It’s not just in the US. In part, it is the 2015 vintage. The current prices on the 2015 Georges Noellat Boudots in Europe begin at 130 Euros ($152) and go up rapidly from there. The least expensive price in the US is currently $249 (212 Euros).
With all of that said, I did note that the 2015 Grands Echezeaux took a huge jump in price in 2015 vs. 2014 even from the same source in Europe that I always buy from pre-arrival.
On the GE, indeed, that one went up ex-domaine in 2015 - to bring it more in line with the market so I was told, but it was indeed a bit underpriced the previous years.
Due to this thread, I decided to open another bottle of ‘93 Tardy Boudots, drinking really well now, tannins were completely resolved, acidity of the vintage was keeping this alive. Exceptionally QPR.
I am planning to set up a compare of the 2014 Meo and 2014 Georges. In the interim I saw the 2015 Meo on a sale (below the 2014) and snagged a bottle. Any thoughts on how the 2015 Meo may/may not be representative? The tasting notes are a little bit disjointed to me (looks like early notes were concerned about jamminess, and later notes talked about it still being "sappy’ but balanced with some interesting saline notes).
Had a 2011 Gerard Mugneret Les Boudots, which I picked up retail as I saw it randomly (still waiting for the Meos to arrive, I was able to procure a 2006 and a 2008). Preferred the Grivot over the GM. The GM was more dense and concentrated, a bit ripe as well, and lacked the spice and nuance of the Grivot, while having slightly more heat. There were dark fruits and some tertiary notes but I didn’t pick up much. Overall I felt the wine was ripe, a bit rounded and lacking a sense of earth, rusticity or other tertiary notes. (Please don’t Crucify me for my less sophisticated tasting notes!). I paid 100 for the bottle vs cellar tracker cost of 67 and the inflated price wasn’t worth it for me, but it is cheaper than Grivot. Maybe I don’t like boudots as much. Will do the Meo(s) next.
Shon:
Trying to compare a 2012 Grivot Boudots with a 2011 Gerard Mugneret Boudots is a very difficult comparison because of the huge difference in vintages. The 2012 vintage was quite ripe while the 2011 vintage is a much lighter styled vintage that will not require nearly as long to be ready to drink. The vintages aren’t quite polar opposites, but suffice it to say that there are lot of burgundy collectors who really affirmatively dislike the 2011 vintage because of the lack of density on the palate and the perception that the vintage is thin and too light.
Gerard Mugneret also isn’t considered to be on the same level as a burgundy producer with Grivot, Georges Noellat (who has only been considered to be high level producer since approximately the 2012 vintage), and Meo-Camuzet. Also, you’re probably not going to see much secondary (and no tertiary) character in a red burgundy only 6 or 7 years old.
Seriously, I don´t understand the missing love for JJ Confuron´s Boudots. It´s his best 1er Cru (usually better than his VR Beaumonts) and only a hint below the Clos Vougeot (if at all) …
Also aging perfectly … and should be available for around 100 …
Any biases here ?
Nobody mentions Leroy?
The poll stated: ex-Leroy …
(simply a price-question)
Wow Don , my friend , I don’t think you know the wines from Gerard Mugneret all that well . His wines consistently perform greatly at our blind tastings against all premier cru’s from various terroirs . His wines are , imho , a grade above Noellat .
I think that Gerard Mugneret’s wines are one of the best kept secrets in Burgundy . It’s quite amazing that he always ends at the top in our blind tastings , again and again over the last years . ( see my nephew’s website Vinotopia for the results ) . ( www.vinotopia.be )
Herwig is just raving, as are the eight people who voted for Gerard Mugneret. Nothing to see here. Move along and please keep buying Grivot and Meo.
haha Craig , you are like Rainer … But I fully agree : Mugneret sucks , move on .
Fortunately most people are confused about which Mugneret to buy. It’s like living in that neighborhood with Mugneret Road, Mugneret Court and Mugneret Lane: If you don’t want people to find your house, it’s ideal.
