Burgundy 2022 En Primeur: Domaine Hudelot-Baillet, Chambolle-Musigny
The new 2022 vintage from Hudelot-Baillet is released with some excellent scores and notes from Neal Martin. We offer the wines here, with the premiers crus on allocation. For us, Dominique Le Guen's Chambolle-Musignys deliver fabulous Côte de Nuits intensity and power, at amazingly affordable prices, so we recommend taking advantage of them.
This year, Dominique was joined at our tasting by his son, Tanguy, who works in the vines. You can get a sense of what they thought about the 2022 vintage from their smiles in the photo above. We were smiling just as much by the time we had tasted.
Tanguy gave us lots of insight into how much of the success here is down to vineyard management, with yields a particular focus. He suggested that in 2022, the less successful growers had made too much wine, to make up for the small 2021 harvest. There was no such approach at Hudelot-Baillet, with green harvesting and pruning to limit the yields. Their old vines (up to 70 years, in the case of the 2022 Chambolle Musigny Vieilles Vignes, for instance) produced yields varying from 25-35 hl/ha.
Tanguy also mentioned the importance of organic viticulture to their success. His grandfather stopped using herbicides some time ago, resulting in the vines pushing their roots down into the soil, avoiding competition for water with weeds and cover crops. These deep roots were able to access potassium lower down in the soils, and potassium lowers the pH of the finished wine. Despite the hot weather, the domaine has produced wines with elegance, balance, fine acidity and moderate alcohols, often at around just 13-13.5% abv.
We love the entire range, but we must single out the 2022 Hautes-Côtes de Nuits for special mention. Harvest on these high, cooler slopes began 15 days later than in Chambolle itself, allowing additional time for the tannins to ripen, making them exceptionally ripe and supple on the palate. This is a very complete red burgundy and it's brilliant value at just £220 per dozen in bond.
We have a loyal following for the village and premiers crus wines and some stocks have already been allocated to buyers in previous years. For the premiers crus, we request balanced orders (1:1 with the village, 1:2 with the Bourgogne or Hautes Côtes). Please let us know if you would like an allocation.
Offered En Primeur, wines due to land in the UK in autumn 2024
Producer Profile
Domaine Hudelot-Baillet, Chambolle-Musigny
This small 8-hectare domaine is based in the centre of Chambolle-Musigny and has excellent holdings in the premiers crus of 'Les Charmes' and 'Les Borniques', as well as a tiny parcel in the Bonnes Mares Grand Cru. Hâutes Côtes de Nuits is also a strength, with the vines lying on the hills above Chambolle itself. This reputation of the domaine is largely due to the efforts of Dominique Le Guen, who began working here in 1998, after a career in the French airforce, when his father-in-law was reaching retirement. At that stage, Dominique, a Breton by birth, had no winemaking experience. His first solus vintage was in 2002. The domaine was almost moribund when he took it on, but his meticulous, hardworking approach has made it "one to watch".
Dominique's winemaking approach includes destemming and cool maceration for the red wines, with punching down, remontage and delestage, to extract the supple tannins from the skins rather than the pips. The wines are aged in between a third and a half new oak.
| RED | 2022 | 3 cases | Hudelot Baillet - Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits | 75cl | £110 per case of 6 | Hudelot Baillet Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits 2022 / 3 cases / 75cl £110 per case of 6 |
IB | ||||
Tasting Notes"The 2022 Bourgogne Rouge Hautes-Côtes de Nuits, picked around ten days later than other cuvées, had been bottled just before my visit. Well-defined on the nose, the fruit is slightly darker than the Bourgogne Rouge. The palate is medium-bodied with a sapid entry and fine tannins. It's juicy with a touch of spice toward the finish. 90 points" Neal Martin, Vinous.com |
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| RED | 2022 | 1 case | Hudelot Baillet - Chambolle Musigny Les Charmes 1er cru | 75cl | £420 per case of 6 | Hudelot Baillet Chambolle Musigny Les Charmes 1er cru 2022 / 1 case / 75cl £420 per case of 6 |
IB | ||||
Tasting Notes"The 2022 Chambolle-Musigny Les Charmes 1er Cru comes from two barrels and is aged in 25% new aak. This is much more complex and nuanced on the nose than the Vieilles Vignes: very focused with ebullient red fruit laced with violet. The palate is medium-bodied with good density on the entry. It's quite structured for a Chambolle with some firm tannins on the finish, but sufficient fruit keeps it balanced and poised. 91-93 points" Neal Martin, Vinous.com |
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| RED | 2022 | 10 cases | Hudelot Baillet - Chambolle Musigny Vieilles Vignes | 75cl | £260 per case of 6 | Hudelot Baillet Chambolle Musigny Vieilles Vignes 2022 / 10 cases / 75cl £260 per case of 6 |
IB | ||||
Tasting Notes"The 2022 Chambolle-Musigny Vieilles Vignes comes from six parcels from around the appellation. There is a touch of reduction on the nose, dark berry fruit mixed with iris flower and a touch of pencil box. A little introspective at the moment. The palate is medium-bodied with a candied entry, quite sweet with a lot of sucrosity. Maybe that detracts from its complexity towards the finish, which tapers when you want it to fan out. It's not bad, but it needs to gain some flesh in the coming months. 89-91 points" Neal Martin, Vinous.com |
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