This is Olivier Bernstein's Clos de Vougeot from 2019, from the walled grand cru the Cistercian monks of Cîteaux planted in the Middle Ages. It is lifted and floral for Vougeot, with layered fruit and fine, silky tannins.
About This Wine
Clos de Vougeot covers close to 50 hectares inside its stone wall, and the château at its centre, built by Cîteaux monks, now houses the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin. With so many owners, the site gives very different wines depending on where a parcel lies and who makes it. In 2019 Bernstein's version leans to perfume and lift rather than sheer weight.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Blue and red berries with violet, a dusting of red pepper and a mineral note.
- Palate: Supple and layered, generous in fruit but held together by silky, fine-grained tannins.
- Finish: Long and fresh, with spice and berry fruit lingering.
Serving & Food
Open from around 2026 and drink over the following decade or more. Pour at about 16°C into a wide Pinot glass; a short decant helps while it is young. Good partners are Peking duck, roast guinea fowl with morels, or a well-aged Époisses.
How to Enjoy
A grand cru to open with Chinese roast meats or a Burgundian-style Sunday lunch.
Product Details
Producer: Olivier Bernstein
Country: France
Region: Vougeot, Côte de Nuits, Burgundy
Appellation: Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru
Vintage: 2019
Grape: Pinot Noir
Format: 750mL
About the Maison
Oak is handled with unusual care at Maison Olivier Bernstein. The house works closely with the Chassin cooperage, and the cooper tastes the new wines before deciding how to toast the barrels, so the wood is matched to the character of each vintage rather than applied by recipe. For 2019 the barrels came from the Jupilles and Fontainebleau forests, roughly 30 and 70 per cent, with a light toast to keep the fruit in front.
The model is small in every sense: a short list of Côte de Nuits vineyards, fruit bought from growers he follows through the season, and cuvées counted in barrels rather than in thousands of cases.