Chardonnay Wines

wines

There are fully 125 barrels of the 2018 Chassagne-Montrachet Village, a lovely wine in the making that reveals aromas of warm bread, citrus oil, fresh peach and dried white flowers. On the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, satiny and nicely concentrated, with fine cut and a well-defined finish. That there’s so much volume this year is great news for Moreau fans.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 89-91 RP(Domaine Bernard Moreau Chassagne-Montrachet Villages White) Discreet wood influence sets off the ripe aromas of various white-fleshed fruit along with hints of matchstick and lemon rind. The rich and relatively full-bodied flavors possess both good detail and punch, all wrapped in a less refined but notably more complex finale. This is a quality Chassagne villages. (Drink starting 2023).Burghound | 89-91 BH(Chassagne-Montrachet- Domaine Bernard Moreau et Fils) The 2018 Chassagne villages here was all ready for bottling and was just settling in for another month or so prior to its mise. The wine had been assembled at the end of July and fined the last week of October, so it was showing very well in mid-November. The nose is pure and very floral this year, offering up a fine blend of pear, apple, a lovely base of soil, lemon blossoms and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and succulent at the core, with a zesty girdle of acidity, lovely focus and grip and impressive backend mineral drive on the complex and beautifully balanced finish. Fine juice. (Drink between 2020-2045).John Gilman | 91 JG

Burgundy insiders have known for some time that this is one of the region’s great bargains, a ’simple’ village Auxey-Duresses that’s as tasty as many Côte de Beaune Premiers Crus. With notes of fresh lemons, aromatic baking spices, chalk dust and scented 10% new oak, it has wonderful weight and concentration and a mineral-etched finish. Drinking Window 2021 - 2026.Decanter | 93 DECThe 2018 Auxey-Duresses Blanc Les Hautés has turned out brilliantly, offering up aromas of crisp Anjou pear, blanched almonds, white flowers, pastry cream and struck flint. Medium to full-bodied, it’s deep and layered, built around an elegantly muscular chassis of chalky dry extract and underpinned by lively acids. Its almost tannic grip lends it supplemental freshness and structure in this warm vintage. This is another brilliant wine from Jean-Marc Vincent.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91 RPVery fresh and elegant with a fine, citrus, pear and peach feel and a chalky and mineral nose and palate. Powerful, driving and focused palate here. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 91 JS

At Boillot they normally make a single, 350-litre barrel of Montrachet, lightly crushing the fruit before pressing in a basket press. The results in 2019 were absolutely beautiful. Ripe pear and fresh flowers dominate the initial attack. On the palate there is a lovely intensity and richness, with a dense, creamy, buttery texture and huge reserves of substance that will keep this wine ageing for years to come. Drinking Window 2024 - 2039.Decanter | 97 DECInterestingly, here the nose resembles a grand cru Chablis with its oyster shell, iodine, quinine, lemon-lime and bee’s wax-scented nose. There is outstanding volume and concentration to the overtly powerful and muscular flavors that are supported by a citrus-tinged and markedly firm acid spine that also shapes the cuts-like-a-knife finale. As the length of my initial projected drinking window suggests, it would be pointless to open this beauty before it has at least a decade of aging as it should easily repay two of them. In sum, this is quite simply stunningly good. (Drink starting 2039)Burghound | 97 BHNotes of orange oil, pear, peach, yellow apples, fresh bread and nutmeg introduce Boillot’s 2019 Montrachet Grand Cru, a full-bodied, satiny and concentrated wine that’s textural and enveloping, with an ample core of fruit, lively acids and a long, expansive finish. More tightly wound than the demonstrative 2018, his is a superb effort that will reward bottle age.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RP

The nose on this wine promises creaminess, with subtle yeastiness. The palate has ease and creamy flow, presenting a lemony, cushioned and yeasty texture. Rounded and bright, the finish leaves a vivid impression of buttermilk.Wine Enthusiast | 92 WEThe 2017 Meursault Les Narvaux is showing beautifully, offering up aromas of citrus oil and crisp Anjou pear mingled with hints of beeswax and fresh butter. Medium to full-bodied, satiny but incisive, it’s elegantly textural, with terrific depth and tension at the core, underpinned a racy spine of acidity that carries through the penetrating finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RP

