Pre Arrival B 2025
Pre Arrival B 2025
Pre Arrival Opens: Thursday the 29th of May
Pre Arrival Closes: Sunday the 8th of June
Estimated Delivery Date: September 2025
Producers:
-Domaine Michel Niellon, Chassagne Montrachet
-Domaine Jean-Baptiste Boudier, Pernand Vergelesses
-Domaine Amiot, Morey St Denis
-Mas de Daumas Gassac, Languedoc
Yet another pretty handy lineup in this pre-arrival. Now, I know you think I’m going to bang on about Michel Niellon once again—and I will—but the real treat for this shipment is the outrageously delicious wines of Domaine Jean-Baptiste Boudier. He absolutely nailed his ’23s. The reds are bright, pure and lively, yet still carry plenty of fruit. The whites are mineral and straight, with a nice bit of cushioning. He really is a producer to watch. The flip side of his less-famous terroirs is that the wines remain refreshingly accessible.
Then there’s the recently split, new-look Domaine Amiot (formerly Domaine Pierre Amiot) and their superb ’22s. Léon has drastically increased the time spent per vine, now leaning hard into organics, practising some biodynamics, and trialling three alternate pruning methods to achieve phenolic ripeness at lower alcohol levels.
Next up is the 2023 vintage of Mas de Daumas Gassac—Rouge, Blanc and Frizzante—plus a cracking Pinot Noir for sub-$30. While it shows limestone minerality, the wine is bright and vibrant, offering heaps of enjoyment with just enough complexity. Everyone at FWC HQ is looking forward to this addition; it should keep the weekly wine bill down a notch!
And last but not least, Domaine Michel Niellon—one of Burgundy’s greatest white-wine producers, period. 2023 was a cooler year, book-ended by two severe heat waves; the second started in harvest. Those who picked early, like Niellon, endured only one heatwave, so the wines show as a more classic, “Englishman’s” vintage. We also see the re-introduction of their beloved Bâtard-Montrachet (next door to Domaine de la Romanée-Conti’s parcel).
Enjoy!
Domaine Michel Niellon, Chassagne Montrachet
A benchmark for white Burgundy, Domaine Michel Niellon has been crafting wines of precision and quiet power from the heart of Chassagne-Montrachet since the 1950s. Now under the stewardship of Michel’s son-in-law Michel Coutoux and granddaughter Lucie, the domaine farms just over 7 hectares, with holdings in some of the village’s most revered premier and grand cru sites. Known for early picking to preserve freshness, the wines are defined by their crystalline purity, refined texture, and chalky minerality.
Niellon is one of the very few domaines whose wines capture both the muscularity and elegance of Chassagne. From the charming Bourgogne Blanc grown just in front of the winery, to their exceptional 1er Crus like Clos de la Maltroie, Champsgains, and Chenevottes, each cuvée speaks clearly of its terroir. At the top of the range, their Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru, a legendary wine that collectors chase for its intensity, aging potential, and emotional resonance. The most exciting participant in this year's release is undoubtedly the first bottling of their Batard Montrachet since it was ripped up in 2015.
Despite their cult status, Niellon’s wines are remarkably consistent and honest. They embody the spirit of old-school Burgundy — wines of character and restraint, built on farming, intuition, and tradition. They have held their pricing at a fair annual increase, unlike so many others.
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Bourgogne Blanc
Pre Arrival: $120
This has improved recently, while it used to be quite round it is now quite focused.
From vines situated in front of the winery.
Relatively open but with a little reduction, line & preserved lemon. Chalk & talc.
The palate has a little scale but very grippy & bony if not a little round in shape. Beautiful length, more so than usual.
Jono Hersey, FWC
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Chassagne Montrachet
Pre Arrival: $173
Slight bruised lemon, preserved lemon, chalk, yellow & white florals with a little underlying orchard fruit.
The palate is broader on approach but not heavy and showing its bones & phenolic, granular grip. A nice line of rock salt salinity accompanies the long finish.
Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Village has a fresh bouquet that I much prefer to the 2022, livelier and fresher. The palate is well-balanced with a sapid entry, a little mint-fresh with a playful, citrus finish.
