Top value red Burgundy 2016

An attractive and projected nose of smoky red cherry fruit and liquorice precedes a rich, full-bodied wine with lots of energy, its flavours delineated with crystalline purity. This boasts similar amplitude and dimension to the Clos du Roi, but is more vertical and a touch less gourmand.

The Chouacheux is the most gourmand and generous of Jadot’s 2016 Beaune 1er Crus, revealing a lovely bouquet of succulent black fruits, truffle, roast espresso and sweet new oak. On the palate the wine is velvety, supple and full-bodied, with a ripe core of fruit and rich, ripe tannins. Decidedly pleasure bent.

A small tail of the village lieu-dit Aux Etelois separates the grands crus of Charmes-Chambertin and Griotte-Chambertin, and it is here that the Duroché vines, planted in 1961, are situated. Notes of creamy red and black cherry and wild plum mingle with incipient hints of rich soil, introducing a supple wine with superb depth, tension and length. It's the most elegant village bottling in the portfolio.

As good as the Volnay villages is, Charlot’s Pommard may have the edge this year. A complex nose of wild berries, spice, bitter chocolate and rich soil tones precedes a supple, elegant wine with velvety, ripe tannins, and a deep core of fruit with excellent concentration.

This year, the Guillemot’s grapes from the lieu-dit of Les Grands Picotins, which are ordinarily bottled separately, augment the generic village cuvée. A pretty bouquet of raspberry, violets and spice is followed by a concentrated, serious Savigny villages with notable substance and dimension for its level.

Named after Cyril’s great-grandmother and hailing from several old vine parcels of Marsannay village, the Cuvée Marie Ragonneau bursts from the glass with aromas of cherry, raspberry and a touch of undergrowth. The wine is supple, juicy and vibrant, with fine tannins and a lovely line of acidity.

One of the most reliable wines in the Côte Chalonnaise, so good to see it performing well in a blind tasting. Appealing raspberry fruit, with quite a bit of oak influence, at this price level. Good focus, length and balance. What’s not to like?

The vines which produce the cuvée Triologie are between 60 and 80 years of age, and they routinely produce one of the best examples of Morey villages. The 2016 was cropped at 25hl/ha and was vinified with 30% whole cluster fruit. Aromas of plum, cassis, raw cocoa, rich soil, baking spice and candied peel precede a full-bodied, fine-grained wine with a supple attack, a sweet core of fruit, and nice energy and intensity.

The Rully is very attractive in this excellent vintage for Côte Chalonnaise reds. Notes of cherry, rich spice and forest floor precede a sapid, savoury and medium-full palate with nicely succulent acids and a touch of chewy tannin on the flavourful finish. This should be excellent value.

An attractively savoury nose of wild berries, smoked duck and rich forest floor introduces a supple, silky wine with a chassis of ripe tannins and a juicy core of fruit. Delicious Mercurey.