewing thousands of young wines, I generally gravitate towards mature specimens when drinking for pleasure, and 2017 was gave me abundant opportunity to gratify that preference. What’s … More The best bottles of 2017
When uttered by a Burgundian, the words ‘my uncle used to say…’ often preface interesting insights into times past. In Emmanuel Rouget’s cellar, however, they carry particular weight, for at this address ‘le tonton’ refers to none other than the late Henri Jayer—no matter which generation is speaking. Burgundy’s most influential twentieth-century vigneron, who passed … More A tasting with Emmanuel Rouget
A visit to François Mitjavile is inevitably memorable. At Tertre Rotebœuf, contemporary Bordeaux—in reality just over the horizon—feels a world away. That’s partly because its proprietor is so uncommon: it would be easy to imagine this ‘charming genius’ at home among the Enlightenment philosophes; an impression only intensified by his elegant eighteenth-century farmhouse and the … More Inimitable Mitjavile: the wines of Tertre Rotebœuf
Domaine Dugat-Py in the village of Gevrey-Chambertin produces some of the most controversial wines in Burgundy. On the one hand, critical plaudits abound: one of a handful of Domaines awarded three stars in the Revue du Vin de France’s famous classement, the Dugat-Pys’ wines have long been lauded by Allen Meadows and a succession of … More The wines of Domaine Dugat-Py
Marc Delienne quit a job in Paris to pursue his long-standing passion for wine professionally, purchasing the Château de l’Abbeye Saint Laurent d’Arpayé in the village of Fleurie after a stint under the tutelage of Eloi Durbach of the Domaine de Trévallon. He produced his inaugural vintage in 2015, and his two cuvées are very … More Marc Delienne: a new star in the Fleurie firmament
The United States’ greatest obstacle to becoming what Jefferson called ‘a wine-drinking nation’ may well be its vintners’ indifference to keenly-priced wines. North American winemakers display plenty of ambition to rival the first-growths of Bordeaux or the top producers of high-appellation Côte d’Or Burgundies, but very little to challenge France’s numerous artisanal producers of delicious, … More Artisanal wine, every day
William Kelley 