89-91 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru 'Clos de la Maltroie'
A large enclosed vineyard of four hectares with a wall down the middle. The top half is a monopole; Clos du Chateau de la Maltroye. The bottom half is owned by three growers; Guy Amiot, Jean-Noel Gagnard and of course, Michel Niellon. Niellon owns 0.52 hectares that was planted in 1977.
Fine & soft with nice soft chalk & delicate white florals. A little underlying poached apple & pear.
The palate is fine & muted for a moment before releasing tight grained chalk like minerality. Lovely length with delicate woven textures.
Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Clos de la Maltroie 1er Cru is clean and precise on the nose, with touches of lemon rind and crushed stone. The palate is taut and fresh, with plenty of lime and citrus fruit and more stony notes developing on the finish. The 2023 is a level up from 2022.
90-92 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru 'Champsgains'
Positioned on the mid slope in the centre of the village, on soils of clay and fragmented rocks. Niellon has a 0.44 hectare portion.
The nose is closed & tight with puppy fat in the form of lemon drops & confected lemon rind.
Although tight Closed with a coating of puppy fat the core of minerality and drive is intensely powerful. With every sip it is trying to shoulder its way out.
Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Les Champ Gains 1er Cru was significantly reduced when I tasted it early from barrel. The palate was more expressive, with fine weight and density, perhaps without the same amplitude as the Chenevottes, though there is plenty of extract on the finish.
89-91 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru 'Chenevottes'
A vineyard with close proximity to Montrachet, that certainly reflects some of the power and brooding nature of said vineyard. Niellon’s parcel is a painfully small at 0.18 hectares.
A little more akin to the Champgains out of the gate with a blockier nose that begins to reveal a plethora of florals and more detailed pear skin.
The palate mutes for a moment & reveals, without the masking puppy fat, a hugely structured core of limestone & energy. Extremely long. Brilliant, Brilliant.
Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Chenevottes 1er Cru has a lovely bouquet with citrus peel and light floral scents. It’s a little more reductive than other cuvées, but that’s no bad thing. The palate is well-balanced with a fine bead of acidity, building nicely in the mouth with just a hint of peach skin on the finish. Excellent.
91-93 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru 'Clos St Jean'
Positioned at the top of the slope to the west of the village, just by a large limestone quarry. Many say this vineyard is more suited to red wine, however this wine, for me, is as good as white wine can be. Niellon’s parcel is 0.52 hectares.
Same scale & puppy fat as the champsgains but with a little more tensile energy. Again, on the pallet there is an extremely inward & painfully tight body of fruit that is broken with the searingly piercing line of painfully energetic minerality.
Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Clos Saint-Jean 1er Cru shows less reduction than other cuvées. This has a beautiful bouquet with white peach, citrus lemon and crushed stone, a little Puligny in style. The palate is well-balanced with a fine bead of acidity, tensile and mineral driven. A hint of popcorn appears on the saline finish. The 2023 is very promising.
92-94 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru 'Les Chaumees, Clos de la Truffiere'
Situated in the northern end of the village high on the hill. The Clos de la Truffiere portion has particularly light, stony soils which produce vibrant and complex whites.
Olfactory filling, detailed & with extreme tensile, jaw clenching nature felt in ones eye sockets. Plethora of dried florals & preserved lemon.
The palate is intensely mineral and powerful. Overwhelmingly so. This is the best I have seen from the Domaine.
Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Chaumées 1er Cru has a lovely bouquet that is a sibling of the Clos Saint-Jean. The nose is very precise with hints of white peace, orchard fruit and lemon sherbet. It’s livelier than Niellon’s other Premier Crus. The palate is nicely defined with fine depth and more substance. The slightly honeyed finish will be irresistible. This may well end up at the top of my banded score.
92-94 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Batard Montrachet Grand Cru
The first vintage since it was ripped up and replanted in 2015. Nestled nicely alongside Domaine de la Romanee Conti’s parcel.
Poached apple, quince, marmalade on broche.
The palate is intensely powerful, broad with mouth coating phenolics. Blocky but fine & with good length.
Jono Hersey, FWC
*As is always the case when tasting Niellon Grand Cru’s in their youth, they are intensely inward and reveal extremely little.
