William Kelley has rapidly risen up the wine-writing ranks. He started writing for Decanter in 2015, covering the 2015 and 2016 Burgundy vintages, before joining the Wine Advocate in 2018, where he now looks after Burgundy, Champagne, Madeira and English Sparkling Wine. But it’s clear that Burgundy is his passion – spending half the year in the region’s cellars and vineyards. “It is a region that grabbed me the first time I visited (as a student, in winter 2008/2009),” he explains. “For all that it has changed over the last few years, it remains an immensely rich and individualistic wine culture, which never loses its capacity to surprise. Nothing is ever quite what it seems! That, combined with the fact that the Burgundian model has become in a sense the driving paradigm for contemporary wine culture, makes it a very exciting place to be.” As anyone following him on Instagram knows, he seemingly tastes and drinks more old Burgundy than most. But – since 2018 – he’s been doing much more than just drinking the wines, trying his hand at making wine himself, an experience that he feels has only helped him talk and write about the region. “There is no substitute for experiencing first-hand the stressful choice of when to pick; for handling and tasting the grapes at harvest; or for following their progress from must in a tank to wine in a barrel,” he explains. “In 2018, for example, I used very little press wine; but in 2019 I couldn’t get enough of it, the tannins were so velvety… Insights of this nature, in turn, make it much easier for me to discuss the vintage with producers.” In fact, one factor in his decision to start making wine was the rising prices in the region – something that he fears puts some wines “beyond the reach of a new generation of consumers”. However, he still feels that Burgundy can offer value – it’s simply about knowing where to look, and his advice is to look for the best farmers and winemakers working in “lesser” appellations.  “I have championed growers such as Mercurey’s Bruno Lorenzon, Rully’s Vincent Dureuil-Janthail, the Mâconnais’s Jean-Marie Guffens, and Santenay’s Jean-Marc Vincent in the pages of The Wine Advocate, and the results are indisputable when their wines are tasted blind in the company of others from grander appellations. Rather than looking for second-tier producers of the famed Premiers and Grands Crus of the Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune, the smart thing to do is to look for real vignerons like these, who are smashing the glass ceilings that have long been imposed by the appellation hierarchy.” As for 2019 in Burgundy, it’s the latest vintage in a growing trend for ever warmer, dryer years – something that he feels is, or should be, forcing vignerons to question the way they work both in the vineyard and winery, with conventional practices adapted to cooler, wetter conditions that are now a thing of the past. But he’s excited about the wines the warm, dry year produced: “The vines adapted to the conditions better than I think anyone could have hoped,” he says. The whites are proving harder to read at this stage, and therefore feels it’s going to be particularly important to revisit them in bottle. But he’s “impressed by how chiselled many 2019s remain, despite their huge levels of concentration” – there are, in his view, “some great bottles in the making”. As for the reds, they are, in his view, “simply brilliant”. For him, the vintage combines elements of 2005, 2009, 2015 and 2017: “If 2019 must clearly be numbered among what the French call ‘solaire’ vintages (ie those shaped by warm, sunny conditions), it also remains very classically Burgundian.” Explore all Burgundy or read more Editorial

As we focus on all-things Burgundy with the release of the 2019 wine vintage, we talk to the Wine Advocate’s Burgundy critic William Kelley about the region, why it is still so exciting and where to find value.

Wine Advocate critic William Kelley on Burgundy wines today, why it is still so exciting and where to find value.

Wine critic William Kelley on Burgundy

Sitting down with William Kelley

Burgundy is a mecca for lovers of fine Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but, with its litany of producers and vineyards, it can be a tricky region to get to grips with. Here we offer an essential guide to the region – breaking down everything from how vineyards are classified to producers to look out for

Discover everything you need to know about Burgundy: from vineyards and producers to the difference between négociant and domaine or what a Grand Cru is

Your essential guide to Burgundy wine

Your essential guide to Burgundy

Guffens-Heynen

Accounts

Your access is restricted because of your age.

Access forbidden

You must be over the legal age to view this page. Please verify your age to enter.

Are you over the legal age to purchase alcohol?

As a result of the quantity requested for delivery, we recommend using Third Party Shipping. If you proceed with our Shipping, there may be a delay to the selected ship date.

As a result of the quantity requested for delivery, we recommend using Third Party Shipping. If you proceed with our Shipping, you will not be able to define a ship date, and we will get in touch with you to arrange delivery.

Your order request will be cancelled. Are you sure you want to proceed?

Due to the quantity requested for collection, there may be a delay in meeting your requested collection date.

Due to the quantity requested for collection, it is not possible to define a collection date at this stage. Our team will liaise with the warehouse and contact you directly to confirm a suitable pick-up date.

For orders with a high value, we recommend shipping with a third party carrier. Items shipped with third parties will remain in banded OWCs.

Due to the quantity requested, you won’t be able to select a collection date. Please submit your request, and we will liaise with our warehouse and confirm the collection date with you directly.

Due to the quantity requested, you won’t be able to select a shipping date at checkout. Please submit your request, and we will liaise with our warehouse and confirm the delivery date with you directly.

