Domaine Tollot Beaut - Corton Bressandes Grand Cru Red 2022

Wine Region: Burgundy - France

Grape: Pinot Noir (100%)

Tasting notes:

Bressandes is highly expressive, firm, and powerful thanks to the high limestone content of its soil. Often cited as one of the very best climate on the Corton hill, it shows aromas and flavors of red and blackberry liqueur, earthiness, flowers, and herbs with powerful tannins. Corton-Bressandes will reward long aging in a cool cellar.

Red Burgundy might be the world’s most flexible food wine. The wine’s high acidity, medium body, medium alcohol, and low tannins make it very food-friendly. Red Burgundy, with its earthy and sometimes gamey character, is a classic partner to roasted game birds, grilled duck breast, and dishes that feature mushrooms, black truffles, or are rich in umami.

Expert Ratings:

96 points Wine Spectator

'An intense yet elegant red, with fine purity to the black currant, black cherry, violet and mineral aromas and flavors. Structured, yet the ripe fruit, flesh and balance give this an effortless feeling. Builds nicely to a long, complex aftertaste. Best from 2027 through 2045. —B.S. '(1/2023)

90-92 points Vinous

'The 2020 Corton-Bressandes Grand Cru is the one cuvée that had slight suggestions of some over-ripe fruit , though minor and this could be subsumed with bottle age. The palate is well balanced and here, I could not find any sur-maturité, but a sensual, velvety texture and a touch of spiciness towards the harmonious finish that is blurred by a little warmth of alcohol, a whopping 15.0° in this cuvée. '(12/2021) 

90 points Burghound

'An acceptably fresh nose features a layered mix of ripe red and dark cherry, cassis and discreet floral nuances. There is better freshness and verve to the well-defined and more refined medium-bodied flavors that display outstanding length on the bitter pit fruit-inflected finish. I like the balance though it's hard to predict whether the nose will regain freshness with some bottle aging though my score offers the benefit of the doubt that it will.' (4/2022)

About the winery:

The Tollot family represents a long lineage of winegrowers dating back to the late 1880s when François Tollot began planting vineyards in Chorey-lès-Beaune. His son, Alexandre Tollot, continued in his father’s footsteps and married Aurélie Beaut. In 1921, Tollot-Beaut became one of the first to bottle their wines under the Domaine and started exporting their wines to the U.S. shortly thereafter. Today, cousins Nathalie, Jean-Paul, and Olivier Tollot are in charge. The wines of Tollot-Beaut are well-known for their serious but pleasing style across a range of appellations from Bourgogne to Grand Cru.

The Tollot-Beaut cellar is in the center of Chorey-lès-Beaune on the rue Alexandre Tollot, named after Nathalie’s great grandfather who was once the Mayor of Chorey. Parts of the meticulously kept cellar are over 250 years old. Chardonnay is pressed pneumatically and starts fermentation in stainless-steel tanks before finishing alcoholic and malolactic fermentation in the barrel. Pinot Noir is almost entirely de-stemmed. The wines of Tollot-Beaut were once made with more new oak but in recent years the oak influence has become subtler. Village and regional wines receive about 20% new oak while the Grand Crus receive about 60% new oak.