Denis Carré Beaune 1er cru Tuvilains 2019

Domaine Denis Carré, a 14HA estate with holdings in the HCB, Auxey, Meursault, and Pommard, was founded 45 years ago by Denis. Today, his kids Gaetane and Martial run the domaine. They joke that Denis is the best employee, retired “on paper” but still working like a bull.

We last met him when we went to check out the vines in Pommard in winter. He was mid-slope pruning on a day when at its warmest it was barely nudging freezing. A cold, wet wind coming across from Auxey made it feel like 30 below. He had been out there for six hours already that day yet oddly enough, his hand was warm when I shook it. These farmers are a different breed

Denis’ kids are an incredible team, Martial makes the wine and drives the tractor. He’s deliberate, quiet and thoughtful. His sister, Gaetane is the polar opposite, a bundle of energy whose infectious enthusiasm for hard work, organic farming and making fine, silky Burgundy had me ready to join Denis’s pruning crew in the vines. The wines are lights out; elegant, mineral whites and racy, tense reds.

This estate has been managed by Denis by 45 years, through some absolutely amazing vintages. However, ask the man himself and he will admit that the 2019’s right up there with the greatest he’s ever made. They are lights out. In a nearly perfect vintage that James Suckling referred to as “Burgundy’s Bullseye”, Carré’s 1er cru Beaune soars from the glass with notes of high toned pomegranate and cherry mingled with blood orange and rose petals. Medium bodied, the wine is velvety and layered, with great concentrated and multidimensional array of savory mixed with just amazing fruit.