Domaine Bruno CLAVELIER -- 2023 Tasted from Bottle and Barrel Samples
Bruno Clavelier said that in 2023 it rained when he wanted it to, and although there was a lot of sun, he did not get solar wines. He began harvesting on 8 September with the Corton and finished on 14 September with the Gevrey-Corbeaux, Combes Brulées in Vosne, Yields were 25-28 hl/ha for the oldest vines.
2023 Bourgogne-Aligoté
Tasted from bottle. Vines planted in 1924. This wine is round and ripe, yet still shows restraint and freshness that supports the richness. This is an outstanding Aligoté of its type. 89/A
2023 vin de France Chardonnay Les Glapigny
Tasted from bottle. Vines here are 75 years old. The nose is stony and crisp, and the mouth is crisp, fresh, and mineral. Raised entirely in cask, but no new wood. 87/A-
Moving now to the reds:
2023 Bourgogne Passetoutgrains
From bottle. Pure, fresh, good concentration to the red fruits, smooth and round texture. 85% Pinot Noir, 15% Gamay. One parcel is 100 years-old, the other is 75 years-old. 88/A
2023 Bourgogne Pinot Noir Les Champs d’Argent
From bottle. This wine is smooth and refined with purity, length, and round tannins. Part of the vines date to the 1950s, part from the 1980s. No new oak here, but about 40% whole clusters. 90/A
From here on, the wines are all tasted from barrel samples.
2023 vin de France Les Chailles
This is from vines that were planted in 2015. The plot had been classified as Vosne-Romanée before phylloxera, but as it was not replanted until long afterwards, it lost its appellation rights. The appellation has now been restored to this plot, but for the moment, Bruno is keeping it as vin de France because it adjoins other Vosne-Romanée lieu-dits. The wine is pure, fresh, and elegant with red cherry fruit. Very sophisticated. (89-91)
2023 Vosne-Romanée Les Hauts des Beaux-Monts
This wine comes from a plot that is 300 meters in altitude. The wine is racy, pure, energetic, and penetrating and features red cherry fruit. (91-93)
2023 Vosne-Romanée La Combe Brulée
The Vosne, Combe Brulée is stony in the nose. The mouth is juicier than that of Les Hauts des Beaux-Monts, but the wine is fresh, airy, penetrating, and energetic. (91-93)
2023 Vosne-Romanée Les Hautes Maizières
The previous Vosne wines were from parcels high on the slope with thin soils and plenty of stone; with this wine, we go to the bottom of the slopes with soils richer in clay. The result is a richer wine. The fruits are still predominantly red, but there are also darker hues here. Good length, freshness, and purity. (90-92)
2023 Vosne-Romanée La Montagne
Back up to a higher elevation, the plot here has full exposition to the winds coming from the Combe and is 3ºC (5.4ºF) cooler than Michel Gros’s nearby vines in Brulées. The vines here date from the beginning of the 1920s. This wine is structured and very direct (droit in French) with a smooth texture, red fruits, and good length in the mouth, (91-93)
2023 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Corbeaux
Continuing to another cool climat, here there is dark fruit, richness, and the finesse of the vintage; good freshness and power here. (92-95)
2023 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Brulées
Clavelier’s Vosne-Brulées features violets and dark fruits. The wine is light on the tongue and very refined. There is an immediate, strong attack of fruit that tails of with elegance, and the texture is silky. From vines planted in the 1950s. (92-95)
2023 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Beaux Monts
The Beaux Monts is on another level, with more power and completeness than the Brulées, red and dark fruits, and a velvet texture. (94-97)
2023 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Noirots
The Chambolle-Noirots is a combination of power and finesse. It is very light on the palate with great length, and dark fruits and blood orange elements. The soils here have plenty of clay and there is a red hue to the limestone, so that the wine takes on some of the characteristics of the terres rouges sector of Bonnes-Mares upslope. (93-95)
2023 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru La Combe d’Orveaux
La Combe d’Orveaux is the vineyard that borders the southern edge of Musigny. In 1855, Clavelier’s portion was classified as Musigny, and indeed there is always a strong resemblance to Musigny in its characteristics, The wine has a velvet texture and is light and pure on the tongue with penetrating dark fruits, length, elegance, and mouth-filling intensity. (95-97)
2023 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Aux Cras
This gives a wine in 2023 that is pure and precise with red fruits; it develops in the mouth like the columns that rise in a Gothic cathedral with the light coming in through the stained glass behind them. It is magnificent. (95-98)
2023 Corton Le Rognet
Not to be outdone, the Corton is intense, deep, pure, long, and structured, but also shows finesse and sensuality. It will take some time to mature but should be incredible. (95-98)
When I mention Bruno Clavelier to other producers, without exception, I get a nod of the highest respect. If you don’t know his wines, it will be worth your effort to do so.