A notably spicy, fresh, cool and floral nose displays mostly red berry fruit scents that are trimmed in discreet earth notes. There is excellent cut and definition to the nicely rich and attractively textured flavors that culminate in a presently austere finale though I doubt that austerity will persist. This is a relatively fine and forward vintage for Clos des Lambrays and one that should be approachable after only 7 to 8 years of bottle age. In a word, marvelous.

Score: 94 Allen Meadow (AM), Bourghound (BH), January 2017

The 2014 Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru is matured in 50% new oak and is 100% whole bunch fruit. It is blessed with a winsome bouquet. As usual, there is something very natural, unimposing and refined on the nose: blackberry and briary, a hint of graphite, a subtle leafiness maybe, and yet delineated and very pure. The palate is lively and energetic with crisp tannin, black rather than red fruit, linear and very classic in style with what you might call a "cool" marine-influenced finish that has fine salinity. What a great Clos des Lambrays that will put a smile on the face of those that adore refined Burgundy.

Thierry Brouin has one year remaining as winemaker at Domaine de Lambrays and then a contractual two years as a consultant. "I´ll be 70 by then," he told me with a Gallic shrug of the shoulders. "It´s time for new blood." What with Sylvain Pitiot´s retirement from Clos des Tart, it appears that a chapter in Morey-Saint-Denis is closing and a new one will be opening. The question is: will the next chapter be as good a read as the last? I hope so. So here we have the 2014 vintage. "It was not really problematic. Just a little oïdium," Thierry explained. "We picked on September 18 compared to September 3 in 2015. The yield was 32 hectoliters per hectare when we average 34 hectoliters per hectare. We made a hard selection on the sorting table. I don´t like to make wine with overripe Pinot Noir. I like freshness and high acidity. After all of the sorting, the alcohol level is 12.5% and in bottle will be 13%. We will rack in two months and bottle next February or March." We also discussed whole bunch usage with which Clos des Lambrays is synonymous, even though Thierry said that he destemmed part of the crop in 2015. He commented how whole bunch fruit allows the temperature to increase more regularly during alcoholic fermentation, enhances drainage and makes the press easier. The downside is that you lose some room on the vat and a bit of color. "Bunches must be completely alive and you must not split the stem," he warned. "And so the vats must be filled by gravity with not too long maceration." I tasted the two Puligny wines that are made exactly the same: identical picking dates, vinification, bottling...everything. Even so, they were very different to each other, the Folatières more fruit driven whilst the Clos des Caillerets with show-stopping mineralité and salinity -- a quite brilliant expression of the vineyard. Apropos the reds, it was a strong showing of the Clos des Lambrays with perhaps a little more succulence than recent vintages, but a masterclass in stem addition so that they are barely noticeable. It comes highly recommended for those who have a ken for “classic” Burguny, but also, look out for a very fine Morey-Saint-Denis Village that strangely I preferred to the Premier Cru. As usual, it was an absolute joy to taste with Thierry Brouin as he enters his twilight years at Domaine des Lambrays. I checked the size of his shoes on the way out. Big shoes to fill.

Score: 93-95 Neal Martin (NM), The Wine Advocate (WA), December 2015

(vinified entirely with whole clusters and aged in 50% new oak): Medium red. Highly complex, aromatic nose combines raspberry, underbrush, flowers and spices. Juicy, energetic and mineral-driven, if a bit youthfully imploded (and still affected by the bottling). Not a fat wine but with its flavors of red berries, mocha, earth and brown spices it´s an essence of Morey-Saint-Denis. The acids and tannins are not at all aggressive, which should give this grand cru relatively early accessibility.

Score: 92 Stephen Tanzer (ST), Vinous Media (VM), March 2017

The 2013 Clos des Lambrays Grand Cru, from magnum, I assume it is my first time tasting it as for some reason, I do not have a note for this in bottle. It has a fragrant bouquet that shows more fruit intensity than the 2013, scents of raspberry, crushed strawberry, undergrowth and bay leaf all complemented by the underlying stemminess instead of dominated by it. The palate is very well defined with fine tannin, certainly old fashioned when compared to the 2014 Clos de Tart, yet poised and fanning out gently on the understated but still quite compelling finish. A joy. Tasted at Goedhuis´s Burgundy tasting at Vintners Hall.

Score: 93 Neal Martin (NM), Vinous Media (VM), May 2019