Maison Roche de Bellène Bourgogne Rouge Vieilles Vignes Cuvée Réserve 2008 (£11.50 The Wine Society)
An earthy youngster, no shortage of red berry and cherry flavour, nor of tangy minerality, but maybe just a little too structured and chewy for real class. B+

Tanners Red Burgundy 2008 (Roche de Bellène) (£13.00 Tanners)
Pretty sure this is the same as the previous wine (the corks are identical) although this bottle was more evolved. B+

Henri Prudhon Bourgogne Rouge 2008 (£10.99 Bentleys Wine Merchants, D.Byrne & Co, New Forest Wines, Gelston Castle Fine Wines, Just Great Wines, Lake Wines, Luvians Bottleshop, Pig on Wheels, R S Wines, Ryston Estate, Vicarage Wine Cellars, Villeneuve Wines)
Time brings out some gentle, perfumed wild strawberry flavours, but there’s a stalky greenness running through the wine that doesn’t diminish with time – shame. B-

Domaine Michèle & Patrice Rion Bourgogne Rouge Les Bons Batons 2008 (£23.50 Four Walls Wine, Bacchanalia)
Chunky young wine, initially showing too much smoky bacon oak character, but this calms down and lets the plummy black cherry and raspberry flavours shine through. Good now, better in three years’ time. S-

Domaine Ghislaine Barthod Bourgogne Rouge 2007 (£16.50 The Wine Society – looks like they’ve run out now)
Similar smoky bacon character to the Rion, but the wine behind is softer, more supple and has a delicate fragrance behind its red fruit charms. S(-)