The Boillot 2008 Gevrey-Chambertin Les Evocelles displays impressive grip and stony, saline minerality and soy-like savor to set off its dense, fresh black fruit. Hints of grenadine and animal blood add further complexity. There is some real tongue-tingling, vibratory intensity in this handsome Gevrey, yet another example of the premier cru-like quality of its site. It should be worth following for the better part of a decade. Pierre Boillot - Lucien's grandson, for details on whose history, properties, and connection with other Boillots, see issues and 186 and 170 - noted that his Cote de Beaune fruit required more rigorous sorting in 2008 than did that from the Cote de Nuits, and the former resulted in several wines of relatively aggressive astringency. I tasted his 2008s prior to their March and April bottlings, and (except where noted) assembled from tank. (Unfortunately, shortage of time kept me from tasting Boillot's 2007s.)Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524

From a site above Brochon and neighboring to Champeaux whose manifest virtues I have already touted in reports on Domaine Dugat-Py and Domaine Louis Boillot, Pierre Boillot's 2006 Gevrey-Chambertin Les Evocelles smells of smoky black tea, brown spices, and dark berries; offers a well-concentrated but elegant and texturally-refined palate with a dynamic interplay of chalky minerality, smoky, spicy notes, and black fruits; and finishes with savory, juicy persistence. This should prove versatile at table and well worth following for 5-7 years. Pierre Boillot (grandson of Lucien) vinified and marketed together until 2003 with his slightly older brother Louis (who now shares facilities with his wife Ghislaine Barthod, and most of the same appellations as Pierre, and on whose outstanding wines I reported in issue 170 and again in this issue). They then separated their shares of inheritance, which include equally prime acreage in both Cotes, thanks to Lucien having long ago left his family's Volnay estate (now Domaine Henri Boillot) to stake his own claim in Gevrey. My first visit to taste here convinced me that this address and Pierre Boillot's talent should be known to all Burgundy lovers. Pierre Boillot lays great store by lees enrichment, never bottling before the second spring, and then without filtration.Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524

From four terraces high above Gevrey and Brochon, Boillot’s 2005 Gevrey-Chambertin Les Evocelles fields aromas of roasted, charred meat, black pepper, bitter-sweet black cherry and blackberry. Ripe, concentrated black fruits and fine-grained tannins saturate the palate and surge into a long, gripping finish with stony, meaty bass notes and a glowing ripe fruit intensity. This outstanding Pinot should be worthy of 10-12 years aging. Also recommended: 2005 Fixin (unknown; 85-87). Having moved from Volnay to a newly-expanded facility he shares with his wife, Ghislaine Barthod, Louis Boillot fields a large and geographically diverse range of generally impressive, pure-fruited Pinots. (In rating them, I have left some leeway to allow for my previous unfamiliarity with Louis Boillot’s wines.)Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant, Pine Plains, NY; tel. (800) 910-1990.

The tannic yet fruit-packed Gevrey-Chambertin Les Evosselles is from a little-known village-appellation vineyard in the northwest corner of Gevrey. Dark-colored and bursting with deep aromas of spices, roasted black fruits, and a mouth of dense grilled berries, this is an impressively powerful and deep wine, especially considering the fact that it is not a premier or grand cru. It should drink well between 2002-2007. I was surprised by the uniformity of flavors and personality of the 1995 offerings: They all shared a black color, exhibiting dark, robust fruit flavors and hard tannic finishes. Stylistically they are reminiscent of Philippe Leclerc's wines, but without as much oak and depth of fruit. For most Burgundian domaines 1995 is a wonderful year for noting terroir differences, yet Boillot's wines share similar flavor profiles, often submerging as well as masking the wine's terroir nuances. As my ratings suggest, I did not factor this characteristic into my judgement on the wine's quality.This note is the result of tastings I did in Burgundy between January 7 and January 29. The wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Pinot Noir, a fragile varietal, reacts poorly to fining, filtration, and careless bottling techniques, I recommend caution when considering buying a red burgundy based on cask samples. I called it as I tasted it, and hope the bottled wine reflects the quality of the samples I was provided.Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524.