Gevrey-Chambertin 2024: The best of the year’s ‘crisp and fresh’ wines

True to form, Rousseau’s 2024 Charmes-Chambertin is among the most approachable wines in the cellar, with a forward raspberry and blackberry aroma, hints of lavender, smoke and anise. The texture is supple, round and fully ripe; there is nothing astringent or tart here, and the wine has admirable length for the vintage. ‘Lively, singing wine,’ was my initial reaction. I imagine it will drink early but should have the stuffing for at least mid-term ageing.

‘What we left on the vines in 2023 we found again in 2024,’ was how Cyrielle Rousseau described the experience of harvesting the Clos St-Jacques, since there was so much mildew in the vines. The work demanded meticulous sorting, the result, however, is delicious, with an approachable, forward pomegranate fruit, silky tannins and a lingering finish. To enjoy in its youth, but it will bring pleasure indeed.

Vibrant and lively, a delightful wine with aromas of mulberry fruit and accents of violets, spice and smoke that grow over time. The structure is firmly tannic and fresh, but it has the extract to balance these elements and draw the wine to a winning finish. Yields were tiny here – the domaine was only able to produce two barrels from its 0.25ha of old vines, planted in 1920.

‘The king of the red,’ according to technical director Jérôme Flous, this is superb, with a ripe plum and raspberry fruit accented with notes of earth and spice. The texture is lighter and less dense than the 2023, but there is an essential elegance, balance and finesse that is marvellous. Fully ripe with supple tannins, good weight and length, Flous notes that 2024 will be the last vintage with two Chambertin-Clos de Bèze cuvées, as it was obliged to pull up a part of the vineyards, so all the Ouvrées Rodin grapes will be blended into one cuvée.

A top-level wine and not just for 2024, it would be a good wine for any year, with a hedonistic depth of ripe mulberry and plum fruit aromas, plus notes of rose petals, pepper and flint. The texture is supple and silky, almost fat; it's not like this overall rather lean vintage at all. The finish has impressive persistence on the palate. One collector remarked, ’Griotte is a soloist, the others just play in the orchestra.’

My initial reaction to this? ‘I could drink this all day long!’ It is a wine of uncommon exuberance with lush, forward aromas of mulberry fruit and hints of rose petals, earth and spice, and a texture where the underlying structure is balanced by fresh acidity and reverberates long on the palate, highlighting the superb depth of flavour. It is among the very best wines this year, but would be notable in any vintage.

Silky and accessible out of barrel, impressing with its ripe, lush cherry and blackberry fruit, hints of smoke and spice. The texture is structured but the tannins are fine-grained and supple, balanced by fresh acidity and fruit, leading to a lingering finish. This should open within a few years of release and drink well for another 20 years.

A charming surprise for the vintage, with a forward, ripe aroma of black cherry, violet and earth. The texture is dense and silky, and the balance between lush fruit and a supple yet supportive structure keeps the wine lingering on the palate. The grapes are from the lieu-dit Aux Charmes; they were purchased fruit and vinified using 30% whole bunches. The domaine has produced enough for a single, new 350-litre barrel from Tonnellerie Plantagenet cooperage.

Concentrated and powerful, boasting a rewarding aroma of black cherry, rose petal and liquorice, with a bright burst of limestone minerality. The texture is impressively dense for the vintage, with firm tannins and admirable depth of flavour. Antoine Amiot-Servelle remarked that it has deepened with time in the barrel. Produced from the same parcels that formerly supplied the Charmes-Chambertin En Mazoyères; it is now simply labelled Mazoyères-Chambertin.

Extremely successful, particularly for the vintage, with dense, ripe plum and blackberry fruit aromas with hints of leather and bramble. The texture is supple and velvety, with plenty of extract and enough freshness to ensure a lovely balance. The grapes are from two parcels, located mostly in Mazoyères, under Latricières, and just a bit in Aux Charmes, totalling nearly a hectare. The total production was only five and a half barrels, but the wine is delicious.

Fairly closed on the initial attack, in contrast to its exuberance in the last several vintages. On the palate, it opens slowly, revealing black plum fruit aromas with notes of earth, leather and spice. The texture is tannic and seemingly monolithic, but everything is in the right place and this should open with a bit of time. Yields were minuscule in 2024 – they cropped at 11hl/ha and ended up with just five barrels from nearly a hectare of vines.

