Côte de Beaune 2021: New Releases

This is the defining wine of this famous grand cru, the one to which everyone looks as the quintessential Corton-Charlemagne. The west-facing aspect of the hill means the vines enjoy the long rays of the afternoon sun, making for rich textures and a sumptuous depth of fruit.

Due to the miniscule yields in 2021, Alain has blended all four of the estate’s Premiers Crus (Folatières, Clavoillon, Pucelles and Champ Gain) together to make one cuvee. Elegant and packed full of juicy stone fruit and citrus aromas. The palate has a fantastic line of acidity running through, which gives this great energy. Well-balanced, with impressive concentration and a deliciously long, fine, saline finish.

The plot of Charmes in Puligny is a continuation of 1er Cru Charmes in Meursault, and shares many of its characteristics, like the light, fine, stony soils. There is a nervous tension on the palate at first, but this is backed up with delicate stone fruit and citrus peel flavours underneath, which will undoubtedly come to the fore as the wine evolves. Plenty of bright, fresh citrus energy and a charming floral note. Great value.

Charles Ballot is making some of the greatest Chardonnays in Burgundy these days, and his Bourgogne Blanc is an excellent place to get a taste of the style on offer at this address. 80% of the fruit is sourced from his home village of Meursault, with the balance coming from Puligny-Montrachet.

The Ballot-Millot vines sit at the top of the parcel, giving this Charmes atypical minerality, setting it apart from the richer examples produced further down the slope.

This is the largest premier cru at Ballot-Millot, and can be relied upon to produce a sensational wine year in, year out. The unofficial Grand Cru of Meursault.

The vines here are over 80 years old, and it''s no surprise that this is a stunning example of one of our favourite Chardonnay vineyards.

This is the wine Alex is most proud of in his cellar, which is telling praise. This is because it offers the complexity and depth on par with some other producers’ premiers crus. Its production accounts for 40% of the domaine’s output, being drawn from many sites across the village, half of which are tucked up in the pocket of village vines that hug the premiers crus. The other half comes from the village’s border with Puligny-Montrachet.

La Maltroie is one of the larger premiers crus in Chassagne, and is often one of the most restrained, backward wines in the Moreau cellar. The vines sit right in the middle of the village, opposite the cellar.

Morgeot borders Santenay at the south end of the village, and is not only the largest premier cru in Chassagne, but the largest cru in the Côte d’Or. This wine is a blend of two lieux-dits within: Les Fairendes and La Cadeuse, found at either end of the large cru.

En Remilly is one of the finest vineyards in St-Aubin, and touches the Chassagne vineyard of the same name, just above Chevalier Montrachet. Sunny in character, from a vineyard with very little soil, it excels in mineral driven vintages.

This Bourgogne Blanc is a winner: it comes from parcels across Santenay and St-Aubin, and lovely pure fruit on the mid-palate precedes a long, saline finish. It is full of nectarine, citrus and is so refreshing. Great value.

This tiny parcel is a family treasure, handed down to Bruno from his father - Michel Colin-Deléger. Only one 105 litre wine globe will be produced in 2021. It is so elegant and soulful with power, focus and finesse. Truly grand cru.

This premier cru shares borders with two grands crus: Le Montrachet and Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet. It takes its name from the white, chalky soils found here, and it delivers everything in the glass you might expect from such a superb position and soil-type. It has astonishing concentration, and is the most mineral and complex of the premiers crus in Bruno’s cellar. It’s a tiny parcel and low yields means it is made in very small volumes. Enthralling and supremely balanced.

Planted in 1979, this tiny plot near the border with St-Aubin has produced a fragrant, powerful wine in 2021. It is inviting and pretty on the nose with notes of exotic fruit. It has a fantastic, direct energy and ripeness of fruit balanced by wonderful freshness. The finish is impressively persistent, saline and fine.

This is the most linear and acid-driven of Bruno’s premiers crus, with a zingy core of nectarine-packed acidity running through the palate. It is tightly concentrated, with great depth of fruit and a delicious, refreshing, saline finish that goes on and on. Excellent.

This is a fantastic example of village Chassagne, with extremely expressive nectarine fruit character and a bright, energetic palate. It gets its intensity from the old vines (up to 66 years old in parts) from some nine parcels scattered across the village. A little touch of new oak gives it structure and support. Perfect.

En Remilly sits at the meeting point of three villages: Chassagne-Montrachet, Puligny-Montrachet, and St-Aubin. The larger part of it falls within St-Aubin, with the tiny part on the Chassagne side enjoying a superb position - next to Chevalier-Montrachet and just above Le Montrachet. At 300m altitude, with very little topsoil, Bruno’s two parcels (one of which touches Chevalier-Montrachet) make a superb and complex wine: intensely concentrated and energetic, with a precision you only find in Chardonnay grown on limestone.

This has an immediate and inviting energy. Pretty green orchard fruit and pithy lemon aromas greet you on the nose.. Fresh lemon sherbet flavours are complemented by touches of hazelnut and vanilla. This is fresh with a long, textured, saline finish. Brilliant value.

The Grand Cru vineyard of Bâtard-Montrachet lies between the picturesque villages of Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet, home to the world's greatest white wines. Everything about this wine screams Grand Cru, from the elegant, enthralling nose of orchard fruit to the concentrated,weighty, energy-driven palate. It’s an astonishingly striking wine.

We did not taste Le Montrachet as just 300 bottles will be produced.

Criots is a tiny grand cru, just one and a half hectares, making Fontaine-Gagnard one of the largest owners, with one third of a hectare. The south-facing slope, with poor limestone soils, yields a wine with superb power and tension. Yet in spite of the emphatic power, the wine is so balanced, textured and graceful.

La Maltroie is located just up the road from the winery, near the heart of the village. The domaine owns two parcels, one of 0.56 hectares and the other 0.17 hectares. Céline says it is always approachable, and in 2021 it has a superb concentration of nectarine fruit and a fantastic line of acidity. It is slightly more weighty than the village wine, with an added level of depth. It’s a great buy, from a domaine at the top of its game.

Fresh and delicious, with silky, almondy fruit, and perfectly pitched new oak (20%). This is abundant with fresh and ripe lemon, and has Chassagne’s signature chiselled texture. As ever, a benchmark Chassagne from one of our favourite producers, and excellent value.