top 10 french wines 2014

Every year, the release of the new Burgundy vintage is enthusiastically awaited, and 2016 was no exception - as witnessed by hundreds of producers presenting their Burgundy 2014 vintage in London in January. Though the wines are available to buy 'in bond' through Burgundy specialists, the majority will only hit the shop shelves in the next six to 12 months. Get ahead of the pack with our selection of 10 best white Burgundy wines from the vintage, including a mix of top scorers and those rated as best value by Decanter's expert tasters, Stephen Brook and Gérard Basset OBE MW MS. The selection of best white Burgundy 2014 wines below includes five of the highest scorers and five wines rated as great value for their quality. More than 1,000 Burgundy 2014 en primeur wines were rated and tasted for Decanter by Gérard Basset OBE MW MS and Stephen Brook. See their overview of the Burgundy 2014 vintage. Find all Burgundy 2014 wine ratings and tasting notes here. Domaine Leflaive, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru 2014 My (SB) wine of the vintage.

It has a huge, intense nose of lime,… Sensational perfume yet still quite subtle with delicate citrus notes and nuances of iodine. Has finesse rather than weight with… Lifted nose with a wonderful, spicy, cinnamon character but also some stone fruit and floral notes. All very elegant with… Tight mineral appley nose – not yet expressive. Rich, firm, austere, powerful palate that is tight, taut and very concentrated,… Louis Jadot, Les Demoiselles Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru 2014 Discreet appley aromas with some tropical fruit and an oaky sheen. Heady, rich apple nose. The full-bodied, concentrated, spicy palate has some grip and chewiness. It’s vigorous and long with impeccable…Fresh and brisk palate that is quite concentrated and limpid: has ample weight without being… Reticent apple and apricot nose, then a rich, full-bodied palate showing lively, assertive acidity with tension and piquancy. See Stephen Brook's rating, tasting notes and drinking window for Domaine Jean-Philippe Fichet, Vieilles Vignes, Bourgogne 2014.

See Stephen Brook's rating, tasting notes and drinking window for Domaine Daniel Barraud, La Roche, Mâcon-Vergisson 2014. Best white Burgundy page updated on 20 February 2016.We’ve just revealed the full Top 100 of 2016! Each year, Wine Spectator editors survey the wines reviewed over the previous 12 months and select our Top 100, based on quality, value, availability and excitement.
best boxed wine 2012This annual list honors successful wineries, regions and vintages around the world.
best wine bars dc area Here you’ll find every Top 100 list back to the debut year, 1988.
best red wine 2013 canadaSince then, new regions, grapes and styles have appeared on the list, but the classics are still going strong.
best large bottle of wine

Enjoy browsing more than 25 years of the world’s top wines! For detailed profiles of the 2016 picks, check out the complete Top 100 Wines of 2016 package in the Dec. 31, 2016, issue of Wine Spectator, on newsstands Dec. 13. (Note: In 1998, some wines share the same rank, as the list was divided into top reds, whites and dessert wines.)
the best soft red wine Vintage showed its trump card in this year’s wine releases, influencing key shifts in the makeup of the 2014 Top 100 list, which includes wines from 14 foreign countries and three U.S. states.
best wine by itselfCalifornia, France and Italy play major roles as in years past, but with an atypical mix of grape varieties and regions. Meanwhile, some countries saw big upticks in their numbers on the list, due to magnificent vintages and continued improvements in the vineyards and wineries.

Our editors found dozens of thought-provoking wines among the 18,000 we tasted in 2014. Whether from emerging labels and regions or historic estates upholding tradition, these wines turned our heads for a singularity and authenticity we call the X-factor. Our selection also prioritizes quality (based on score), value (based on price) and availability (based on the volume of cases either made or imported). These criteria were applied to determine the Top 100 from among the more than 5,400 wines that rated outstanding (90 points or higher on Wine Spectator’s 100-point scale) this year. Overall, the average score of the wines in this year’s list is 93 points and the average price $47—an excellent quality/price ratio and a slightly lower average price than the 2013 list.As such, our Top 100 is not a “shopping list,” but rather a guide to wineries to watch in the coming months and years, comprising the producers and wines our editors were particularly passionate about in 2014.

