I really want to find that Eureka Red Burg, but it just hasn’t happened to me yet. It probably doesn’t help that my wine budget rarely goes over $100 a bottle, and while I have enjoyed some nice ones under $25, simple and clean, they have made for nice weeknight drinking. But when I have purchased a PC in the $50 to $100 range, while I enjoy them, I can’t help but feeling I could have spent the funds for a top shelf OR pinot and in tune, brought home a more complete and complex wine. The other day I found a local retailer that has a good stash of Premier Crus of Robert Chevillon from the 2009 and 2010 vintages under $75 per bottle. The PC’s are Bousselots and Perrieres, also the NSG VV from 2009 is also available at $50.
What caught my eye about R. Chevillon is that while the critic reviews are good to really good (high 80’s to low 90’s), the CT notes seem to express even more enthusiasm, generally speaking. For a reference point, the OR pinots I buy year in and year out are Belle Pente, Evesham Wood, Cristom, and St. Innocent (Really like the 11’s from J. Christopher too). Lots of others, but these are big 4 in my wine locker.
So fellow Beserkers, am I heading down the right path pursuing the PC’s from R. Chevillon to find that ‘wow’ Red Burgundy? What is the style? Age well? Any other PC’s burgs under $80 that I should be looking at that aren’t impossible to track down or sacrifice my first born male son over?
+1
The 1993 Chevillon Les Perrieres a few months back is one of my red woty.
Dale- This is a tough question, many Burgheads will tell you good 1ers need 10-15 yrs minimum to begin drinking.
You might not ever get wowed with a 5 year old Red Burgundy.
And, it depends on what you mean by wowed. yada yada.
Once I got hooked on Burgundy, I sold, and am still selling, any younger stuff I bought and backloaded on older…it’s difficult to go back to drinking them young once you get it.
If I was younger, and had unlimited funds, I’d buy young and age them…
Have you thought about poking around and trying to find a 1er with some age?
Maybe a Jadot Ursules, Drouhin Clos des Mouches?
My 2 cents.
They age beautifully. Need to keep mind that the more forgiving crus (Bousselots, Chaignots) are much more approachable young than Perrieres or Baucrains. The LSG is pretty rare and though I have some in cellar, I’ve never tried.
Note that a lot of the D. Laurent NSG from the mid 99s is really Chevillon under a different label.
Red Burgundy is my favorite (and I very much like Chevillon), but beyond introductory revelations, I haven’t had any “eureka” moments from red Burgundy wines that were less than 18 years old. There is a great difference between the “approachability” that comes from the partially melted tannins of a 12 year old wine and the complexity that comes from a mature wine.
I went a head pulled the trigger on 2 bottles of the 10 Bousselots, at $65, I felt comfortable, and as David said, the Bousselots might show better for early consumption. Plus it was a Keith Levenburg ‘94’, though I hear that guy is really suffering from point inflation as of late
Dennis, I have had such bad luck buying aged wines, that I’m young enough (44) to get these to maturity, and I can be patient. Upon reflection, I think most of the OR pinots I purchase yield little fireworks in their youth, though they certainly don’t take 15 years to come round in most cases, more like 8 to 10.
Dale, like you I focus on OR. My advice is go to M&S on Queen Anne and see if they still have the Simon Bize 2010 Talmettes. That’ll make a burg believer out of you.
Chevillon is great, but especially when young they can be pretty structured, so even more than most red burgundy they really benefit by being served with compatible food.
Of course everyone recommends the big structured crus. They are more prestigious and get higher ratings, but seriously, unless you’re sitting on them for 15 years you’re better off with Bousselots (and its 20% cheaper). I challenge any of the label whores to argue that Vaucrains beats Bousselots for near term drinking.
I agree about Vaucrains and LSG, but Cailles is awfully good at almost any age in my experience. It’s been my favorite in almost every comparative tasting.
Cailles is certainly less gnarly than, e.g., Perrieres or Vaucrains, both of which are top slope AND from the rough side of Nuits, but generally query the wisdom of pointing anyone to the premeaux side of Nuits for a wine to be drunk young.
Chevillon is certainly one of the 2-3 best producers in NSG . BUT his wines need a lot of time.
I wouldn´t think of opening a bottle between age 3 and 15 years, better 20 years in a good vintage.
Interestingly I often prefer the Vaucrains over the LSG.
FWIW, I did rate ‘07 Vaucrains slightly higher than 07’ Cailles, maybe because it’s a lean vintage, muscular wine like Vaucrains will show better and approachable even so young.
Bousselots is an intriguing wine as the ratings are all over the place and often much higher than critics assesment. I did buy some '10 Bousselots but have never tasted the wine, will likely buy it regularly on future EPs.