The domaine managed just 10hl/ha in the Clos St-Jacques in 2024, resulting in three and a half barrels from 0.8ha. Fortunately, what remained was delightful, with a lilting, high-toned black cherry fruit and notes of anise and smoke. The texture is dense and the tannins are firm but there is no hint of astringency on the finish. The combination of old vines planted in 1957, poor soil and a bit of fanleaf virus have all conspired to make this a beautiful, concentrated wine.

The bright black cherry fruit, with hints of earth, smoke and spice, is seductive and elevates this to a higher level. The texture is elegantly balanced, but not lacking concentration and depth. Loïc Dugat-Py relates that he pulled the leaves on both sides of the vines to make sure that the old vines near Chapelle-Chambertin ripened as much as they could.

Riper and more approachable than many of the grands crus, with a medium-deep garnet colour and ripe, plummy fruit aromas on the initial attack. The texture is supple, yet there is admirable concentration here. The tannins are silky and the seemingly slightly lower acidity is very pleasant. The grapes are from Dujac’s 1.16ha holding in Combottes; they were fermented as 85% whole bunches and given a long, slow fermentation before ageing in barrel.

The evocative cherry fruit aromas with hints of rose petal and anise spice make this a classic expression of this grand cru. The lovely texture boasts a pleasant density, creamy, supple tannin and an impressively lingering finish for the vintage, with no hint of heaviness or astringency. The grapes are from 0.4ha in Aux Charmes; they were completely destemmed and gently fermented with a few punch downs. The wine is ageing now entirely in used barrels.

In the Fourrier cellar, the 2024 Champeaux has a deeper colour and a firmer texture than its premier cru siblings, yet the black cherry fruit aromas remain seductively prominent, accented by savoury anise notes. The tannins grip the palate and, accompanied by fresh acidity, carry the wine to an impressive finish for the vintage. Fourrier has produced just two barrels instead of the five it normally manages from this 0.21ha parcel.

Lovely, sweet aromas of pomegranate and mulberry, scented with liquorice and earth, charm on the initial attack. The texture is a step denser than the other premiers crus in this cellar, approaching grand cru level, and the tannins are muscular and firm. Cellar master François Orisé relates that after a scrupulous sorting – using an optical sorter at the end – and careful destemming, the grapes did the same four- to five-day maceration as normal, aiming to best maintain the style of Domaine Fourrier.

A delight in 2024, with a lovely, sweet fruit aroma of ripe cherry and rose petals. Despite the exuberant fruit, it has structure and grip, with firm tannins and fresh acidity that lead to a surprisingly persistent finish. Although Laurent Lignier thinks the vintage is an elegant one that needs a shorter maturation than more substantial years, this Combottes certainly is not lacking.

Sunny, seductive and not far off the mark of Chambertin itself, boasting expressive, ripe plum and black cherry fruit, with hints of lavender, earth and spice. The texture is lush and dense, almost voluptuous. Nicolas Rossignol chalked it up to the thin soils here, just 50cm above the limestone. Whatever the reason, this site has delivered a wine that should open relatively soon among the grands crus but has enough substance to age for decades.

Has a lovely, dark mulberry fruit with hints of liquorice spice, and more weight and density than the other premiers crus in this cellar, despite the fact that there is still no whole bunch in the ferment. This is delicious – the quality level at Rossignol-Trapet is superb this year despite the difficult conditions. The grapes are from 0.55ha in Petite Chapelle proper, also known as Champitenois.

Jadot’s delicious Clos St-Jacques is a wine of a different order. Medium-deep ruby in colour, it is fragrant with blackberry and plum fruit aromas adorned with hints of peppery spice, bay leaf and earth. The sweet oak aromas of the barrel are present, but well-integrated with the fruit; the texture is firmly tannic and long. The grapes are from a hectare of vines at the heart of the clos; they are destemmed, gently fermented and the wine is ageing in large barrels.

The Mazis from Millemann is delicious, with rich black plum and mulberry fruit aromas, hints of bramble, bay leaf and a mineral undercurrent. This has gained in finesse during its maturation, with silky, elegant tannins that balance the sweet fruit on the palate to perfection. Aged in three new barrels before being transferred to glass globes to prevent excess wood aromas, this should open nicely in three to five years and drink well for decades to come.

There is a marvellously expressive blackberry fruit, with notes of violets, spice and a slightly exotic, savoury, gamey edge. This is an impressively concentrated wine, tannic and firm, not only a triumph particularly for the vintage but for any year. The grapes were fermented as whole bunches and the wine is ageing in barrels, mostly used. This should open in five years and will easily drink for 20 more and beyond.