Dom. Michel Gaunoux
Rugiens Premier Cru
Pommard
2010

The producer

Michel Gaunaux seems out-of-kilter with modern Burgundy. Current practice sees wines assessed in barrel and sold often before even being bottled, certainly before being tasted as a finished product. Domaine Michel Gaunaux – now run by children Anne and Alexandre – does not release wines until they deem, they are ready, at least three years after harvest. Not fully mature by any means but without the edginess of extreme youth. They are one of very few estates to offer a range of older vintages.

Winemaking is also traditional, allowing the wines to speak of their provenance with grace and style … fine-grained wines with structure but perfume and fruit.  The 5.85ha estate was founded in 1875 and remain in the same family, with the name from the father of the current generation who created the modern reputation for the wines. The wines include an often-stunning Grand Cru Corton-Renardes, a Premier Cru Pommard blended from small holdings in three vineyards, and a value village Beaune that incorporates some Premier Cru material.

The wine

Fruit for Dom. Michel Gaunoux’s Pommard Premier Cru Rugiens comes from old-vine parcels in the heart of the Rugiens climat, widely regarded as one of Pommard’s greatest Premier Cru sites. The vineyard lies on a gentle mid-slope with a predominantly south to south-east exposure, benefiting from excellent sunlight and drainage. Soils are classic Rugiens: iron-rich clay over a limestone base, contributing both power and structure. Fermentation is carried out in traditional vats, followed by prolonged ageing in oak barrels—used sparingly new and often for several years in the Gaunoux cellar, before extended bottle ageing.

The wine reflects the authority of its site, combining dense red and dark berry fruit with a pronounced mineral and earthy core. Firm, muscular tannins are balanced by a natural freshness and aromatic lift, giving a medium- to full-bodied profile that is structured yet precise, with notable depth, longevity, and a sense of restrained elegance typical of this benchmark Pommard cru.

We choose our wines based on a range of criteria (see how we choose our wines) of which critic scores is just one. Rather than simply highlight the best score to promote a wine, our average critic score is calculated from the scores provided by several respected wine critics, who we follow for specific regions. They do not represent all critic scores and, wherever possible, we try and give more weight to more recent reviews. Where appropriate we consider market-based scores like Global Wine Score or Wine Searcher Average scores.

As a rule, we look to offer wines that achieve a 92/100 average critic score or better and frankly a lot of very good wines simply don’t make the cut. As a high-end provider we want to reflect that positioning in the quality of wines we offer. Such wines are only a tiny fraction of those generally on offer in the market. We believe that an average score is a more conservative and representative approach, but it is still subjective and only offered as a guide to our customers, who will (and should) do their own research. We will add individual critic scores to our website in the future.