Dom Tollot-Beaut 2007 Bourgogne Rouge

No, there is no escape from our 1,350-strong survey of the 2007 vintage in Burgundy!

But this is a thoroughly approachable and friendly introduction to the vintage. It seems worth pointing out that not all 2007 burgundies worth buying are white and not all are expensive. This lovely blend of wines from less exalted vineyards owned by the very serious-minded family-owned Domaine Tollot-Beaut in Chorey-lès-Beaune is already showing well, and showing those characteristics that only Pinot Noir grown in Burgundy can. It already has a lovely welcoming sweet perfume but finishes appetisingly dry, flavoured by the centuries that Pinot vines have been planted here.

Many winemakers in the Côte d’Or seem to treat the much less concentrated Pinot from their least prestigious vineyards exactly the same as, say, the fruit from their Premier Cru and Grand Cru vineyards, and end up with a tough wine dominated by oak. This wine seems to have been very sensitively handled in the cellar and the result is a lively, fruity but savoury wine you could drink any time over the next two or three years – though no longer! The 2007 red burgundies, especially those at this most basic level, are in general designed for early drinking.