Burgundy, Journal

Fete Du Bourgogne: Tasting the 2019 Whites at Burgfest

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Earlier this year the Burgfest tasting of 2019 white Burgundy delivered the most exciting, most satisfying and overall best Burgfest session I have yet attended.

  • Over the course of five mornings we blind-tasted our way through just over 200 wines at 1er- and Grand Cru level.
  • Aside from a couple kicked out for being corked, my scores ranged from 99/100 to 82/100.
  • I rated 28 wines, nearly 14% of the total sample, 95/100 or higher.
  • My top-scoring wines, for what it’s worth, were the Montrachet of Domaine Laguiche (Drouhin) and Domaine Leflaive’s Chevalier Montrachet.
The style of 2019 white Burgundy is not uniform. A warm-to-hot and dry vintage delivered a small crop with the potential for intense, powerful and muscular whites. Alcohol is generally higher than average and it would have been easy to make Chardonnay with acidity that is little more than moderate.
On paper, that stylistic summary does not add up to wines likely to excite me in the glass but it all comes down to the specific decisions taken by individual vignerons, both in the vineyards and in the cellar. As an example, here are three verbatim notes taken from our flight of Meursault 1er Cru Charmes.
Wine 1) Lots of power and muscle but also a mismatch between a slightly green fruit aspect and then a full and alcohol-laden palate profile. Potentially an acid-adjusted wine? Just not entirely in balance. Sherbert notes on the finish.
89/100 – Matthew Hemming MW
Wine 2) Elevated freshness with notes of mint, sage and masses of spice. Fabulous, dynamic and driving energy ripples through the core of this wine. Great intensity but also sufficient light and shade to allow for nuance and ‘breathing space’. Love the clarity and tension.
96/100 – Matthew Hemming MW
Wine 3) Moderately burnished colour. Has honeycomb notes and feels advanced from the get go. Waxy and short with a high alcohol, glycerol texture. Declines in the glass.
86/100 – Matthew Hemming MW
Before you ask, I don’t think I’ll reveal the identities of these three – that doesn’t seem fair!
All from the same 1er Cru vineyard, I would hazard a guess that 1) was later picked because of the body, weight, alcohol and power it showed. Here the winemaker seems to have acidified the wine, to compensate for the late picking, but the result lacks balance and the added acidity sticks out. 2) is an example of the very best of the vintage. 3) was a mess: probably late-picked, high alcohol, top heavy, deficient in acidity and already falling apart.
The thrill of 2019 is that, with some careful selection, there are plenty of options along the lines of wine 2). Today’s best wine growers have learned how to manage riper, more concentrated fruit and shape it into chiselled, vivid and dynamic wines.
The era of global warming may mean that average pH values are higher and acid levels lower than in the past, but the current generation of vignerons in the Cote have learned how to embrace the shifting climate and still lock freshness into their whites. Many will tell you that the vines themselves are adapting to the new solar vintages but the viticultural work undertaken to prune, train and manage the plants in a changing climate is key. This is what is going to ensure the region’s future as home of the world’s greatest Chardonnay.
Chablis 2019

I have a theory that so-called classic Chablis might be the pre-phylloxera Bordeaux of my generation – ie, rare, no longer produced and fast-disappearing. This isn’t to say we should abandon buying new vintages and start hoarding all the 2014s we can find.

The style of Chablis is evolving: you no longer have the austerity of a rude slap in the face from an icy North Sea wave, instead a warm ocean breeze delivers the scent of oysters and iodine. Taking this back to the 2019 vintage, the heat and dry conditions clearly presented serious challenges to those seeking to produce lean and steely wines but, again, it all comes down to the choices of individual domaines.

I found our opening Chablis flights somewhat pedestrian. Too much peachy orchard, fruit, creamy textures and not enough electricity. Save for a saline, mineral and chalky Sechets Vieilles Vignes from Samuel Billaud – whose wines showed consistently well this year – I began to be worried about 2019 Chablis.

A bracket of Montmain and Butteaux signalled an up-tick in quality and led into an impressive flight of Montee de Tonnerre. This included my first 94/100, which turned out to be another Samuel Billaud wine.

