Domaine Patrice et Maxime Rion. The 2022s.

Toni and I visited Domaine Rion in Nuits-Saint-Georges this month and tasted the 2023s. The domaine farms around 6.8 hectares biodynamically, and six of its 2022 wines were booked on our June shipment to Perth. The container was packed by hand, and the last two pallets would not fit. The 75 cases of Rion left Antwerp separately in September and dock in Fremantle on 8 November.

The June container, full to the doors, and the two Rion pallets that followed.

A father-and-son vintage.

Patrice Rion made wine at his father's estate, Domaine Daniel Rion, before establishing his own label with Michèle in 1990. They began with around two hectares. Patrice left Domaine Daniel Rion in 2000. Their son Maxime joined in 2005 after studying oenology in Dijon, and now runs the domaine. Inside Burgundy calls it "a seamless transition".

The 2022 vintage is the first to carry both Patrice and Maxime's names on the label. It also marks the arrival of Patrice's inherited family parcels in the domaine: the division of the Daniel Rion estate was finalised in summer 2022, and those vineyards came in from that harvest.

Maxime has taken a different approach to whole bunches. Patrice once destemmed everything: "We always de-stem 100 per cent... I don't like the green taste." Under Maxime, recent vintages use around a quarter whole bunches, and Vinous puts the 2022 Clos des Argillières at 30%. "We are less and less interventionist," Maxime says, "and it works even better."

The 2022 vintage at Rion.

Picking began on 2 September, with the domaine's own fruit from the 3rd, and yields came in at around 35 hectolitres per hectare. The wines aged 18 months without racking. Maxime's word for the year is juiciness: "Juiciness? Yes. It's a big characteristic of the vintage." Bill Nanson of the Burgundy Report summed up the domaine's 2022s as "very high quality with a number of great wines."

The critic scores below are barrel-sample ranges, from Jasper Morris (Inside Burgundy), Neal Martin (Vinous) and Allen Meadows (Burghound).

Clos Saint-Marc.

Clos Saint-Marc is a Nuits-Saint-Georges premier cru monopole, made exclusively by the Rions. It is under a hectare, lower down the slope and almost surrounded by Clos des Argillières. The family bought it in 2006; before that it was made by Bouchard Père et Fils. Patrice describes the vines as 60 to 80 years old, and the wine simply: "It is a wine for keeping." Bill Nanson calls it "always the greatest of the Nuits here". It was also our favourite wine from the 2023 tasting.

"A powerful bright purple. The bouquet shows a refinement ahead of all the other premiers crus chez Rion, plus a little energy from the whole bunches which pop up through the bright raspberry fruit. Brilliant intensity, some blueberries, properly ripe fruit throughout, yet with a startling energy and drive right across the palate. Chapeau! Maxime's smile shows that he knows how good it is! I certainly agree!" 94–97 points, Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy

"The 2022 Nuits Saint-Georges Clos St. Marc 1er Cru was picked around September 4th. It has a more backward yet exquisitely defined bouquet with white pepper and clove filtering through the precise black fruit. The medium-bodied palate has smooth tannins and sweet black fruit laced with white pepper and blood orange. It is slightly stricter than the Argillieres on the finish but feels longer and more focused. Excellent." 93–95 points, Neal Martin, Vinous

Clos des Argillières.

Clos des Argillières lies south of Nuits on small stones and red clay that is not heavy. It is the broader-framed of the two red premiers crus.

"The 2022 Nuits Saint-Georges Clos des Argillieres 1er Cru is strict on the nose at first, buttoned-up black fruit, the whole bunches (30%) neatly assimilated. The medium-bodied palate offers succulent, ripe black fruit commingling with blood orange, graphite and touches of black pepper. This wine has a beautiful build, which feels long and tender on the finish. Excellent." 92–94 points, Neal Martin, Vinous

Terres Blanches, a rare white Nuits.