There are three barrels of the 2023 Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru, whose vines were replanted in 2020 after being pulled up in 2015. Half the bunches were taken off in July before véraison to control vigor, and the pH is a little higher than other cuvées. There is some reduction on the nose, but you can feel the nascent energy. The palate is well-balanced with a richer, slightly more viscous texture than the Chevalier-Montrachet, powerful and long with a dash of spice on the finish. Of course, this is the opening chapter of the vineyard, and you can feel that it’s not full power, but it represents a promising return.
90-92 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Chevalier Montrachet Grand Cru
Another small parcel for Niellon at 0.22 hectares. Situated above La Cabotte and below Bouchard, this is their only plot within Puligny. Situated on the limestone plateau, it took explosives to be able to plant the vines in 1968 and 1972.
Slight wood frame with a body of intensely closed & inward fruit.
Painfully closed, giving nothing except for glimpse of power. Very, very long.
Jono Hersey, FWC
*As is always the case when tasting Niellon Grand Cru’s in their youth, they are intensely inward and reveal extremely little.
The 2023 Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru has an intense bouquet with crushed limestone, slightly more malic than Niellon’s Chassagnes. A touch of nuttiness develops with aeration. There is a pleasing strictness here. The palate is well-balanced with a fine bead of acidity, taut and fresh. There is a little CO2 in the barrel sample, yet the energy is palpable on the finish, and it feels long and sustained in the mouth.
94-96 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Michel Niellon Chassagne Montrachet Rouge
Chassagne-Montrachet was once predominately Pinot Noir, about 70% PN to 30% Chardonnay. However, with the popularity of Montrachet appended wines it became a commercial no brainer to convert the vineyards to Chardonnay. While my preference is Chardonnay in the village there is no denying that Chassagne Rouge is a very good Red Burgundy and even more so when you consider the value. Michel's daughter, Lucie, is in charge of the red wine vinification and excels in this department. The Domaine has 1.5 ha in total.
Domaine Jean-Baptiste Boudier, Pernand Vergelesses
These wines have immediate wow factor. That is, they are energetic yet ripe and velvety Pinot Noirs. The Chardonnays are pure and mineral, just as you would expect from Pernand-Vergelesses. Jean-Baptiste has a delicate touch and understands the land. This is a producer to watch, his first vintage being in 2015 and only just inheriting more vineyards to bring the count from three to six hectares as of the 2021 vintage and I believe a few more parcels as of last year. Highly recommended.
Producer note: Allen Meadows, The Burghound:
For those readers who are not familiar with the young and extremely talented Jean-Baptiste Boudier, please see Issue 90 for an introduction to both him and his domaine.
The young Jean-Baptiste Boudier is a trained oenologist and comes from a long line of vignerons, but he is the first in his family to directly commercialize his wines in any meaningful quantity. After working in a variety of regions, including Burgundy (he is second cousins with Nicolas Rossignol), he began in 2015 with only 3 ha of vines and has slowly added to that core to where he now farms 6.5 ha. He presently declares wines in 11 different appellations where 80% of the production is in red and is spread mostly over the communes of Savigny, Aloxe and Pernand. His approach in the vines is presently lutte raisonnée (a system whereby the vines are treated only when there are actual signs of disease pressure, not in anticipation of them) though he told me that he is progressively moving to a 100% organic regimen. The harvest is performed manually and the fruit is sorted twice, once in the vineyard and again in the cuverie. Whole clusters are used in the indigenous yeast only vinifications though he stresses that nothing is systematic and the use of stems is more of a feeling than a preordained notion. He employs more of an infusion approach during a 12-to-14-day cuvaison, which he believes is enough to obtain the best the fruit has to offer without any of the astringency that longer fermentations sometimes extract. The élevage can vary as well because even though most of the reds see 14 to 15 months, for some wines and vintages, he will allow them 18-to-20 months in around 25% new wood (though in 2021, it was zero). The wines are not fined and rarely filtered, though Boudier again stresses that if he thinks a wine would benefit from it, he is not philosophically opposed to doing so. Boudier told me that above all, he wants to craft wines of elegance and finesse where the underlying terroir is more easily allowed to express itself. As he noted, "I'm just here to help reveal what is already in the fruit." I was impressed by what I found here and this is a young Burgundian to follow going forward. (Becky Wasserman & Co., www.leserbet.com, Beaune, France; Skurnik Wines, www.skurnik.com, NY, USA; Haynes, Hanson & Clark, www.hhandc.co.uk, UK; and Corney & Barrow, www.corneyandbarrow.com, Hong Kong.
