Burgundy

Always supple, seductive, and fruit-driven with ripe sweet cherry, raspberry and redcurrant and hints of oak spice, the wines from Chauvenet-Chopin are food-friendly, and provide good early drinking with richness, ripeness and balance. The new labels brought in from the 2006 vintage are stylish and modern and are a real selling point. With great consistency of style and great continuity, these wines are ideal for any wine list!

Domaine Chandon de Briailles has one of the grandest chateau's in the region, and is surrounded by beautiful gardens as well as the owner Count Aymard-Claude de Nicolay's own private airfield and a huge collection of classic aircraft! The domaine is fully organic and biodynamic and the winmaker concentrates on making very traditional styles of wine, crisp and fresh and reflecting the terroir of each parcel. Soft and generous, the wines drink very well in their youth, gaining further depth and complexity with ageing.

Jacques Gagnard very suddenly and very sadly died in early 2009 after a short illness. We will greatly miss his energy and enthusiasm as he led us through legendarily long tasting sessions, as well as, of course, the passion that he put into his winemaking. He leaves a great legacy behind in his final vintage, the 2008s. The wines are, as expected, of excellent quality - complex, intense and refined. A must buy for all lovers of this great domaine.

Hubert & Olivier Lamy's vineyards are stretched out across the Côte de Beaune, with sites in St-Aubin, Puligny-Montrachet, Chassagne-Montrachet and Santenay. Three quarters of the plantings are of Chardonnay and one quarter Pinot Noir.

This historic château, surrounded by a moat and beautiful gardens, is home to the Germain family, who run it as a hotel as well as making wine from their 17 hectares of adjoining vineyards. Benoît Germain is in charge of the winemaking, and since he took over the vineyards have been managed organically, with great respect both for the environment and the terroir. The village wines are soft, fruity, approachable and great value for money, whilst the 1er Crus are rich, powerful and serious with a tight structure and long ageing potential.

The domaine of Henri Gouges was established in Nuits-St-Georges at the very beginning of the twentieth century. Founded by Henri Gouges, it was subsequently developed by his two sons Michel and Marcel. More recently Pierre and Christian Gouges, Henri's grandsons, have carried on the traditions of the estate with Pierre tending the vines and Christian in charge of the vinification. The domaine is certified organic from the 2008 vintage.

Robert Chevillon has about 13 hectares of vineyards in Nuits-St-Georges, with some magnificent old plots still in production - some of the vines are up to 80 years old. The wines are certainly is the top tier of quality in Nuits-St-Georges.

The legendary Joseph Roty sadly died in 2008, leaving a great legacy behind him. His eldest son Philippe, who had been working with his father for many years, is now in charge of the winemaking, whilst Joseph's younger son Pierre-Jean tends the vines and his daughter runs the office. The wines of 2007, Joseph's last vintage, and fine, ripe and expressive, with great structure and length. They will not disappoint lovers of this cult domaine.

As well as making wine for the family domaine of Joseph Roty, Philippe has been running his own domaine for many years, buying or renting small parcels in and around Gevrey-Chambertin and Marsannay. Indeed, his Côte de Nuits Villages vineyard is actually his back garden, meaning they are amongst his most tended vines! The wines here are in every way comparable to the family domaine, ripe, concentrated and complex.

Every since the domaine was founded by Julien Damoy in the early 20th century, it has produced top-quality wines that are highly expressive of each vineyard's unique terroir. The domaine is now made up of 11 hectares, with nearly eight hectares of Grand Cru vineyards, one of the largest holdings of any domaine, but the jewel in its crown is the 20 acres of Clos de Beze, much of it planted back in 1920.

Eugénie estate was born following the acquisition of René Engel estate by François Pinault of Château Latour during the summer 2006. The estate – named after his grandmother - is situated in Vosne-Romanée, in the heart of La Côte de Nuits between Nuits-Saint-Georges and Gevrey Chambertin. This village is considered to be the treasure of big wines of Burgundy.

Paul Pillot, born into a family of winegrowers, is the 3rd generation to foster the family passion, and he has clearly passed this onto the 4th generation, as his son Thierry and daughter Chrystell have both joined the family domaine.

Patrick Javillier's wines are typified by their rich flavours of tropical and citrus fruit with creamy and nutty oak. The Bourgogne Cuvées Oligocene and Forgets are some of the most serious Bourgognes you can find, and really are great value for money. All of the wines provide excellent early drinking, but can easily age for 5 - 10 years.

Francois and his son Antoine make very small quanities of outstanding Meursault in their small cellar under the family house. Minerality and purity are the key adjectives here, and the wines are refined, taut and complex. The domaine uses very little new oak and concentrates on allowing each vintage to express its own individuality, with very little manipulation in the cellars. The wines show at their best with a few years of bottle ageing, though the 2008s have enough richness for drinking a little younger than is usual for this domaine.