The 2017 Meursault 1er Cru Goutte d’Or is an elegant, precise wine that was less advanced in its élevage than the Meursault lieux-dits that proceeded it. Offering up aromas of apple, pear, white flowers and pastry cream, it’s medium to full-bodied, satiny and delicately textural, with good concentration and reserved depth at the core that suggests more is to come. I look forward to revisiting it from bottle.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | (91-93)+ RPThe 2017 Meursault Goutte d’Or 1er Cru possesses a sunny bouquet of tropical scents of pineapple, honey and peach, perhaps just missing the delineation of its peers. The palate is well balanced and slightly honeyed in texture (possibly with a touch of botrytis?). Very harmonious, with lovely white peach and Nashi pear notes toward the Puligny-like finish. A very classy Meursault that should age well in bottle. Tasted blind at the annual Burgfest tasting in Savigny-lès-Beaune.Vinous Media | 91 VM

Such a classic Corton Charlemagne! Stunningly concentrated and powerful, but also so graceful. Very racy at the long finish, which has so much mineral freshness. Takes your breath away! Drink or hold.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2019 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru is also quite promising, exhibiting aromas of pear, buttered citrus fruit, honeycomb, toasted almonds and white flowers. Full-bodied, satiny and rich, with a fleshy core of fruit and good underlying freshness, I hope it can repeat this fine performance from bottle.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91-93+ RP(Maison Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru White) More elegant and cooler aromas are comprised by green apple, floral, citrus rind, wood and spice hints. The delicious and more vibrant broad-shouldered flavors are more tightly wound and certainly more mineral-driven on the youthfully austere and sneaky long finish. (Drink starting 2027)Burghound | 91-93 BH

The Boudriotte blanc is produced from the climat Les Fairendes, located reasonably high on the slope, reaching almost to Les Ruchottes. This superb terroir for white wine has provided in 2018 a result that seamlessly melds citrus, mineral, and ripe apple aromas and balances them with surprisingly fresh acidity, a lovely depth of flavour on the palate, and impressive weight and length. Drinking Window 2021 - 2041.Decanter | 94 DECThe 2018 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Boudriotte is showing beautifully, unfurling in the glass with notes of toasted bread, pear, waxy citrus rind, smoke and popcorn. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and elegantly fleshy, it's seamless and elegant, with fine depth at the core and a long, delicately nutty finish. Already approachable, this will offer a broad drinking window.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RPA mild touch of reduction is sufficiently subtle to permit the notes of white flowers, citrus rind and discreet wood to be discerned. There is an attractive sense of underlying tension to the delicious medium weight flavors that possess focused power and good delineation on the lingering finish that flirts with rusticity. This well-made effort needs to develop more depth but it appears to have the requisite density to do so. (Drink starting 2028)Burghound | 91 BHA grassy, herbal note makes this white distinctive, adding to the lemon and apple fruit. It finds more focus in the end, leaving a butterscotch- and pastry-tinged finish. Drink now through 2024. 60 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 91 WS

In spite of the ripe-orange and exotic-fruit character that pours from the glass, there’s nothing superficial about this wine. Thanks to its generosity and very attractive fruit, this makes a very friendly initial impression on the palate, then the intense minerality comes through, building to a serious crescendo at the very fresh finish. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 96 JSA rich, opulent white, this features lemon cake, lime blossom, baking spice and stone flavors. Though intense, there’s also a sense of restraint, yet the finish is long and complex. Drink now through 2027. 630 cases made, 66 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 94 WS(Domaine du Pavillon (Pommard) - Domaines Albert Bichot Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru White) Smoky aromas of Granny Smith apples, acacia and a plethora of citrus influences are trimmed in discreet wood influence. There is fine volume to the delicious and almost creamy larger-scaled flavors that brim with both dry extract and minerality on the lemon-tinged and youthfully austere finale. This compact and serious effort should definitely benefit from mid-term or perhaps even a decade of cellaring. (Drink starting 2027)Burghound | 93 BHBichot has 1.2ha in Languettes, high on the slope, with a south/south-east exposition. The southern exposition is of major importance here, if one is to avoid over-ripeness. In 2019, the wine has very exotic, almost tropical aromas, while on the palate the texture is dense and creamy, and the ripe pear fruit touched with honey is even more apparent. A wine of luxurious charm. Drinking Window 2024 - 2039.Decanter | 92 DECThe 2019 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru comes from 1.2 hectares of vines in Les Longuettes. Matured in 35% new oak, it has a perfumed nose of yellow fruit, nectarine and peach skin aromas. The palate is well balanced with a light pineapple and passion fruit opening and well-judged acidity. Very harmonious, with a gentle landing on the finish. Maybe it is missing some tension and nerve, but the flavors are irresistible. Vinous Media | 90-92 VM

