Top 5 Red Wine Producer in Burgundy An Affordable Luxury from Burgundy Royalty

There are certain wines I have been offering my whole wine career. Denis Bachelet Cotes de Nuits Villages is one of them.

He is in the Burgundy elite club. I think lower end wines from Burgundy elite producers, regardless of appellation, provide extraordinary value and Denis has produced another masterpiece in 2014 ($55.99 on 3)  to add the 2011, 2012, 2013 that I have offered up in the past. 

 It's from a small plot of vines in a spectacular area of Brochon, which is right near Gevrey. In Denis Bachelet's hands it is spectacular as his talent is obvious as soon as you have his wines.

We all love Denis Bachelet. No one doesn't like Denis Bachelet. From the Bourgogne through the now cult Charmes-Chambertin his wines are revered amongst wine lovers and amongst Burgundy aficionados he is a "buy all you can get whenever you see it producer." He's easily one of the top 5 red wine producers in Burgundy.  They have exceptionally present and vivid fruit, world class structure, perfect earthy/mineral sense of place, sappiness, finesse and they always open up remarkably over the course of an evening. Last sip is always the best. I hoard all my Bachelet and only drink it on special occasions. They age magnificently. They are understated yet aristocratic with terrific concentration and harmony. The Bourgogne Rouge can age as well as the Gevrey VV.  Rousseau and Fourrier are the only other producers in Gevrey at the same level of quality and more importantly, consistency. Denis Bachelet does not make bad wine. I've had tons, from great vintages like 1999, and so called "off" vintages like '06 or '07 and they are all world class wines. Every single one of them. But the one that for me, gets overlooked the most in the lineup is the true insider's wines. The one no one turns down in their annual allocations. I am talking the Cote de Nuits Villages. Today I have a special parcel of the masterpiece that is the 2014. This is easily better than most producers village wines from top villages as Gevrey or Vosne. The vines in this parcel at Brochon are 60+ years of age and that is evident in the deep cherry, spicey, earthy, mossy, mineral nose. It is insanely fragrant and has a cleanliness and zen-like aromatic intensity. The palate shows why Denis is elite. It has that haunting texture and layered sappiness that world class Red Burgundy has. Amazing density and savory old vine character. The purity and depth of this wine screams overachiever which is what this wine screams every vintage. It needs 5-8 years to really blossom but this is the best since 2012/2010.

2014 Domaine Bachelet Cotes de Nuits Villages - $57.99 

($167.97 3-pack)