One of the denser and more concentrated wines in the Gouges line up in 2017, this comes from a 0.98ha site on famously poor soils. Showing good texture and weight with sweet raspberry and black cherry fruit, it's supported by acidity, medium-weight tannins and a spicy finish.

(90- 94 points) Just racked on Monday and sulphured, so not quite bright and a bit harder to taste. Mid purple colour, with quite a rounded strawberry and raspberry style fruit, less chiselled than usual but that’s a question of where we are. Lots of fresh acidity behind and the finish does bring out a bit more Vaucrains character

(91-93 points) Slightly riper aromas of plum liqueur, violet, warm earth and plenty of sauvage character lead to intense and notably dense broad-shouldered flavors that display first-rate power on the serious and youthfully austere finish. This is a big wine in the context of what is typical for the 2017 vintage and should age effortlessly.

The 2017 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Vaucrains is another unusually suave offering from Gouges, offering up aromas of dark berry fruit, wild plums, baking chocolate and rich soil tones, subtly framed by cedary new wood. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, deep and dense, but notably open-knit and juicy at the core, concluding with a long, sapid finish. Given how forbidding Vaucrains can be, this is an almost disconcertingly charming effort. - WK

The 2017 Nuits Saint-Georges Les Vaucrains 1er Cru has a light bouquet of brambly red fruit and rose petal scents, though it needs a little more vigor. The palate is medium-bodied and smooth in texture, with black plum and cranberry notes and rounded, thick tannins that lend good body. A touch of white pepper and spicebox appears toward the finish. Promising. Tasted blind at the Burgfest 2017 tasting. -- Neal Martin