Hah! I originally bought the wrong Mugneret thinking I found a “deal” and then groaned at myself when realizing my mistake (but was able to return it).
I should say, the G-M wasn’t miles apart from the Grivot for my personal enjoyability…and the G-M looks like much better value (which was not my poll question). The CT “average value”, which I ?think? is the cost basis for the 2012 Grivot is nearly 1.8x of the 2011 G-M. I didn’t think the Grivot was 2x better, maybe only slightly so, so the G-M was better value to me. If the 2011 vintage was that noticeably weaker a vintage, then the G-M may literally have been on top/better if apples-for-apples 2012. FWIW, the 2012 Grivot vs. 2012 G-M is 1.2x the cost though, so the CT “average value” closes in 2012. But in 2016 “average values” should be a better proxy for cost (time of season we are in right now)… and the multiple blows out to 1.6x again (Grivot being much more expensive)… with Vinous giving the G-M a slightly higher score (!). Although, maybe 2016 an odd year as I don’t see any offers on WS for Grivot 2016 and only one for G-M at a higher price; going back to 2015 has a big spread though. That said, my poll wasn’t “what’s the best value”, but rather, “your favorite”… only clipping out Leroy on price.
… but don´t confuse G-M with M-G … ! 
Herwig:
My experience with Gerard Mugneret was in the mid-90s and it wasn’t good. The only Boudots I ever had from him was the 1996 and I thought it was very forgettable. I also tasted a bottle of his 1999 Echezeaux that didn’t excite me much either, despite being from my favorite vintage since 1962. Also, outside of Vosne Romanee, I have historically bought very few 1ers – the exceptions being Clos St. Jacques, Amoureuses, Chambolle Les Cras (from Roumier and Barthod), Chambolle Combe d’Orveaux (Clavelier).
Part of the problem (or benefit I suspect from your perspective) is that he has zero name/brand recognition in the US. His wines are repped/exported by Becky Wasserman, but even most of the people here that import Becky’s producer’s don’t bring in Gerard Mugneret. You would have do a very thorough search to find anyone here carrying the wines and you won’t see them on restaurant lists either. Steve Tanzer first began reviewing his wines with the 2015 vintage (some nice reviews). Meadows has reviewed the wines for years, but he never gave the wines good enough reviews to really generate attention. The fact that I have encountered his wines at all is mostly due to inquisitiveness on my part.
I’ve learned over the years, as you obviously have done, that there are some producers who make very good wines that for some reason don’t make the critic’s radar screens – or are slow to get their attention. (I often suspect that this occurs because the people running the winery have little time for, or little use for, wine critics.) But I do appreciate the heads up, even though I’ve now stopped buying new vintages of red burgundy.
My recollection, which may be wrong after so many years, is that the US bottles used to be different than the European ones, the former getting the extra oak treatment. That created a bias in the US among traditionalists and purists, who didn’t want to drink oaky wines. (Someone jump in if I’m remembering this incorrectly.).
There were long-standing rumors along these lines about many of the wines Robert Kacher was importing at the time (including Confuron)- and such rumors were most intense with regards to Claude Dugat and Christian Serafin. The tales often went hand in hand with conspiracy theories about Parker and Kacher plotting to change the face of burgundy.
I never did find out if there was any truth to them, though certainly a great many wines in the Kacher portfolio had more oak than I would have liked. But that could be a function of his selection of such wines as much as anything else.
Sure I´ve never tasted anything like that (in Europe), but I once asked Alain Meunier, and he said that it was a short period in the early 90ies when he used special barrels for the US-market, but that has long been finished …
But ok, that leaves more bottles for Europe … ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
Don, when did you have that wine? I’ve had it twice in the past three years and thought it was quite good. The 2002 is super. I’ve bought some 1999 but don’t have them in hand yet.