For up to 499 bottles in storage, the rate is 39¢/bottle per month or a $50 minimum monthly charge (this covers up to 142 bottles). For over 500 bottles, the storage rate is 35¢/bottle per month.

Standard storage rate

By selecting third-party shipping, you will take full responsibility for all aspects of legal compliance and authorize Vinfolio to transfer the items to the party specified in your instructions. Items shipped via third parties will remain in their original packaging.

Collection times are between 8:30am - 12pm & 1:30pm - 4:30pm, Monday to Friday. Wines at Will Call, that are not picked up within 10 business days, will be transferred to storage and subject to a $1.50 per bottle stocking fee.

Items to be sourced and shipped to our state-of-the-art fine wine storage facility for the best possible safe-keeping where you can arrange collection from our warehouse address in Napa.

Will Call (Napa)

You entered the incorrect password too many times. Your account has been temporarily locked. Please wait five minutes before trying again.

Forgot Password

We're in the final stages of upgrading to our brand-new trading platform. As part of this transition, we're currently migrating all customer-owned inventory to ensure a smooth and seamless experience.

Our new and improved platform will be ready for you on Friday, April 4.

Thank you for your patience - we can't wait to show you what's next.

Oops, something went wrong

We couldn't find any results to show here.

Please note: delivery, duty and VAT charges may apply

Our website is currently down for maintenance.

Maintenance Mode

Pre-authorizing a Payment Method enables your Account Manager to make payments on your behalf, without payment verification.

Pre-authorize

This transaction has been blocked by authentication failure.

Authentication failure

Your payment card has expired. Please check your details and try again.

Expired card

Insufficient funds to pay your balance. Please check your details and try again.

Insufficient funds

This transaction has been blocked by the payment provider due to possible fraudulent behaviour.

Transaction blocked

Please choose a different payment method and try again.

Unknown error

About description for demonstration purposes

shows all the items you currently store with us. These items can be sold, delivered or transferred.

At {shortName}

Your allocation will be cancelled. Are you sure you want to continue?

Your pre-order item will be deleted. Are you sure you want to continue?

Your delivery request will be cancelled. Are you sure you want to proceed?

This is the price you paid for this item.

Cost price

After adding your new address, you'll be redirected back to this page.

Create a new address

Your notification will be deleted. Are you sure you want to continue?

The lowest price you're willing to sell at. If the net price goes below this value your listing will be removed.

shows all the items that you have pre-ordered, including en primeur wines, and all the items on your watchlist.

Futures

You can set a floor price on items you're selling based on a % of current unit net value.

shows all the actions that you have taken on items in your Portfolio.

History

shows all the items that are currently in transit to or from {shortName}.

In transit

Local delivery is free for orders over HK$5,000 (to a single location). For orders below this value, delivery is HK$300 for up to four cases and HK$50 per case thereafter.

You can arrange collection from our Retail store on 22nd Floor, 8 Wyndham Street, Central Hong Kong.
Collection times are between 9:30am-13:00 and 14:00-18:00pm, Monday to Friday. We are closed on public holidays.

represents all the wines you currently have in your Portfolio that aren't stored with us. Press the

My cellar

Name

Net price

You do not have any invoices at this time.

shows all the items from your Portfolio that are currently on the market.

On sale

shows all the items you currently have in your Portfolio. You can perform individual actions on them from this page.

Overview

shows any items that are currently awaiting user action.

Pending

This is the dynamic market price of the item with trading margin removed.

Pre-authorised payments enable automatic transactions on your behalf, ensuring seamless and hassle-free payments. This allows recurring charges, subscriptions, or scheduled payments to be processed without manual approval each time.

The number of cases you wish to place on sale

Your catalogue item will be archived. Are you sure you want to continue?

Before you request delivery, you can adjust the quantity for each item in your selection below.

*Market price is dynamic and may change. At time of sale a 10% trading fee will be deducted from the final sale price.

Total market price*

Split into {caseSize} individual {bottleSize}cl bottles.

Title

Profile

This item is at FINE+RARE, available for storage, transfer or delivery.
 Most UK deliveries can be made within 3-5 working days, with next day delivery for London;
 an exact date will be available when arranging delivery.
 International deliveries have longer lead-times, please contact us for details.

This item is at FINE+RARE HOME Hong Kong, available for delivery or local pickup. Most Hong Kong deliveries can be made within 3 working days, an exact date will be available when arranging delivery. International deliveries have longer lead-times, please contact us for details.

Wines sold en primeur will be released from the producer after bottling, typically 18 months after the so-called campaign ends. Your wine will then be stored by FINE+RARE in a bonded warehouse until you decide to take delivery.

We will source this item from our network of suppliers and arrange shipment to FINE+RARE.
 The lead-time depends on many variables, but 6-12 weeks is an average estimate.
 Once your order is confirmed, we'll keep you updated on its ETA.
 Every item is checked on arrival by our expert team, with photographs available on request (please note that charges may apply).

Guffens-Heynen

Filter

Please wait

Related articles