The 2017 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Fontenys is showing even better from bottle than it did from barrel, opening up in the glass with notes of cherries, cassis, smoked meats, sweet soil tones, orange rind and toasty new oak. Medium to full-bodied, deep and concentrated, its charming core of succulent fruit is underpinned by a serious chassis of ripe, powdery tannin. This has turned out more serious and reserved than I anticipated, but given the track record of this parcel and its 80+-year-old vines, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised.

The 2017 Gevrey-Chambertin Les Fontenys 1er Cru is perhaps the one cuvée that does not quite leap out from the glass tasting from barrel, a little subdued for some reason with slightly muffled red, earthy fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannin and here I feel the quality begins to really show, becoming evermore delineated and precise towards the mineral rich finish that fans out beautifully. Perhaps the nose is deceiving? One to watch carefully once in bottle.