Bursting from the glass with aromas of peach, pear, fresh mint, baking spices, pastry cream, toasted almonds and white flowers, Ramonet’s 2019 Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru is full-bodied, rich and concentrated, with a generous core of fruit, ripe acids and a long, expansive finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RP

The 2019 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru is showing nicely, opening in the glass with scents of pear, orange oil, clear honey, blanched almonds and fresh bread. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated and textural, it’s rich and fleshy, with bright acids girdling its enveloping core of fruit.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92-94 RP(Domaine Follin-Arbelet Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru White) A mildly oaky nose features aromas of green apple, citrus blossom and white-fleshed fruit. The sleek, delicious and more concentrated bigger-bodied flavors brim with minerality and particularly so on the muscular, powerful and sneaky long finish. This will need a few years to better integrate the wood treatment but given the density of material, that should be no problem. In sum, this is quite promising. (Drink starting 2027)Burghound | 93 BH

Notes of peonies, rose petals, raspberries, orange oil and spices introduce the 2019 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Boudriotte, a medium to full-bodied, pretty and perfumed wine that’s seamless and elegant, concluding with a long, perfumed finish. It’s well worth seeking out.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92+ RPOpulent, this red features cherry, blackberry, spices and a flash of iron, with plush texture and solid structure. Revealing excellent balance, this fades gracefully with the fruit, mineral and spice notes. Drink now through 2032.Wine Spectator | 92 WSPungent aromas of matchstick, petrol and a phenolic hint precede rich, robust and concentrated medium-bodied flavors that flash evident power on the mildly warm and slightly rustic finale. This is solidly constituted and should repay mid-term cellaring out to about 10 years.Burghound | 91 BH

This is produced from a 0.32ha parcel that lies right on the border between Puligny and Chassagne. The wine also seems to be a balance between the two, with a bit of the power and depth of the Chassagne side, opposite some of the silky finesse and elegance of Puligny. Fermented and aged in 50% new wood, this is a wine that has a seamless integration of citrus and orchard fruit, floral notes, and a richer, creamy, buttery side that will age spectacularly well over time. Drinking Window 2025 - 2040.Decanter | 96 DEC

The 2019 Saint-Aubin Les Murgers des Dents de Chien 1er Cru has more delineation and mineralité compared to the Les Perrières, more terroir expression in situ. The palate is very well balanced with a fine bead of acidity, tropical tones such as passion fruit and mango, counterbalanced by a spicy/ginger tinged finish. It does not quite kick on as I might have hoped, yet there is still a lot of potential here. Expect this to land at the top of my banded score.Vinous Media | 90-92 VM(Jean Chartron St. Aubin "Murgers des Dents de Chien" 1er Cru White) Restrained aromas of very pretty white orchard fruit, rose petal and acacia blossom introduce intense and seductively textured medium-bodied flavors that exhibit slightly better overall depth and persistence. This is lovely and a wine that should age well over the mid-term. (Drink starting 2025).Burghound | 90-92 BHThe 2019 Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Les Murgers des Dents de Chien has turned out nicely, exhibiting notes of pear, crisp green apple, white flowers and fresh pastry. Medium-bodied, bright and precise, with tangy acids and a saline finish, it will show well out of the gates.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90 RP