Les Terres Blanches is a white premier cru in an appellation known for red wine. The 1.23-hectare vineyard was abandoned during the First World War and replanted in the 1970s, on very white limestone at the steep, shaded top of the slope. It is Chardonnay with a share of Pinot Blanc, which Patrice says gives "a smile to the wine". Bill Nanson's verdict is two words: "Completely delicious."

"A deft application of wood sets off spicier aromas of ripe apple, pear, white flower and more evident citrus influence. The notably finer medium weight flavors possess almost painful intensity before terminating in a chiseled and bone-dry but not really austere finale. This is lovely and a wine built to repay 5 to 8 years of keeping." 90–92 points, Allen Meadows, Burghound

The village wines.

Vosne-Romanée comes in roughly equal parts from Croix Blanches, Ravioles and Haut Beaux Monts. Jasper Morris rates it alongside the premiers crus.

"Beautifully lifted bouquet, without showing the whole bunches so much. What a weight of fruit starting at the front and continuing across the palate. A joyous quite fresh red fruit, now some white pepper and then a long red fruit finish." 92–94 points, Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy

Chambolle-Musigny Vieilles Vignes comes from vines around 60 years old in the south of the village. Bill Nanson calls it "a benchmark villages Chambolle."

"It has a tight-wound bouquet that only gradually opens: dark berry fruit, black tea and light granitic scents. The medium-bodied palate has fine tannins, offering mainly black fruit with a tinge of blueberry, quite succulent and sorbet frosted with a persistent finish. Very fine." 91–93 points, Neal Martin, Vinous

Nuits-Saint-Georges Vieilles Vignes draws around a third of its fruit from the domaine's own plateau vineyard, with the balance from Les Longecourts. All the grapes are destemmed.

"The pure and delicate bouquet unfolds in the glass: crushed limestone and black cherries, just a hint of licorice emerging with time. The medium-bodied palate brings dark berry fruit laced with blood orange and touches of granite, very strict and focused with a tang of marmalade towards the finish." 91–93 points, Neal Martin, Vinous

What we saw at the domaine.

The attention to detail begins with the grapes and runs through to bottling. Four things stood out.

• Yellow light in the cellar. The working areas are lit in yellow, which protects the wine from light strike.
• Cold fruit. The grapes are kept cool from picking through sorting and pressing, which slows oxidation and holds the fruit fresh.
• The bottle itself. Rion selects its bottles for the shape and length of the neck, so the cork forms a tight seal for long ageing.
• Small crates, two sorts. Grapes are picked into crates holding no more than 18 kilograms, then sorted twice, before and after destemming.

What we tasted: the 2023s.

We tasted the 2023s, not the 2022s on offer, so these are impressions of the domaine's style rather than reviews of the wines arriving. Our notes kept returning to purity and tension, with fine, almost powdery tannins in the reds. Clos Saint-Marc was our top wine of the visit.

• Clos Saint-Marc 2023. Richness, density, purity and plush fruit, carried by very chalky but fine, powdery tannin. Incredible length, structure and tension. The top wine of the visit. Jack 19.5+, Toni 18.7.
• Terres Blanches 2023. Racy, vibrant, serious and delicious. It holds its length and tension beautifully, with firm structure underneath. Jack 19.3, Toni 18.4.
• Clos des Argillières 2023. A stunner: just enough fruit to build and build on the front of the palate like a wave, before fading slowly. Jack 19.2, Toni 18.6.
• Chambolle-Musigny Vieilles Vignes 2023. In Toni's words, a "lace-like structure, but with depth." Jack 18.8, Toni 18.2.

The indent closes Friday 30 October.

Indent pricing holds until Friday 30 October, before the wines arrive in Fremantle on 8 November. Pay now, and the wine is released to you once it has landed and cleared. When the window closes, the wines move to their price on arrival.

All six wines are on our Patrice et Maxime Rion page. You can reserve there, or email us with what you would like. Of the six, Clos Saint-Marc would be my first choice.