Neal Martin, Vinous.com:
Jean-Baptiste Boudier excels with elegant, minimalist wines from his 6.5 hectares of vineyards. Boudier’s wines embody everything that Burgundy is all about, namely an expression of place delivered with a human, almost fragile, feeling of transparency. The whites are delicate and understated in feel. I found the reds surprisingly fresh. The Corton-Renardes saw about 40% whole clusters, while all the other fruit was destemmed.
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Pernand Vergelesses Blanc
A one-hectare plot, two thirds planted in the 50s and the rest in 90s. Quite high sites; half just below the forest and the other at 400 metres facing west. Both in shallow soils.
Waxy lemon rind, crushed white florals, glace lemon, lime pith & a nuance of savoury dried pineapple and grapefruit.
The palate has a waxy, lemon rind texture with a beautiful core of limestone minerality that has brilliant drive & length.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2023 Pernand-Vergelesses is a bright, nervy village-level white. Citrus peel, chamomile, dried herbs, mint and slate give this mid-weight Burgundy terrific energy and mineral-driven cut. This is a fine entry-level offering from Jean-Baptiste Boudier, a wine that marries tension and persistence in style. This was bottled in July 2024.
88 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Pernand Vergelesses 1er Cru Sous Fretille Blanc
A miniscule 0.11-hectare plot planted in the 50s with some replanting over the last ten years. South east facing, at the top of the slope.
An initial oak approach which begins to dissipate with air to reveal an energetic, waxy citrus character of both lemon & lime with a little savoury glaze grapefruit.
Lemon & grapefruit juice with a little unripe pineapple and a nuance of supporting sweet spiced oak.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
The 2023 Pernand-Vergelesses Sous Fretille 1er Cru is a classic Domaine Jean-Baptiste Boudier wine. Aromatic and lithe, yet with very fine depth, the 2023 is positively stellar. Tangerine peel, mint, spice, dried flowers and a kiss of French oak all take shape in the glass. The 2023 was just bottled two weeks ago, but it is showing so well today.
92 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Aloxe Corton 'Les Combe' Blanc
Lying alongside Les Fichots of Pernand. 50% planted in 1942 and the rest replanted in 2021. .37ha.
The 2023 Aloxe-Corton Les Combes is a delight. White pepper, pear, slate, crushed rocks, mint and tangerine peel are finely sculpted throughout. Light tropical inflections appear later, adding an attractive flair. The 2023 is not super-complex, but it is inviting and delicious.
89 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Corton Charlemagne 'Le Corton'
A miniscule .06 hectare plot on the east facing slope directly below the forest. Planted in 1961
The 2023 Corton Charlemagne Le Charlemagne is such a classy wine. Hints of apricot, orange jam, white flowers and truffle grace the palate. A whole range of tropical inflections follow as this builds from the mid-palate and into the finish. The 2023 is a very good wine, but frankly, it could be better. Then again, production is just a single 350-liter barrel. Making wine at this microscopic scale is fraught with logistical challenges that are impossible to fully compensate for.
91-93 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Bourgogne Rouge 'Les Barrigards'
A .24 ha parcel planted in 1979. Located in Ladoix Serrigny.
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Savigny les Beaune Rouge
From two parcels, ⅔ Les Pieullets (1999) and ⅓ Ez Connardises(1998). .54 ha in total.
Beautifully ripe cherry, red currant, violet, ripe strawberry. Charming in the most delicious sense with ripeness but retaining purity & freshness.
The palate is sumptuous but with a fine yet granular tannins which hold the ripe, charming fruit with a little poise & structure.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
Note: from a holding in the villages portions of two-thirds Peuillets and the remainder from Ez Connardises that total .52 ha
Pretty and fresh aromas include those of airy red berries, earth, spice and a violet top note. The caressing but punchy middle weight flavors display good detail on the rich and mildly rustic finale. This could easily be enjoyed young or with 3 to 5 years of keeping.
