93

2009 Alex Gambal, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy

( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )

Pale ruby red, slightly coudy. Elegant, perfumed, nuanced Clos de Vougeot with light red fruits and subtle oak on the nose. The palate has a little more oomph, but it’s still made in a gentle, quite forward style. Raspberry and redcurrant with some grip, a touch of leafiness and a long, harmonious finish. Likely to be reasonably priced, too. 

BuyDrinking window: 2013-20Similar Wines: Under £5, 91-95, France, Red, Pinot Noir
91

2009 Château Genot-Boulanger, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy

( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )

Mid garnet with a pinkish rim. Ginger spice and some reduction on the nose: smoky, well balanced and structured. The wine is both jammy and a teeny bit reduced on the palate, but it’s sustained by fresh acidity and medium weight tannins. It should age, but the alcohol may start to dominate in bottle. 

BuyDrinking window: 2014-20Similar Wines: Under £5, 91-95, France, Red, Pinot Noir
90

2009 Régis Forey, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy

( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )

Youthful, mid garnet. The nose is a little closed and showing some meaty, reductive notes that hang around in the glass. A hint ot redcurrant, sweet oak and also some evidence of over-ripeness, with a figgy, currant-like note. A good wine, but the tannins are a little dry. Not a Pinot to cellar for a long time. 

BuyDrinking window: 2013-18Similar Wines: Under £5, 86-90, France, Red, Pinot Noir
95

2009 Faiveley, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy

( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )

Mid garnet, pale rim. Still quite closed. Red cherry and some Asian spices on the nose. Quite a powerrfu, dense wines with plenty of tannin and oak. Ripe and silky, very well rounded with good ageing potential. Textured and plush, this underlines recent improvements at this Nuits St Georges-based négociant house. 

BuyDrinking window: 2013-20Similar Wines: Under £5, 91-95, France, Red, Pinot Noir
97

2009 Georges Mugneret-Gibourg, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy

( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )

If you can get past the outrageously heavy bottle (and I had trouble lifting it off the table), this is a superb wine. Bright, youthful, ruby red in colour. Lovely bramble and wild strawberry fruit on the nose. Plush and sweet with good acidity for balance. So Pinot? Silky, scented, beguiling, gentle with impressive delicacy for the vintage. 

BuyDrinking window: 2012-13Similar Wines: Under £5, 96-100, France, Red, Pinot Noir
94

2009 Domaine Denis Mortet, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy

( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )

There’s no denying the quaility or ambition of the wines from this revitalised domaine. This is a very powerful Pinot, closer to a top Gevrey than a Clos de Vougeot. There’s a lot of oak on the wine at the moment, but this is a wine that is built for bottle age. The underlying fruit is excellent, just waiting to strut its stuff in five years or more. 

BuyDrinking window: 2017-25Similar Wines: Under £5, 91-95, France, Red, Pinot Noir
91

2009 Château de la Tour, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy

( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )

Intense mid rubyintense colour. Ripe, aromatic, heady (almost hedonistic?) nose, showing some forest floor and fresh leather notes. Big, ripe and bold, this is something of a statement wine. It’s arguably a little simple, reflecting the vintage as much as the terroir. The wine is ripe, with plenty of extraction and a slightly hot, dry finish. 

BuyDrinking window: 2013-20Similar Wines: Under £5, 91-95, France, Red, Pinot Noir
86

2009 Henri Rebourseau, Clos de Vougeot, Burgundy

( ££££, 13.5%, Fine + Rare )

Bright pale garnet-ruby. Closed with some reduction and very little fruit on the nose. Hint of rhubarb on the palate, tannic with high acid. Rather scrawny, with almost Italianate levels of acidity and very little flesh or sweet fruit.  More like a 2008 than a 2009.

Drinking window: 2013-20Similar Wines: Under £5, 86-90, France, Red, Pinot Noir
93

2009 Domaine de l'Espigouette for Harvey Nichols, Plan de Dieu, Côtes du Rhône Villages

( £12.50, 14.5, Harvey Nichols )

A really first class Rhône blend specially blended for Harvey Nichols by Domaine de l’Espigouette. It’s a spicy, full-throated number from a warm vintage, based on Grenache but with 15% Syrah and 5% Mourvèdre for support and complexity. It’s still youthful (though very drinkable) with dense black fruits, lovely balance and the sort of perfume that really reminds you of the south of France. Heady stuff. 

BuyDrinking window: 2012-17Similar Wines: Â£10-£20, 91-95, France, Red, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Syrah/Shiraz
88

2011 Finest Côtes Catalanes Carignan, Roussillon

( £6.99, 13.5%, Tesco )

I sometimes feel as if I’m the president, founder and only member of the Carignan appreciation society, which is strange, given how good this grape can taste, especially when its vines are old. That’s the case here in this chunky Roussillon red, sourced from bush vines close to the Pyrenees. It’s a big, bold, appropriately rustic number with notes of thyme, rosemary and pepper spice, a touch of sweetness, bags of black fruits and a volatile lift. In short, classic Carignan. 

BuyDrinking window: 2012-14Similar Wines: Â£5-£10, 86-90, France, Red, Carignan