2020(ish) vintage white Burgundy tasting

White Burgundy tasting at Caro's. Flight of 8 wines, all large producers. All 2020 vintage except for the Droin Chablis.

• 2021 Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis 1er Cru Montmains

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

  Fermented in 40% barrel, no new oak. Dried apricots and grapefruit on the nose. Creamy richness on the front palate, with a strong acidic backbone. Feeling balanced in this early stage!

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• 2020 J.A. Ferret Pouilly-Fuissé Clos des Prouges Tête de Cru

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Pouilly-Fuissé

  Fermented 100% in barrel, 20% new oak. Partial malolactic.
  Light wood/barnyard on the nose, I found this to be not very open.
  Highly structured on the palate, when it started to open up ~1hr citric acidity coming through. Good length and big body on this one, stood up really well to camembert. Tasted quite ripe.
  
  My least favourite of the night but still a very good wine.

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• 2020 Louis Jadot Beaune 1er Cru Bressandes Blanc

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru

  Steep slope on top of the premier cru slope, not a lot of soil. Not very old vines, average 20 years. 30% new wood but couldn't really tell.
  Nose: wow!! Honeycomb with great clarity. Floral orange note, neroli.
  Palate: slightly less generous in clarity compared the nose. Honestly couldn’t pinpoint any dominant flavours. Structured, medium body.

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• 2020 Bouchard Père et Fils Beaune 1er Cru Clos St. Landry Blanc

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru

  Nose is sweet and generous, giving honeydew, apricot, other orange fruits. Some sort of minty note coming through?!
  Palate: nice structure, not heavy here. Good acidity to back it up, not too strong, just nervous enough to keep you coming back. Love this elegant style!
  
  The three of the Bouchard's were my top 3 wines of the night, rating this one slightly under the Genevrières.

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• 2020 Louis Jadot Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot Clos de la Chapelle Domaine du Duc de Magenta

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Floral, elegant nose, It’s like a pillow. Honey character again coming through! Hints of reductive notes?
  On the palate, sorta reminds me of Tom Ford Ombré Leather. White florals and leathery, very small hints of smokiness. Beautiful fruity character, not entirely citrus. Big structure and acidity. Long, austere finish with mineral backbone.
  
  If I had this bottle in a cellar, I wouldn't open it now even though it's showing well at the moment.

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• 2020 Bouchard Père et Fils Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières Domaine

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru

  Upper section of Genevrières, more exposure to sun and better drainage. 10 months in barrel, 15% new oak.
  Nose is delicate and floral. Good intensity and body on the palate, linear, but with a long, austere finish.
  Probably a bit too structured for current drinking. However, my second favourite wine of the night due to the style and finesse.
  
  ❤️

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• 2020 Faiveley Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  30% new oak.
  Nose: an initial reductive character coming through. Lemon curd. Molasses as it opened up over the evening.
  Palate: smooth, linear. Lemon zest. Structure and acidity is there for aging, highest of the bunch. Earthy backbone.
  
  This was very cool but not my favourite in terms of style, too direct and big for me. Maybe it's just that the oak influence hasn't really settled yet?

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• 2020 Bouchard Père et Fils Corton-Charlemagne Domaine

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Only 20% new wood. A relatively late harvest, but not tasting the ripeness at all.
  Bouquet was a bit tight, even after 1.5 hours I got not much clarity out of it. Palate: wow, incredibly light, but with very concentrated fruit and floral notes. High acidity, with a finish lasting minutes. My first time trying Grand Cru Burgundy, and I've never experienced such a delicate wine that has so much concentration and character.
  
  This was just providing more and more every time I went back to it, wish I could have spent a few hours with it. Clearly the best wine of the night for me, not that I really understood it. But that is what the beauty of this wine is!!

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Overall, this was an awesome experience to get to know the 2020 vintage a bit more.

I found an interesting pleasant honey-like character to be present on the nose and palate of a few wines of the flight, not really sure what this feature is. It was especially clear on the Bressandes and Clos St. Landry.

Wines ranked in order of my preference:
- Bouchard Corton-Charlemagne
- Bouchard Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières
- Bouchard Beaune 1er Cru Clos St. Landry
- Jadot (Duc de Magenta) Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot
- Faiveley Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières
- Jadot Beaune 1er Cru Bressandes
- Droin Chablis 1er Cru Montmains
- Ferret Pouilly-Fuissé Clos des Prouges