88 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
The 2023 Savigny-lès-Beaune is a very pretty, elegant wine. Silky tannins and lifted aromatics give the 2023 lovely finesse. Bright red-toned fruit, blood orange, cinnamon and rose petal linger on the soft finish. What a delight. This was bottled in late July 2024.
89 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Savigny les Beaune 1er Cru Les Peuillets Rouge
.86 ha planted in 1986. Les Peuillets sits to the left of the A6 as you descend from the Hautes Cotes.
Same ripe sumptuous fruit profile but with with an additional haunting, ethereal lift that fills the olfactory. A little more underlying darker fruits of plum & cassis.
The palate is sumptuous but lighter on its feet than the previous with beautiful energy & finer & more resolved tannins.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
This is also aromatically quite pretty with its more floral-suffused aromas of mostly red cherry and discreet spice and earth wisps. There is a bit more volume to the succulent, rich and seductively textured medium weight flavors that culminate in a firmer and more youthfully austere finale. In contrast to the Savigny villages, this will need at least a couple of years of bottle aging first.
90 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
The 2023 Savigny-lès-Beaune Les Peuillets 1er Cru is rich and exuberant, within the style of the appellation. Dark red cherry, lavender and spice are front and center. The 2023 was bottled just two weeks before this tasting but remains beautifully expressive and especially generous.
92 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Pernand Vergelesses 1er Cru Les Fichots Rouge
Below Les Vergelesses producing powerful Pinot Noir. Planted in 1955.
More restrained, more mineral, showing just glimpses of ripe red cherry, redcurrant.
The palate is tighter, mineral with ripe granular tannins all wrapped in discreet but ripe red fruits. Quite tense. Long with brilliant structure.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
A markedly fresher nose consists of bright and just crushed red pinot fruit along with plenty of newly turned earth. There is notably more power and muscle, if less refinement, to the larger-bodied flavors that are supported by a firm core of ripe tannins on the youthfully austere and moderately rustic finale. This is pretty much textbook Fichots.
92 Points. Outstanding, Top Value.
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
The 2023 Pernand-Vergelesses Les Fichots 1er Cru is so expresssive. Bright, high-toned fruit, chalk, mint, white pepper, slate and dried herbs all run through this nervy, salivating young Pernand. The 2023 was bottled in October 2024.
91 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Aloxe Corton Rouge
Planted in 1942, 1 ha.
More delicate. An open nose with lighter, less dense fruit but still with breadth and relatively round fruit. Nuance of mountain herbs and black tea.
Quite round & open in nature with edges of black tea, fine granular tannins. Retains length and power if not delicate.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
There is just enough reduction to push the fruit to the background but it's sufficiently light that I would not expect it to last for long. Otherwise there is good power and volume to the equally sized flavors that possess a bit more refinement if not the same depth and persistence. Even so, this is a very good Aloxe villages and recommended.
90 Points, Outstanding, Top Value
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
The 2023 Aloxe-Corton Les Combes, bottled one week before this tasting, offers up an attractive mix of dark-fleshed fruit, spice, leather, cedar and rose petal. Translucent and nuanced, yet with palpable depth, Les Combes is another fine offering in this range from Domaine Jean-Baptiste Boudier. All it needs is a year or two in bottle to fully come together.
91 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2023 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Corton Rouge 'Les Renardes' Grand Cru
.48 ha planted between 1950 and 1961.
Surprisingly high honed with tension, limestone & perfume leaping from the sumptuously ripe strawberry & raspberry fruit. The palate has a classically powerful, blocky tannin structure wrapped in suave, sweet yet light & moreish strawberry fruit.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
A perfumed, fresh and much more floral-suffused nose speaks of plum, spice and a discreet hint of earth. The succulent, generously proportioned and rich big-bodied flavors exhibit evident muscle and power that seems to build on the youthfully austere and strikingly long finale. This built-to-age effort should easily repay a decade plus of keeping.
