Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru, Les Pruliers, Edouard Delaunay, 2019

Over the hills and far away to the Haut Cotes…. And a kaleidoscopic tasting with Laurent Delaunay at the family’s beautiful Chateau de Charmont. 28 wines tried – from Bourgogne Aligoté (absolutely outstanding – who needs Chardonnay?!?) right through to Echezeaux and Clos Vougeot, with many highlights across appellations and crus. The choice of parcels, and pragmatic approach – where every cuvée is treated individually without a set formula for quantity of new oak, or amount of whole bunches used etc, allows each wine to offer a true and deeply satisfying expression of the terroirs.

Whilst the strength in Nuits Saint Georges is especially noticeable, there are some absolute gems throughout – and the consistent balance of succulence and focus, sweetness and salinity, authenticity and sophistication shows that there are great things ahead for Maison Delaunay. Watch out for Laurent picking some of his top under the radar wines for us and elsewhere explaining why we should embrace his passion for Nuits Saint Georges…

Acclaimed as one of the best sites in the village, to the south-west and quite near the river - which means there is a combination of slightly heavier, clay-enriched soils but there is also more gravel in the southern rows. All this combines to give quite a rich, full bodied style but with sufficient stones to ensure elegance and freshness. Top growers Gouges, Grivot, Chevillon, and our own Romain Taupenot, all make impressively substantial wines from this site, and we were really impressed by the volume, depth and concentration of Delaunay's bottling.
Juniper, blueberry, cranberry as well as riper red cherry notes hit the nostrils with some spicier mocha and dried herbs coming up plus a hint of violets and stone dust. Palate shows off an abundance of silky, supple red fruits, a touch of Turkish Delight, garrigue and sweet spice. Concentration on the mid-palate of morello cherries, with a little cinnamon stick and anise. Finish shows long with salt and stone dust. Really benchmark NSG Cru and really proves that the best of the village can now go toe toe with Vosne and Gevrey.