It’s a real pleasure to find an affordable wine from Burgundy that reminds you of the table wine at a bistro in Beaune. It’s a few dollars more than what a table wine should be, but this is Burgundy after all and it’s way more satisfying than any Pinot Noir under $20 you can by at a U.S. supermarket.
The simple, pretty aromas of raspberry, cherry, freshly turned earth and hints of mushroom entice.
It’s juicy but light up front with just enough flesh on the bones to wrap you in satin. Cranberry fringed by a dusty country roads quality emerges at midpalate, the fruit then a fading echo on the short tart finish. Shy tannins have a slight grain but they balance the tangy acidity, which never becomes too firm or angular.
Pinot Noir must have charm. This one does, a cheery, ingratiating surface with a composed, lithe, understated sensuality captured in this tune from the short-lived duo Frou-Frou featuring Imogen Heap from the early 2000s.
Notes: From a leading family run négociant house in Beaune.The vines that produce these grapes are 25-30 years old. 20-30% of the wine is aged in used oak, 8-12 months.
Score: 88
Price: $21
Alc: 13%
Exploring the Philosophy of Food and Wine 
It’s quite rare to find a review of a Pinot noir from Burgundy written by someone in the US! But a pleasure to read it. My travels to France have taken me over almost every cm/in of Burgundy, from Chablis to Macon, with Beaune in between being a place to linger. Whenever I open anything from Burgundy, a red or a white, a Chablis or a Pommard, within nanoseconds the cognitive takes over and a memory kicks in of Bar 66 in Beaune, or Domaine Michel Rebourgeon in Pommard, or Dauvissat in Chablis, or Gaunoux in Meursault. I suppose this is what you have done in opening this Bichot Vielles Vignes, but …. isn’t this the message or view of Scruton? I do NOT challenge your own view or perceptions, but I know my own, and a memory of a tasting, a visit, a family, the landscape swamps any immediate sensations. But, even in my late 70s I learn from my wines daily. 🍷🍷👏👏👍👍