93 Points, Sweet Spot
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
The 2023 Corton Renardes Grand Cru is a stylish, elegant offering from this site where wines tend to be quite potent and brooding. Dark fruit, incense, leather, gravel and cured meats all soar out of the glass. Hints of orange peel and dried herbs appear later, adding further layers of dimension. The 40% stems are very nicely integrated.
92-94 Points
Neal Martin, Vinous.com
2022 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Aloxe Corton Rouge
The 2022 Aloxe-Corton Les Combes is another very pretty, inviting wine in this range. It offers up scents of rose petal, cinnamon, dried herbs and sweet red cherry fruit, all in an airy, subtle style that can be enjoyed upon release. This soft, open-knit Aloxe-Corton is very nicely done.
89 Points
Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com
2022 Domaine Jean-Bapstiste Boudier Corton Rouge 'Les Renardes' Grand Cru
This is also lightly reduced though hints of earth and spice are perceptible. The super-sleek, delicious and intense flavors are not especially dense but I very much like the texture and evident minerality that imparts a sense of lift to the balanced, mildly austere and lingering finale. This could also use better depth but more should reasonably develop if given a chance.
92 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
Domaine Amiot, Morey St Denis
Now run by father-and-son team Jean-Louis and Léon Amiot, this ten-generation estate works just five hectares spread across Morey, Gevrey and Chambolle, with blue-chip plots in Clos de la Roche, Les Millandes and Charmes-Chambertin. Since taking the reins in 2020, Léon has pushed the domaine toward organics, introduced touches of biodynamics and is trialling three pruning styles to hit true phenolic ripeness at civilised alcohol levels. The result is Morey charm in a leaner, brighter register—silky red fruit, savoury spice and limestone snap, all delivered with the clarity of a domaine on the move.
2022 Domaine Amiot Bourgogne Aligote
From the "Pré des Longeroies" parcel in Morey-Saint-Denis. Planted in 1986. 1200 bottles produced each year.
2022 Domaine Amiot Morey St Denis Blanc
Sourced from two small parcels—Le Village and Très Girard—on limestone-rich soils. 900 bottles made annually.
2022 Domaine Amiot Coteux Bourguignons Rouge
A near equal blend of Pinot Noir and Gamay.
Freeze dried strawberry, musk, violet & florals lift from the glass. On second whiff an underglying sweet fruit character creates another dimension to the vibrant fresh fruit.
The palate is energetic, lively with ripe tannins and beautiful fruit.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
2022 Domaine Amiot Bourgogne Rouge
From En Poisot below the N74, with a vine age of 40 years. Miniscule production totalling 2800 bottles, from 0.35 hectares.
2022 Domaine Amiot Morey St Denis Rouge
The two main parcels are those of Chenevery and Clos Solon with additions from Très Girard, Porroux, Les Crais and Les Brâs totalling 1.85 hectares.
The vine age varies between 25 and 60 years of age.
Freeze dried strawberries, freeze dried raspberries. Violet lifts from a ripe black plum & griotte base. Very detailed, ever changing. Sumptuous but with good transparency.
The palate has beautifully ripe, silky tannins with ripe cherry milk concentration. Suave & long. Very fine mouthfeel. Special.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
Note: the main parcels are those of Chenevery, Chenevery Bas and Clos Solon with additions from Très Girard, En Seuvrey, Porroux, Les Crais and Les Brâs
Ripe, fresh and pretty aromas combine notes of just crushed plum and cassis. There is both good vibrancy and punch to the utterly delicious middleweight flavors that possess a velvety mid-palate before concluding in a bitter pit fruit-inflected finish that offers competent depth and persistence.
87-89 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
2022 Domaine Amiot Gevrey Chambertin
Initially apparent is the mineral, wet stone & moss on black, ripe plum and griotte.
The palate has the same sumptuous, silky soft ripe tannins that ooze along the palate with beautiful, delicious length. Very special. Quite bright & with a little pleasing pretty acidity appears on its long length.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
2022 Domaine Amiot Morey St Denis 1er Cru Aux Charmes
Just over one hectare of 50-year vines next to Grand Cru Charmes Chambertin.
Slight wood frames the powerful black ffruit with an underlying sumptuos blue fruit flavours. With time in the glass it begins to become 'lighter' with more detail.