Louis Carillon, always one of the highlights of the Burgundy buying trips, is amongst the top producers in Puligny Montrachet. The wines are pure, elegant and refined, with a focus fully expressing the differing terroir of each vineyard. The 2008s are typified by their ripeness, minerality and crisp acidity. Only a handful of cases are left over from our En Primeur campaign, so snap them up while you can!

The 24 hectare domaine of Tollot-Beaut sits modestly in the centre of Chorey-lès-Beaune. Nathalie Tollot is the most welcoming of hosts, and is always happy to show visitors round and taste the wines with them. There are also many other Tollots to be seen in the wineries and the vineyards; uncle Jack, father Alain and Nathalie's cousins Jean-Paul and Olivier.

Jacqueline Mugneret took over the domaine in 1988 after the death of her husband, Georges. Together with her daughters Marie-Christine and Marie-Andrée, Jacqueline has continued the great tradition of the Mugneret family, making wines of great elegance and finesse. The primary ambition of the domaine is to demonstrate the greatest respect possible for their Pinot Noir, preserving the delicacy, fruit and freshness of the grapes, and allowing the most complete expression of each terroir. The complex and delicate wines reflect this alluring philosophy.

Sylvie Esmonin is an energetic and passionate winemaker, and an avid traditionalist. The domaine is fully organic but not certified, since she started following this route long before it became fashionable and sees no reason why she should now have to submit to inspections when she was doing it long before they were.

The recipe at the 20ha Billaud Simon camp is a combination of great vineyard sites, the latest winemaking technology and 95 years of family know-how crafting some of the regions finest wines. It is a family orientated business with Samuel Billaud Simon making the wine and his uncle Bernard taking care of the administration.

The wines from this estate have world-wide recognition which is unsurprising considering they fashion some of the finest and longest lived white wines in the whole of Burgundy. They benefit from judicious oak ageing which adds to the structure and complexity to the wine.

Francine and Olivier Savary are at the helm of this estate which was established back in 1984. A simple range, produced from old vines in good vineyard sites ensures quality wines are crafted year on year. The wines here are typical Chablis with the primary fruit characters of cruchy green apple and tart citrus fruit combining with the background hints of sea air, chalk dust and minerality. These are classic Chablis' which would compliment any wine list.

Laurent Tribut lives in the small village of Poinchy with his wife and daughter and makes tiny quantities of very fine Chablis on his 5.2-hectare estate, which encompasses three 1er crus; Beauroy, Côte de Lechet and Montmains.

Domaine Michel Juillot is one of the leading estates in the Côte Chalonnaise village of Mercurey. The domaine's 30 hectares of vines are spread over the best sites in Mercurey, as well as vineyards in the Côte de Beaune. Laurent Juillot is the fourth generation to run the domaine, and he has obviously inherited his father Michel's attention to detail and focus on quality. The domaine produces a varied range of wines, from village Bourgogne up to the Grand Crus of Corton Perrières and Corton Charlemagne, but Laurent puts just as much effort into the vineyard management and winemaking of his entry level wines as he does his Grand Crus, and this is reflected in the quality across all price levels.

Nestled high above the village of Fuissé, Domaine Cordier is one of the top estates in Maconnais. His ever expanding range is testament to his ongoing mission to acquire new vineyards. The wines are made very much in the Côtes de Beaune mould, with barrel aging being the norm. They have brilliant delineation, terroir and extraordinary richness. Some would say that his Vers Cras cuveé is the finest wine being produced in the Pouilly Fuissé appellation.

The Forest estate is based in the village of Vergisson, the highest of the five villages in the Pouilly-Fuissé appellation. The microclimate here is marginally cooler and the soil is less chalky than most of Pouilly-Fuissé which gives an individual style to the wines produced. The wine is barrel fermented and then matured in oak casks for 10 months. Forest is considered the best grower in Vergisson but also competes with the very best in the Pouilly-Fuissé appellation.

Catherine and Didier Tripoz took over this flagging domaine in the 1990s and have worked hard to restore it to glory. The 10 hectares of vineyard are situated to the south of the Maconnais region, close to the great vineyards of Pouilly-Fuissé. The Clos des Tournons is made from the grapes of a single walled vineyard and is one of their best sites. The wine is fruit driven with apple and citrus flavours and a long elegant finish. It seees no oak ageing, and is crisp and refreshing.

St-Véran is steeped in history and would compete for being one of the prettiest villages in France. The wine from Michel Chavet represents terrific value for money and would sit perfectly at the head of any Burgundy list. The wine is given a long period of cool fermentation in large stainless steel tanks to ensure it retains its acidity, freshness and expression of fruit without masking the wines true personality.

For the last 130 years, Maison Joseph Drouhin has been in the hands of the Drouhin family. Today, the fourth generation is at the helm, animated by the same passion that inspired the founder of the company. Joseph Drouhin has adopted the biological and biodynamic approach. Only natural products are used in the vineyards and all procedures show the utmost respect for the soil, the vine and the environment.