Modern Dugat-Py Wines (2022–2023)
When Michelin released their rating and Dugat-Py managed to get three grapes, a lot of people were surprised. They mainly remember the father’s style of heavy extraction and the 100% use of new oak. Now that Loïc has taken over, from 2016 onwards the wines have greatly improved.
So I decided to try some of his newer wines. I bought a bunch of 2022s and 2023s and also drank some in restaurants.
Here is what I tasted and what I thought of the wines:
Bourgogne Cuvée Halinard 2022:
I drank this in a restaurant and was honestly not that impressed. It was a solid Bourgogne Rouge, with ripe red and darker fruit, some spice and a bit of earthiness, but for that price (€80), I was expecting more. Nothing wrong with it at all, but compared with some of the other Dugat-Py wines I tried, it lacked a bit of excitement and complexity.
Fixin 2022:
An incredible wine. I have had this twice now and I’m incredibly impressed. It’s very elegant, with lots of fresh red fruit, especially cherry and raspberry, alongside some floral and earthy notes. The tannins are very fine and already surprisingly well integrated. This is more ready to drink than his Gevrey-Chambertin village wines.
The second time I had this, I was with friends and served it to them blind. They thought it was a very good Premier Cru from somewhere in the Côte de Beaune. Very impressive. Well-integrated tannins, red fruit, freshness and elegance. There is plenty of concentration, but without ever becoming heavy.
Gevrey-Chambertin VV 2022:
I opened this 24 hours beforehand, and that might have been a mistake. When I tasted it, I was looking for the nose, but it was still fairly closed off, or maybe I let it open for too long. Either way, this still needs time. The palate, however, was still very nice, with darker cherry fruit, some spice and an earthy character. There was clearly plenty of concentration and structure underneath, but it felt like the wine wasn’t ready to show everything yet.
Gevrey-Chambertin Les Evocelles 2022:
This was pretty closed off. I opened it, but it barely came out of the glass. What was there showed darker red fruit, some minerality and quite a bit of structure, but everything felt tightly packed together. This is supposed to be essentially a Premier Cru-level wine according to Loïc, and you could tell that it still needed more time. Nevertheless, it was a solid village-level wine, but there was so much more potential. The concentration and length were there; it just wasn’t particularly expressive at this stage. For now, I just need to have patience.
Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Morgeots 2022:
I opened this two hours beforehand and then decanted it. It was naturally too young, but already this is an amazing wine. Layers of white fruit, nice acidity, lemon, pear and a strong limestone/mineral character. There was also a slight richness to the fruit, but the acidity kept everything fresh and balanced. It had impressive depth and a very long finish, his whites have a lot of fruit. It’s an incredible wine that will only get better with age. My friend remarked that the wine reminded him of the style of Arnaud Ente, quite the compliment.
Mazoyères-Chambertin Grand Cru 2022:
I drank this with my dad as a bit of a celebration. We both knew it was far too young, but we were very curious. While it was indeed far too young, this was an amazing wine. Elegant and beautifully balanced, with the oak already nicely integrated. The red fruit was on full display, with cherry and raspberry alongside darker fruit, spice and a slightly earthy character. What impressed me most was that despite the concentration, it never felt particularly heavy. There was plenty of power and structure underneath, but also freshness and elegance.
Nevertheless, there is so much more in this wine that will, without a doubt, be revealed with time. You could tell that there were additional layers there that simply weren’t ready to come out yet.
Monthélie 2023:
The first Dugat-Py wine I drank, and the one that made me want to buy more. I had this in a restaurant for a reasonable price and what a wine. Elegant and concentrated, with layers of fresh red fruit, cherry, raspberry and some floral notes. There was also a nice freshness and minerality running through it. What surprised me most was the combination of concentration and elegance. There was plenty of fruit, but it never became heavy. Before this, I had never even heard of Monthélie, but now I’m a fan.
Gevrey-Chambertin Cœur de Roy 2023:
His 2023 Gevrey-Chambertin is more open than his 2022 village wines. This is an amazingly good village wine. I enjoyed this more than the Evocelles.
It was more elegant and less powerful, with lots of red cherry and raspberry, some darker fruit underneath, spice and great minerality. There was plenty of concentration, but also freshness and balance. The tannins were present but very fine, and the wine had a surprisingly long finish for a village Gevrey. While also, of course, far too young, this wine already shows more clearly just how great his wines can be.
Vosne-Romanée 2023:
My favorite Dugat-Py wine I’ve had so far. I’ve had two bottles, and it’s incredible. It’s already fairly open, but give it an hour or two and you have an incredible village wine. Spice, red fruit, plum, cherry and floral notes, with layers upon layers. The classic Vosne spice really comes through, and there is a lovely combination of richness and freshness. The texture is also beautiful: concentrated and almost silky, but with enough tannin and acidity to give it structure. The longer you have it in the glass the more it evolves. The finish as well just keeps going and you taste the evolution of the wine in your mouth. This is easily Premier Cru level for me.
The second time I had this with friends, we also drank a (far too young) 2023 Berthaut-Gerbet Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Petits Monts. The Dugat-Py, despite being a village wine, was of better quality in my opinion. More concentrated, deeper layers of fruit and more expressive at this stage, simply incredible.
Gevrey-Chambertin Lavaux St-Jacques 1er Cru 2023:
This was opened rather unfortunately at the end of the evening, when we had already drunk quite a few bottles of wine, so we drank this while it was barely open.
There is clearly a great wine here, but it was very closed off. The fruit was much darker than in the Cœur de Roy, with black cherry and darker berries, alongside spice and a strong mineral character. It felt powerful and concentrated, with plenty of tannic structure, but everything was still tightly wound. There was clearly depth and length, but not much openness or elegance at this stage. This needs some serious time before opening another bottle. I would love to revisit it in a few years.
