Domaine CAMUS-BRUCHON (Savigny-les-Beaune): 2023s Tasted from Barrel and Tank Samples

In writing this piece, I began with a long introduction about how one can still find outstanding value in today’s high-priced Burgundy market, but then in reviewing my commentary from the previous year’s tasting at Camus-Bruchon, I see I said it back then, too, only more succinctly:

Savigny-les-Beaune from top producers provides some of the best values in both red and white (the white is somewhat rare, though) Burgundy. Among those in the top tier of Savigny, Camus-Bruchon is less well-known than it should be, and its wines are worth your making an effort to find.

Guillaume Camus said that he began the harvest on 5 September. It had been a complicated green harvest over the summer because of the difficulty in estimating how large the crop would be. In the end, he finished with 49 hl/ha. for the estate overall. Some malolactic fermentations finished quickly, others, such as the Bourgogne and Gravains, finished only in June. Alcohols range from 13.5º to13.9º. He used 30% whole clusters with the wines, and did no bleeding of the vats (saigner).

In addition to skilled viti- and viniculture, one of the domaine’s strengths is its collection of old vine sites. As a result, the 2023 reds here provide a major buying opportunity for those interested in quality Burgundy.

We start with the white wines:

2023 Bourgogne Côte d’Or Chardonnay
This is a new wine for the estate. Part of the vines were planted in the late 1980s, others in the 1970s. It shows more acidity than Savigny blanc below and, more freshness. The wine is not really complex but it is very pleasing for what it is. (87-89)

2023 Savigny-les-Beaune Les Goudelettes
White fruits, some richness, smooth, almost glossy texture. Mineral, moderate acidity. Same cellar treatment as the Bourgogne blanc above. The vines are mostly on a slope that has quite a bit of limestone, but there are also some on flatland near D974.(86-88)

On to the reds:

2023 Bourgogne Côte d’Or Pinot Noir
Spicy soy nose, deep, pure, round, ripe with red fruits, good concentration and power. No new oak used. (87-90)

2023 Chorey-les-Beaune Les Grands Sausy
Mineral dark fruits in nose. Dark fruits, good concentration, purity in the mouth. Raised in a mixture of 500-liter and 228-liter casks, giving 20% new oak. (88-90)

2023 Savigny-les-Beaune cuvée la Reine Joly
Good freshness, excellent concentration, power, mineral red fruits; good tannic structure. Very classic in style. Plenty of old vines here. (89-92)

2023 Savigny-les-Beaune Les Pimentiers
Great freshness, excellent concentration. Pure, Savigny mineral red fruits — strawberry, raspberry, red currant. From vines planted in 1929, 12,000 vines/hectare (10,000 is standard in Burgundy). One-quarter raised in 500-liter oak cask. (91-93)

2023 Savigny-les-Beaune Les Grands Liards
Beautiful, even haunting, nose with floral and strawberry aromas. In mouth, good concentration, a little more finesse than preceding wines. Wild Savigny strawberry fruit, good tannic structure. (91-94)

2023 Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Cru Les Les Lavières
Lighter more finesse than previous wines, good freshness, very penetrating and incisive. Lovely, pure, fresh red fruits with an underlying tannic structure. Some layering of fruit in the mouth. Can be drunk now but will improve with time. (92-94)

2023 Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Cru Aux Gravains.
More gentle structure than Lavières, but still very good concentration and density. Savigny red strawberry, mineral fruit. Planted in 1975. (92-94)

2023 Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Cru Les Narbantons
Rounder nose typical of the southern slope of Savigny (the previous two were from the northern slope). Lots of millerandage (shot berries) in this vineyard during the last few years. Light, very good finesse, plenty of concentration and density, spicy red fruits, rounder than preceding wine. Velvet texture with tannins nevertheless showing. Should age a long time. (93-95)

2023 Beaune 1er Cru Clos du Roi
Good concentration, velvet texture. Red and dark fruits but with a different minerality from that of the Savignys; less sharp; also, the spice tends more to licorice. Good acidity and freshness. Can drink now, but should age well. (91-94)

2023 Pommard 1er Cru Clos des Arvelets
Nice roundness, red fruits, medium-weight, good freshness, purity, some spices. The vines probably were planted in the 1960s. 30% new wood, 30% 1-year barrels, only in 228-liter barrels used here. (90-93)