Winemaker Notes
Always one of the most satisfying examples of its appellation, Ghislaine’s Bourgogne Rouge is a Chambolle in all but name. The Bons Batons vineyard lies at the border of Chambolle-Musigny and Gilly-les-Citeaux, just across the main road from Chambolle proper, and it offers an introduction to the expression of Chambolle’s sensual, mineral essence. The 2017 displays taut cherry fruit on a cleansing, mineral-driven frame, with a touch of earthy spice adding complexity.
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2017 Bourgogne Les Bons Bâtons offers up beautiful aromas of sweet Griotte cherries, red berries, dried flowers and orange rind. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, pure and satiny, with a tangy core of fruit and chalky structuring tannins. From a parcel in Gilly-lès-Cîteaux, one of the finest locations classified as Bourgogne, this cuvée would embarrass many village wines.
Barrel Sample: 88-90
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
The origin of perhaps the world’s very finest Pinot Noir, Côte de Nuits is the northern half of the Côte d'Or and includes the famous wine villages of Gevrey-Chambertin, Morey-St-Denis, Chambolle-Musigny, Vougeot, Vosne-Romanée, Flagey-Echezeaux and Nuits-St-Georges.
Fine whites from Chardonnay are certainly found in the Côte de Nuits, but with much less frequency than top-performing reds made of Pinot noir. The little village of Nuits-St-Georges in its southern end gave the region its name: Côte de Nuits. The city of Dijon marks its northern border.