The mostly whole-cluster fruit is fermented with a very gentle extraction to produce this surprisingly dark wine, with impressive blackberry and plum fruit scented with peonies. On the palate the wine is firmly tannic, with surprising density and extract that lead to a pleasantly persistent finish. Lovely. Produced from four parcels spread between Charmes and Mazoyères that total 0.7ha. Drinking Window 2025 - 2050. (Charles Curtis MW)

The 2020 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru has a lovely bouquet, beautifully defined with pure dark cherries, raspberry with touches of clove and white pepper. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grip, quite structured for a Charmes-Chambertin, lightly-spiced with a cohesive and quite persistent finish. (NM)

The 2020 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru is one of the chunkier, more muscular wines in the range. Revealing aromas of raspberries, cassis, exotic spices, orange rind and loamy soil, it's full-bodied, deep and tightly wound, with lively acids, youthfully chewy tannins and a long, floral finish.

Harvest began on August 19 at Domaine Dujac in 2020, concluding only six days later, and Jeremy Seysses opted for very short macerations, retaining 90% to 95% whole clusters. In the vineyards, the viticultural team didn't deleaf at all in the warm, sunny growing season, and Seysses noted a big difference in drought resistance between organic and biodynamically farmed parcels. Bottling is planned earlier than usual to capture the wines vibrant fruit intact. And the result? A very persuasive portfolio of 2020s, defined by deep and vibrant fruit tones, rich and powdery tannins and the impressively saturated hues that characterize the vintage along the Côte d'Or. They will require more patience, I suspect, than the remarkably charming 2019s (revisited here in bottle), but they will reward it.

Of course, readers will be familiar with the outlines of the Dujac approach to producing red Burgundy: organic farming, fermentation in (for the most part) concrete vats with a predominance of whole c(more...)

Racked to tank in preparation for bottling. A bright crimson colour, showing the whole bunches more on the nose, strawberries and white pepper. Fills the mouth, nothing dry here, and nothing too rich. The strawberry flavours fill nicely to the back of the mouth. Tasted: December 2021.

The 2020 Charmes-Chambertin from the Seysses family was showing fine potential, offering a very 1993-like profile on both the nose and palate this year. The bouquet delivers scents of sweet dark berries, cassis, pigeon, woodsmoke, a lovely base of complex soil, a touch of nutskin and a bit of new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, suave on the attack and full-bodied, with a sappy core, fine mineral drive and grip, ripe tannins and a long, tangy and very promising finish. This was just assembled in tank. (Drink between 2036-2090)