Burgundy 2012 Day 2: Lunch at Ludovic's

As with last year, lunch on the first day was chez Belin, with our good friend Ludovic. As always, he was a bag of fun, getting us into stomach-rolling laughter with his wise cracks and deadpan quips. The food, prepared by Laetitia, was as good as I remembered it, and we had the additional bonus of having little Elliot (the cutest kid you will ever meet) for company as well. The wines, drank over lunch, were a mix of several vintages. I thought the range of whites were perhaps a bit stronger than the reds this time round.

• NV Sélection Ludovic Belin Crémant de Bourgogne l'Exception Blanc de Blancs 88 Points

  France, Burgundy, Crémant de Bourgogne

  Once again, a simple, but very fun aperitif. Pleasant nose showed some yeast notes, apples, lemons and a touch of flowers. It was light and fresh on the palate, with lively bead and clean-cut appley flavours. I thought it did not have the highest acidity, which made it rather less interesting on the palate than the last time we had it, but it was a fun, balanced drink that went down very easily, especially on a warm, summer-ish day as this was.

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• 2011 Domaine Ludovic Belin Pernand-Vergelesses Belles Filles Blanc 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses

  This was a tad less interesting than the 2010 version - simple, easy, but nonetheless very pleasant. Some nutty, oaky notes shaded sweet lemon scents and apple aromas on the nose. The oak was there again on the palate, alongside some spice and nutty accents and then a creamy, rather ripe show of sweet lemons and apples on the midpalate leading into a flowery finish. Acidity was a bit on the lowish side with this, even if it was still balanced. Decent enough for early drinking.

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• 2010 Domaine Ludovic Belin Pernand-Vergelesses Les Combottes Blanc 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses

  From a magnum, I thought this was actually a nice little village. It had a very pretty nose, with drifts of exotic spice and nutty notes around a core of sweet pears, and apples and a gentle flowery lilt. Pretty. In keeping with the style on the other whites, the palate was round, fleshy and friendly, with sweet lemons and fleshy white-fruited flavours moving into a ripe, creamy finish full of flowery perfume and a nice waft of exotic spice - cloves, maybe even nutmeg I thought. This was a nice wine, with good length and a nice integrated balance. It may not be one for long aging, but it was yummy in a very pleasant, easy manner.

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• 2011 Domaine Ludovic Belin Corton-Charlemagne Vieilles Vignes 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  A baby, really too young to assess properly, but I think that there is something pretty good bubbling under the good of this wine. The nose was a bit disjointed, coming out in drips and drabs of of otherwise attractive scents, with fragrant spice notes in accents of ginger and cloves dancing around more citrussy lemons scents. A bit disjointed. The palate was also very young, rather tight, and quite dominated by flavours of lemons and green apples seasoned with a bit of that fresh ginger juice that I noted on the nose. Still fruitily sweet, certainly primary, but this had decent depth wed to lots of juicy acidity which bodes well for its development. I do not think it will ever be a great Corton-Charlie, but it is certainly a pretty good wine.

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• 2010 Domaine Ludovic Belin Pernand-Vergelesses Belles Filles Vieilles Vignes 87 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses

  This was not that popular with some on the table, but I thought it was an alright wine. The nose had a little off-putting musky, barnyardy-ness to it, but there were pretty notes of sweet strawberries and berries, lots of lifted floral notes and a touch of meaty, earthiness beyond that. Get the past the mustiness and it was actually quite attractive. The palate was rather less complex. Dominated by sweet strawberries and cassis notes, it was a bit candied, maybe even synthetic, but there was a ring of purity about the fruit and, though simple, it was balanced and pleasant drinking, with fresh acidity and fine tannins. Not one for the long-term, but certainly not undrinkable.

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• 2010 Domaine Ludovic Belin Chorey-les-Beaune Sélection de Leo-Paul 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chorey-les-Beaune

  One of the better reds, this was a pretty decent village. The nose had that same rather candied, synthetic ring that some in the group was not fond of, with sweet notes of cassis and blackberries of musky earth. Better on the palate though, where fine tannins and good acidity formed a nice backdrop for sweet black-fruited notes from dark cherries to blackberries and into deeper cassis tones, and then some spicy, brambly notes towards the finish. Not quite my style given the sweet fruit, but this well structured and balanced - a decent wine.

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• 2008 Domaine Ludovic Belin Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru Les Fichots 87 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pernand-Vergelesses 1er Cru

  Not everyone's cup of tea. A sweet, candied nose of maraschino cherries, blackberries and lilac scents (pretty enough here) was hit by quite a bit of barnyard. Thankfully, it was more palatable to taste, with sweet cherries and blackberries, some cassis and a toss of earth making for a palate with decent depth and presence, Acidity was a little low though, leading to a spicy finish that seemed to lack some energy. Drinkable, but I thought the 2010 red were rather better.

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• 2010 Domaine Ludovic Belin Corton-Renardes Vieilles Vignes 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  Unsurprisingly, the best of the reds. The nose was slightly less candied in its sweet scents of cherries and berries, with more interesting nuances of meat and a twist of gingery spice adding interest. The palate picked up where the nose left off, with ripe notes of cherries and berries seasoned with clear flavours of ginger and peppery spice. It was still very young, still primary, but brightly balanced and well finished with a dusting of fine-boned but fine tannins. A pretty good - this will be an early drinking Corton. It will not hit the great heights I think, but give it a couple or more years in the bottle and it should be an easy, pleasant drink.

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• 2010 Domaine Ludovic Belin Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Les Lavières Très Vieilles Vignes 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru

  As always, this was one of the picks of the bunch. The bouquet was a shift of gear from every other wine we mad. While there was some sweetness to its dark berry and black cherry scents, it was nowhere near as candied as some of the other wines. I thought it was quite pretty in fact, with rose petals and sweet spice notes of anise, cloves and nutmeg, maybe even a touch of tobacco springing up alongside some musky, meatier notes - quite a lovely, complex nose for such a young wine. The palate was rather tighter, less giving, with a layer of fine, firm tannins and clear acidity layered over flavours of dark cherries and cassis with a bit of meat in the background towards the finish. There was a nice chewy depth and grip to this, but it does need some time to fill up and fleshen out. All in all though, I much preferred this to much of what preceded it. A pretty nice wine.

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