Offering up aromas of green apple, Anjou pear, citrus zest and hazelnut, the 2018 C?te de Beaune Les Pierres Blanches Blanc is medium-bodied, chalky and incisive. Delicate and precise, it reflects its origins in this stony climat high on the Montagne de Beaune.

The 2016 C?te de Beaune Les Pierres Blanches Blanc, which is one of the few cuvées en fermage, had a tightly wound, rather resinous bouquet that does not quite race out of the blocks. The palate is nicely balanced but just misses the tension and energy of the Terres de Famille Blanc at the moment.

The 2013 Cotes de Beaune Blanc Pierre Blanches was bottled just before the harvest. It has an attractive almond and brioche-scented bouquet that is well defined. The palate is well balanced with orange zest and cherry fruit, playful and easy-drinking. This is well crafted.

The 2012 Cote de Beaune Les Pierres Blanches (white) had been in bottle for one month. It has an attractive tropical fruit-tinged bouquet with fine delineation. The palate is fresh and vibrant with plenty of orange zest and grapefruit flavors, the 20% new oak nicely integrated on the leesy finish. Lovely. Domaine de la Vougeraie was founded in 1998 when the domaines of Claudine Deschamps, Pierre Ponnelle, Louis Voilland and L’Heritier-Guyot were merged. I remember it well because at the time I was exporting L’Heritier-Guyot’s wines to Japan (to be frank, they were quite ordinary back then.) The man behind the venture was Jean-Claude Boisset, whose own considerable holdings meant that Domaine de la Vougeraie became a significant player in the Cote d’Or, with 37 hectares of prime vineyard including seven grand crus to their name. I have to be honest and say that like many others, I liked the first few vintages of their wine, but found them a little predictable and seemed to struggle for charm and personality. Perhaps that was a reflection of former winemaker Pascal Marchand applying the practices he had learned at Comte Armand: a lot of new oak with 100% de-stemmed fruit – not really my bag. When he departed for pastures new, incoming winemaker Pierre Vincent seemed to apply a gentler touch. The new oak is still part of the wines’ character, but there is certainly a more considered approach, plus he is more open to using whole cluster fruit. Managing such an array of wines with a relatively small team cannot be easy in challenging vintages such as 2012, or for that matter 2013. Pierre told me that his average yields were 22 hectoliters per hectare, though for the grand crus, they were down to 17 hectoliters per hectare. Importer: Boisset Family Estates, St. Helena, CA; tel. (800) 878-1123

The 2010 Cotes de Beaune Les Pierres Blanches is flat-out delicious. Crushed rocks, slate, citrus peel and smoke are some of the many notes that flow from this wiry, beautifully articulated white. The 2010 possesses gorgeous length and a long, creamy finish. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2018. This is stunning set of wines from Pierre Vincent and Domaine de la Vougeraie. It is impossible to miss the attention to detail at this impeccably run domaine. No expense is spared. It takes 80 people to work the vineyards during harvest and another 20 in the cellar to take it from there. Production in 2010 was of course down significantly as it was everywhere else. Yields came in at 24 hectoliters per hectare for the Pinot and 29 for the Chardonnay. Vincent used between 30-80% whole bunches, depending on the wine. Readers who want to learn more might want to check out my video interview with Pierre Vincent on www.erobertparker.com. I will report on the domaine’s 2009s in the April issue. For now let me just say the 2009 Musigny is one of the wines of the vintage. Importer: Boisset Family Estates, St. Helena, CA; tel. (800) 878-1123 1