We hope you enjoy this exciting list of great values, rising stars and veteran producers that make up Wine Spectator’s Top 100 of 2014.How the Experts Wash a Wine Glass 3 Red Wines to Drink with Oysters 6 Uco Valley Wines to Buy Now 50 Amazing Wines for $15 or Less 4 Wine-Pairing Rules for Your Roasts The Ultimate Wine Party Snack Top 10 Winter Wines for $20 or Less How to Pour Wine Without Dripping 11 Best Things to Drink with Southern Food Why Sparkling Rosé Pairs with Everything Olivier Magny, owner of Paris's Ô Chateau Wine Bar and School. Photo © Benjamin Raimbault and Vincent Défossé Vincent Vin Olivier Magny is the eyebrow-raising owner of Paris's Ô Chateau Wine Bar and School. Here, he explains why Americans are the future of wine and reveals his favorite value bottles and regions.Here, he explains why Americans are the future of wine (the French are too busy drinking beer and feeling depressed) and reveals his favorite value bottles and regions.

Q. You were only 23 when you opened Ô Chateau 10 years ago. Are a lot of young people in France fascinated by wine? A. The level of interest in wine in France is pretty much collapsing, but we are seeing a resurgence among people in their late twenties and early thirties. It's funny, because they're kind of mimicking what they see on American TV shows! Sex and the City, Friends, White Collar. They all want to act like New Yorkers. Q. Back up: Are you saying that Americans know wine better than the French? A. In my experience, they do. Americans study wine more. And, contrary to what people think, French DNA doesn't come with the genes for wine knowledge. Q. This is definitely wrecking my idea of French culture.A. Look, the French eat more pizza per capita than practically any other country. Paris is Diet Coke, kebab shops and hamburgers. The surest way to recognize a tourist in Paris is to look for the person at a café with a glass of wine. The Parisian will be drinking Coke or beer.

We're also one of the biggest consumers of antidepressants. Q. If all these gloomy, hamburger-eating French people aren't drinking their own wine anymore, I suppose Americans should step up. What are your favorite regions for wine values in France?A. First, the Loire. It's like the El Dorado of incredible wines at amazing prices. Places like Montlouis, Vouvray, Muscadet—you find fantastic wines for $12 or so from producers like François Chidaine,Jo Landron and Domaine des Huards. France: We have high taxes but cheap wines. Q. Where else in France should people look for great values?It's one of the few places in the country where land is approachable in terms of price, which means that new winemakers—ambitious young guys—can buy a vineyard without an insane financial stretch. There are really good things happening here—in Corbières, Minervois, Coteaux du Languedoc, Roussillon—from producers like Léon Barral, Domaine de Bila-Haut and Olivier Pithon. Q. What's the biggest mistake US wine lovers make in France?

A. Falling for what I call the "house wine myth." It's this idea that you come to France and order the house wine and it's amazing, the best thing you've ever had. OK: We don't even have a phrase for "house wine" in French. If you go to Paris and ask for the house wine, you're 200 percent busted as an American, and they're going to serve you some random bottle they bought for one euro. Q. Do you have other tips for American wine travelers in France?A. If you want to go to the fancier places—grand cru classé châteausin Bordeaux like Pavie, Pontet-Canet and Cos d'Estournel—then book a fair bit in advance, say, three months. Also, watch out for weekends because a lot of wineries will be closed. Wine people here love Americans. Q. Any exciting new projects in the works at Ô Chateau?A. We've leased a 6,000-square-foot cellar right by the Louvre. The Louvre was once a royal residence, so the sommelier would bring the wine right from this cellar to the king. It's been abandoned for years, but we want to bring wine back to the place.