A seductive white that draws you in with heady aromas of stone, butter, hazelnut and lemon. The intensity continues on the palate, where the mineral element and vivid acidity elevate the white peach, apple and baking spice notes. The texture borders on creamy, but maintains a mineral edge and cascades on the long aftertaste. Best from 2021 through 2030. 5 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe best of Pierre-Yves Colin Morey’s Meursaults comes from the lower part of Perrières, very close to the limit with Puligny-Montrachet. The humidity in the soil was a boon in 2017, helping the vineyard to produce a premier cru that’s racy, refined and very pure, with laser-like focus and intensity and a kiss of oak. (Drink between 2022-2030)Decanter | 95 DEC(Colin’s vines are located just across the road from his Charmes and a bit closer to the village of Meursault): Bright, pale yellow-green. Wonderfully delicate aromas of underripe pineapple, white peach, flowers, spices and crushed rock. Denser than Colin’s other Meursault premier crus but its uncanny thickness is fully buffered by dusty, palate-staining minerality. This very pure wine shows the penetrating energy of a tungsten filament. Consistent from start to endless finish. There’s still an impression of sweetness here as the wine has two grams per liter of residual sugar, but Colin suspects that one of his three 350-liter barrels has not yet completely finished its sugar fermentation.Vinous Media | 93-95 VMAs is usually the case chez Colin, this is the most elegant wine among these 1ers with its cool, pure and airy nose of lemon peel, mineral reduction, apple, pear and soft floral nuances. There is very good concentration to the seductively textured but precise medium-bodied flavors that flash plenty of minerality on the saline and strikingly persistent finish. Note well however that this chiseled effort is very firm and is a wine that is going to require extended patience. (Drink starting 2029)Burghound | 91-94 BHThe 2017 Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières is strongly marked by its terroir, offering up a crisp bouquet of lemon oil, tart green apple, crushed chalk, iodine and subtle spices. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, taut and tensile with tangy acids and a pronouncedly chalky, mineral quality.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92-94 RP

Beautifully layered aromas are composed by notes of citrus confit, white and yellow orchard fruit, dried apricot and traces of both wood and acacia. There is excellent density and richness to the powerful, palate coating and hugely long finish. This balanced but very firm effort completely transcends the rest of the range though note well that it’s going to require extended patience before it will reveal its full potential.Burghound | 93-95 BH

(Maison Louis Jadot Montrachet Grand Cru White) This is restrained to the point of being almost mute and only aggressive swirling coaxes aromas of white flowers, freshly sliced citrus, pear, green apple and discreet spice elements to grudgingly emerge. There is seriously good size, weight and punch to the beautifully detailed and notably mineral-driven big-bodied flavors that, like the Corton-Charlemagne, possess a chiseled and explosively long finish that really fans out as it sits on the palate. I very much like the balance and upside development potential here and about the only nit worth mentioning is just a hint of finishing warmth. Still, this should abundantly reward 12 to 15 years of cellaring. (Drink starting 2025)Burghound | 93-95 BHThe 2013 Montrachet Grand Cru, which comes from the Chassagne side, possesses a very precise bouquet that seems understated when compared to the more hedonistic Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles. This is much more demure, laid-back...nonchalant even. The palate is very precise - there is real detail here with delicate spicy notes furnishing the back end of this Montrachet that just expands toward the finish. I think this is keeping everything up its sleeve at the moment, but you cannot deny the balance and focus here.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 93-95 RP-NM(13.3% alcohol; picked late): Pale straw-yellow. Aromas of clove, iodine and white flowers are lifted by a note of lemon oil. Hugely concentrated, dense and utterly backward; not showing nearly the detail of the Chevalier-Montrachet in the early going but this is sweeter. Montrachet in the outsized Chassagne body-builder style. Really amazingly rich and massively structured for the vintage, but needs to lose some of its baby fat before it can be properly appreciated.Vinous Media | 94+ VM

The 2020 Meursault Village comes mainly from Les Tillets and Narvaux, matured in around 25% new oak. There is a faint marine influence underlying the cooking apple and pear aromas, gently unfolding with aeration. The palate is well balanced with light peach skin and apricot notes, quite pretty though not complex. Yet for a Meursault Village, I find this very satisfying. Closure: Diam 5Vinous Media | 88-90 VM

A decadent complexity of yellow peach, smoky nuts and fragrant almonds with beautifully crafted oak, superb acidity and a long, powerful finish. Truly delicious.Decanter | 95 DEC