Chablis 1er Cru Montee de Tonnerre 2019 – Samuel Billaud

Saline, oyster shells, preserved lemons and sea breeze. Has a layered complexity that gets close to the Montee de Tonnerre claim to Grand Cru status. There’s volume, precision and poise. The mid-palate fills out but without ever becoming blowsy or too broad. The acidity really asserts itself on the finish.

94/100 – Matthew Hemming MW

Maybe the exposed slopes that delivered privileged ripeness in the vintages of the past are less of a blessing to the Grand Crus in today’s warmer climate? Our Grand Cru flights included my highest scores, and the group’s average scores were higher than those of any of the 1er Cru flights, but I did not see a significant gear change from Montee de Tonnerre.

I rated two wines 95/100, but that is only a point ahead of the Samuel Billaud Montee de Tonnerre: Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin’s Grenouilles and Christian Moreau’s Les Clos. I enjoyed the restraint and deceptive length of the Droin wine. The Moreau, which was the group’s highest scoring Chablis overall, showed fantastic structure and drive.

Dare I say it, but Samuel Billaud has got to be the value play in 2019 Chablis.

Meursault 2019

We tasted about 35 wines from Meursault, beginning with examples from Blagny and drawing to a finale with a flight of seven 1er Cru Les Perrieres. For my palate, Meursault hit its stride with Genevrieres, continued delivering some high points in Charmes and then really showed its class with Perrieres.

Wines from some serious domaines featured in these flights, including a nuanced and elegant 94/100 Poruzots from Dominique Lafon and a taut and glassy Roulot Perrieres that I also rated 94/100. Olivier Leflaive’s wines continue to shine at Burgfest. Stylistically they are quite flashy but they are so impressively crafted that they pull off the fancy winemaking.

One of my highest-scoring Meursaults was the Genevrieres from Ballot-Millot.

Meursault Les Genevrieres 2019 Domaine Ballot-Millot

Something pretty special. The scent is delicate, with hints of mint, menthol and fennel alongside more conventional orchard fruits. Begins on the palate with great subtlety and lightness of touch but the spice really begins to soar and accelerate. The texture is filigree and silky and there are many layers of extreme delicacy and finesse. Finishes scented and aerial.

96/100 – Matthew Hemming MW

This is clearly a domaine to watch and I also rated their superb Perrieres 95/100, putting it joint top of that flight.

Two other over-achievers are Michel Bouzereau, who made the group’s overall favourite Charmes and Vincent Girardin, whose Charmes (94/100) and Perrieres (95/100) both impressed me.

Antoine Jobard’s wines seem to be attracting significant attention and praise at the moment. Whilst I am sure his prices have accelerated beyond those of Bouzereau and Girardin, the Jobard Charmes was seriously good.

Meursault 1er Cru Les Charmes 2019 – Domaine Antoine Jobard

Fresh, bright and engaging. There’s lots of matter, density and complexity here with a successful use of reduction that adds a savoury, mineral quality. Acidity and energy are sustained throughout. Finishes with spice and drive.

95/100 – Matthew Hemming MW

Saint Aubin 2019

I was left somewhat perplexed by our dozen or so wines from Saint Aubin. Excepting one clearly advanced wine I rated everything between 88/100 and 92/100. There were plenty of perfectly nice wines but little in the way of fireworks.

The best wines had a saline minerality and some chalky acidity but too many were simply creamy and easy-going. I was left wondering whether the hilltop position above Puligny, that presented challenges to achieving full ripeness in the past, was unable to provide sufficient shelter in the extremes of the 2022 season?

Perhaps the grapes simply got too ripe to deliver that thrill of acidity?

Unsurprisingly, my favourite wines came from two of Saint Aubin’s best vineyards: En Remilly and Aux Murgers des Dents de Chien. As ever, the class of the terroir shines through. Olivier Lamy’s Dents de Chien (92/100) was initially a bit introverted on the nose but came alive on the taut, focused and chalky palate. Marc Colin’s En Remilly was the group’s highest-rated Saint Aubin and also my favourite from this vineyard.