The palate is more restrained with again a slight wood frame around the very ripe, dense fruit and tannins.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
Somewhat quixotically, this is both aromatically riper and fresher with its layered mix of red and dark pinot fruit, anise and soft floral wisps. The delicious, rich and quite suave medium-bodied flavors possess slightly more power on the notably more complex and persistent finish where a touch of bitter pit fruit emerges.
89-91 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
2022 Domaine Amiot Chambolle Musigny
Note: from Drazey, Les Barottes and Argillières
This is aromatically quite similar to the Morey villages but with perhaps just a bit more freshness. The finer if not denser medium weight flavors do flash more evident minerality as well as a touch of youthful austerity on the balanced if not especially complex finale that is slightly firmer.
87-89 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
2022 Domaine Amiot Morey St Denis 1er Cru Les Blanchards
From a small parcel measuring 0.17 hectares in the centre of the village with a vine age of 50 years.
Note: from a small parcel measuring .17 ha
Moderate wood sets off spicier aromas of poached plum, red and blue pinot fruit and more evident earth influence. There is both fine verve and freshness suffusing the more mineral-driven medium weight flavors that flash good power on the balanced and youthfully austere and firmer finish that offers slightly better persistence.
89-92 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
2022 Domaine Amiot Morey St Denis 1er Cru Les Millandes
One hectare of 30-60-year old vines, directly below Clos Saint Denis.
At little higher toned, a much more mineral inflicted nose, straighter, less fruit, more savoury.
The palate has a firm structure with more present tannins yet still ripe (just less silk). Ripe fruit encompasses the aggressive long structure with good length.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
Here too there is enough wood to merit mentioning surrounding the mildly riper aromas of plum, cassis, warm earth and a hint of underbrush character. The sleek, delicious and tension-filled larger-bodied and tautly muscular flavors display the hallmark power of a classic Millandes, all wrapped in a lingering and mouthcoating finish. This will likely need all of a decade to reach its peak.
90-92 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
2022 Domaine Amiot Morey St Denis 1er Cru Les Ruchots
Just over one hectare of vines directly beneath Clos de Tart, vines are in excess of 55 years.
More fruit, more scale with the introduction of cassis & liqueur depth & strength. Slightwood frame, ever changing but will require alot of time to seduce its own power.
The palate is powerful, broad & mouth coating with ripe tannin & ripe cassis fruit. Very long, tightly wound and will require an enormous length of time.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
Once again there is enough wood to point out but not so much as to impair the expressiveness of the very ripe yet still reasonably fresh liqueur-like aromas of poached plum, cassis and a vaguely exotic tea nuance. The sleeker and finer if less powerful middleweight flavors possess a caressing, even sappy, mouthfeel while display fine length on the ever-so-slightly warm and dusty finale that isn't quite as well-balanced.
89-92 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
2022 Domaine Amiot Gevrey Chambertin 1er Cru Les Combottes
A fantastic site completely surrounded by grand crus. It is in a very slight ditch meaning it just doesn’t get the same exposure as its neighbours.Varying vine age between 15 and 75 years.
Note: from a .62 ha parcel
A more elegant and more floral nose freely reveals its aromas of red and black raspberry, violet and a similar hint of exotic tea. The innate elegance of a fine Combottes is immediately evident with the refined and lacy flavors that exude a subtle minerality on the dusty, linear, youthfully austere and beautifully detailed finale. This is refined but quite firm so some patience will be necessary.
90-93 Points. Outstanding
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
2022 Domaine Amiot Clos de la Roche Grand Cru
Powerful yet fine, resolved with very pretty florals & fine ripe fruit. A kaleidoscope of beautiful flavours & nuances yet still so tight & inward.
So lovely, tight yet sumptuous and silky yet present.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
Note: from 4 separate parcels that total .56 ha located in Monts Luisants, Fremières and Chabiots
Here the wood treatment is no longer subtle though it's not so prominent as to overshadow the fresh aromas of black cherry, cassis and just crushed fennel. The sleek and caressing bigger-bodied flavors possess evident power and muscle while the intensity seems to build from the mid-palate to the impressively long, austere, built-to-age and quite serious finale. This is definitely a wine to buy and cellar as it's not likely to be especially approachable young.