Features a beautiful fragrance of lemon, lanolin, vanilla and toasty oak, with an underlying minerally vein. This is lively and changes across the palate, building to a precise, minerally finish. Shows terrific complexity and clarity. Best from 2022 through 2032.Wine Spectator | 95 WSOnly just beginning to open up, this is a very sophisticated white Burgundy with great elegance and a sleeker body than many wines of this category. Excellent concentration, married to a cool and fresh personality, the intense mineral character driving the very long and pure finish. From vineyards under conversion to organic cultivation. Better from 2021.James Suckling | 94-95 JSSold under the generic Champy brand but from a domaine-owned parcel of 0.5ha on the Pernand-Vergelesses side of the appellation, This is a wine that’s all about freshness and precision rather than power, showing chalky crunch and bite, alluring jasmine aromas, a leesy texture and subtle wood, 25% new.Decanter | 94 DECHere too there is a moderate dollop of wood framing the cool green apple, citrus rind, mineral reduction and lychee nut scents. There is good punch to the tautly muscular if not especially dense middle weight flavors that exude evident minerality on the firm, clean and dry finale. Like several of the wines in the range, this needs to develop more depth but given the underlying structure, this has the legs in which to do so. (Drink starting 2027)Burghound | 92 BH

Muscular and powerful, the 2019 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Ruchottes wafts from the glass with notes of pear, orange oil, peach, nutmeg and spices. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and concentrated, it’s a rich, broad-shouldered Ruchottes that’s quite demonstrative out of the gates.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RP

From the slopes above Montrachet, planted in 1962. The result shows aromas that meld citrus, tropical, and white stone fruits with a strong sense of salty minerality and notes of smoke and beeswax. The wine is firmly structured, with lots of racy acidity and plenty of extract, but there is never a loss of elegance or finesse. This is a superb wine that will easily continue to improve for thirty or forty years in a proper cellar. Drinking Window 2022 - 2034.Decanter | 97 DECThe 2019 Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru wafts from the glass with aromas of ripe yellow orchard fruit, clear honey, white flowers, toasted almonds and nutmeg. Full-bodied, satiny and layered, it’s lively and concentrated, with a deep, enveloping core, racy acids and a long, precise finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95+ RPHere the wood influence is more apparent with notes of toast and menthol framing the aromas of the cool essence of pear, apple, fennel and jasmine tea. There is another dimension of size, weight and power as well as minerality to the big-bodied and dense flavors that display outstanding length on the balanced, clean and bone-dry finale. At least 5 to 7 years will be necessary as this is presently quite tightly wound.Burghound | 95 BH

Ex Laleure Piot. Pale lemon and lime. This is very different from the Pierre Meurgey label Corton-Charlemagne, though the plots are next door and picked on the same day. This version is much less exotic in aromatics, much more chiselled, and is actually very fine with youthful mineral bitters. Long salient steely finish. A Corton-Charlemagne success this year, with the wood perfectly integrated. Tasted: October 2021.Jasper Morris | 94-97 JMA dense and lively white, evoking lemon and apple core flavors wrapped in toasty oak. Smooth, picking up generous baking spices as this winds down on the long citrus- and oak spice-inflected aftertaste. Best from 2025 through 2035. 104 cases made, 40 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 94 WSDomaine Clos de la Chapelle’s Corton-Charlemagne has become one of my favorites on the hill of Corton. The 2020 vintage here is exceptional, offering up a deep and youthful nose of apple, pear, raw almond, a hint of crème patissière, a beautiful base of chalky soil tones, apple blossoms and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and pure, with a superb core, great mineral drive and cut, lovely acids and a long, focused and perfectly balanced finish. This comes in listed at 13.5 percent octane and is a fairly ripe example of this bottling, in the style of the vintage, but with impeccable typicité and potential for long-term cellaring. Fine, fine juice. (Drink between 2022 - 2055)John Gilman | 94+ JGA subtle but not invisible application of wood surrounds the aromas of just sliced green apple, mineral reduction and a similar array of citrus elements. There is first-rate intensity to the broad-shouldered and powerful flavors that deliver excellent length on the stony, clean and very dry but not especially austere finale. Like the Sous Frétille, this could use better depth but in this case, more will also certainly develop in time.Burghound | 93 BH

Produced from 2.5 ha of domaine vines around the village of Beaune, notably the young vines of the Clos des Mouches, along with some purchased must. The grapes are pressed gently as whole clusters, lightly settled and fermented in cask (20% new). The wine has a lovely, buttery nose, with a ripe apple fruit and rich, nutty aromas that develop with time. Drinkable now, this will definitely continue to improve. Drinking Window: 2021 - 2029Decanter | 92 DEC