If you’ve come to grudgingly accept that mature grand cru Burgundy is simply out of reach these days, this gorgeous 2013 Corton-Bressandes will be a welcome reminder that ‘budget friendly’ and ‘best of Burgundy’ are not, in fact, mutually exclusive.  

This is an absurdly great value any way you look at it, but what I most love is this wine’s highly detailed personality. At its best, Bressandes expresses an unusually delicate and finessed face of the Corton hill.  It does this here, and rather than a ‘block’ of flavor, clearly and precisely offers up its fruit and savory charms.  The nose combines a remarkably wide array of forest berries, exotic spices and spring flowers.  This is the vivid, almost hi-def side of 2013, ably showcasing the focusing acidity and pliant tannic structure that seem to be the particular domaine of this classic vintage. - Jason

2013 is a tricky vintage that can present as super rustic with high acid and tannin with a lack of ripeness. Or it can show super-expressive and flamboyant wines with excellent transparency. This is clearly in the latter category and I firmly believe that this is a classic Bressandes with great generosity and finesse at the same time. This bottle shows elegant ‘13 vintage character that displays an incredible purity and delicacy with great persistence and depth. - Daniel

Between the up-and-comers and the well-established domaines it's easy to lose sight of producers like Antonin Guyon. This is a domaine that is producing excellent wines that occasionally, as here, hit the heights of terroir expression and outright deliciousness. Dominique Guyon is running the Domaine now, and amongst their best plots is their 0.85ha of 'Bressandes' on the iconic hill of Corton (responsible for the only Grand Cru reds in the Côte de Beaune).

This wine shows that although Guyon is unheralded the quality of the wine can be extremely high. The 2013 Bressandes is shockingly lifted and floral with rose hips and earthy sour cherry. Clearly, judicious oak use and very careful extraction have led to an impeccably elegant Corton. The tannins are nicely resolved and ultra-fine. This is a mature value that offers delicacy and detail. Buy with confidence and with depth to see how this wine continues to evolve.

Cheers,

- Spencer