91-94 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
2022 Domaine Amiot Charmes Chambertin Grand Cru
Note: from fruit in Mazoyères that is an exchange for fruit in Clos de la Roche
Smoky wood and a hint of roasted coffee can be found on the ripe and pretty red berry fruit-scented nose. The gorgeously textured if not especially dense flavors possess excellent delineation and a lovely sense of tension that carries over to the youthfully austere and linear finish that is sufficiently firm to make clear that at least a decade of keeping will be necessary.
91-93 Points
Allen Meadows, The Burghound
Mas de Daumas Gassac, Languedoc
Tucked into a cool, forested valley outside Aniane, this family-run estate—founded by Aimé and Véronique Guibert in 1970—has long been hailed as the “Grand Cru of the Midi,” the Languedoc’s answer to Lafite. Its high-drainage limestone and rare red glacial soils yield age-worthy, Cabernet-led reds and an idiosyncratic white built on Viognier, Chardonnay and a dozen rarities. Alongside these flagships sits the easy-drinking Moulin de Gassac range, including a bright, cherry-scented Pinot Noir that delivers serious value. Organic farming, low-intervention winemaking and a micro-climate cooled by mountain breezes keep the wines vibrant, savoury and unmistakably Gassac.
2023 Mas de Daumas Gassac Sparkling Rose
Ripe red fruits, plum, mountain herbs & plenty of fleshy fruit cleaned up by plenty of salinity.
The palate is bright, saline & salivating. A very fun and delish wine.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
A feather-light, 12 %-abv sparkler cut from young Cabernet Sauvignon and Mourvèdre on white clay. Fine, insistent bubbles lift wild-strawberry and red-currant perfume, finishing bone-dry and absurdly refreshing. Chill it hard (4-6 °C) and drink within two years while the fruit still crackles. Think of it as Languedoc’s answer to Italian Espumante—only with Gassac’s signature limestone snap.
2023 Mas de Daumas Gassac IGP Saint Guilhem le Desert Blanc
A wild, limestone-grown field blend—almost half Viognier with Petit Manseng, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and a smattering of rarities—this white has two distinct lives. In its youth, citrus, white-flower perfume and flinty/mineral; with time it turns honeyed, nutty and intriguingly oxidative, Jura-meets-Graves in style.
A more closed nose with concentrated tropical fruit, lemon rind, brown lime cordial, crushed chalk, mountain herbs, Ianolin & honeysuckle that entwine & change.
Mouth coating with plenty of puppy faty fat and glycerol that is broken up by a line of crushed rock minerality. Alluring grapefruit spice lingers & lightens the the weight.
-Jono Hersey, FWC
Revealing a dense, complex bouquet of ripe orchard fruits, honeysuckle, confit citrus, watermelon, spices and flowers, the 2023 IGP Saint Guilhem le Desert Blanc possesses a dense, round and enveloping palate with a fleshy, sweet core of fruit and residual sugar that brings a sweet, long and somewhat ethereal finish with spicy touches. Quite singular, this seamless white wine should age gracefully over the next decade, promising continuing evolution.
92+ Points
Yohan Castaing, The Wine Advocate
2023 Mas de Daumas Gassac Rouge
Often hailed as the “Grand Cru of the Midi,” this flagship red is driven by 70–80 % Cabernet Sauvignon, fleshed out with a dozen Mediterranean curiosities, all rooted in the estate’s cool, limestone and red-glacial soils near Aniane. Native-yeast fermentations in concrete and a year in seasoned oak shape a claret-like frame—blackcurrant, cedar, garrigue and graphite—while the southern sun adds depth without excess weight. Built to age two decades yet approachable with a hearty decant, it’s proof that Languedoc can rival Bordeaux on its own terms.
2024 Moulin de Gassac Pinot Noir
Grown on limestone-rich slopes cooled by valley breezes, this is a Mediterranean wine (and price tag) that shows the cool-climate, limestone signature of the north that Pinot Noir loves so much. It delivers terrific value: not pretending to be the world’s most complex Pinot Noir, just laser-focused on balance.