Saint Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly 2019 – Domaine Marc Colin & ses Fils

An immediately ambitious style, both in the winemaking and the fruit intensity. A familiar wood signature of spice, sage and mint. The fruit sits within the frame, not underneath it, and delivers flesh and succulence. Texturally it’s creamy and satisfying.

92/100 – Matthew Hemming MW

Chassagne Montrachet 2019

2019 in Chassagne Montrachet makes a strong case for this currently being the most exciting white wine village of the Cote d’Or. I absolutely loved our morning tasting these and from the very first wine found the driving acidity I yearn for in top white Burgundy.

We saw wines of citrus cut, clarity, tension and purity. The flight of wines from more elevated vineyards – Romanee, En Caillerets, Grande Montagne and others – was the most thrilling bracket in the three days to that point. Put another way, the best of Chassagne out-shone Meursault Perrieres – a site often deemed to be a Grand Cru in waiting.

The group’s highest scoring wines from Chassagne, two of the most highly rated 1er Crus in the entire Burgfest and personal highlights for me, were both from Paul Pillot. Make no mistake, Thierry Pillot has taken this estate to the front ranks of white Burgundy.

Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru La Grande Montagne 2019 – Domaine Paul Pillot

This would be easy to miss in many contexts as it’s softly spoken yet extremely persistent. Has a quiet intensity that grows and builds through the mid-palate. The underlying material is solidly savoury and mineral, emphasised by the reductive elements, yet there is generosity and ripeness to the fruit profile. The finish drills down in intensity, rather than broadening out

94/100 – Matthew Hemming MW

Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru Grandes Ruchottes 2019 – Domaine Paul Pillot

Stylistically this is very curious, combining a more classical, creamy, profile with something driven by citrus blossom scent and minerals. This makes for a fine and compelling balance, with a finely-spun texture and a sense of vivid, mineral drive.

95/100 – Matthew Hemming MW

Amongst numerous excellent 2019s from Chassagne it is worth noting that both Ballot-Millot and Vincent Girardin both turned out top drawer examples. This is further evidence that these growers are worth attention.

Puligny Montrachet 2019

With its concentration of celebrated estates, it is not surprising that Puligny delivered plenty of high points. The now familiar distinction between ripe, fatter examples and those that held their acidity was maintained but there was also a clear Puligny identity and grilled hazelnut signature in many wines.

One of the early wines we tasted was Jean-Marc Boillot’s Truffieres. It bore clear marks of 2019’s heat but there is also freshness and lift skillfully woven into the wine’s fabric. This won’t last forever but it delivers a well-balanced, authentic and satisfying Puligny experience.

Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Truffiere 2019 – Domaine Jean-Marc Boillot

Classy and moderately sophisticated wine that, despite quite warm alcohol, has a brightness of acidity and the sense that it’s actually going somewhere. Colour still shows a tinge of green. Texture is full and creamy but underpinned by freshness and there’s drive through the mid-palate. This is flattering to drink now and may not develop hugely but neither does it feel in danger of declining any time soon. Succulent orchard fruits on the mid-palate and a gently creamy finish.

92/100 – Matthew Hemming

The bracket of 1er Cru Pucelles marked the pinnacle of our Puligny tasting but, for me, one of the finest wines we tasted during the entire week was Domaine Leflaive’s Combettes.

Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes 2019 – Domaine Leflaive

Similar to the above [Vincent Girardin’s Puligny Combettes] but with more layers of intensely savoury and mineral complexity. Has a Grand Cru degree of volume and authority. The nutty, savoury, mineral reduction is extremely classy. There is precision, depth and nuance as the wine continues to evolve and pop in the glass. The texture combines glassy tension and a richness of fleshy fruit. Spicy on the finish.

97/100 – Matthew Hemming MW

Domaine Leflaive have clearly re-discovered their magic and their Pucelles (96/100) also shone in the Pucelles flight, where it was so distinctive I picked it blind. However, I would like to highlight the superb Clos de la Pucelle from my friend Jean-Michel Chartron. Far from the most expensive wine in the bracket, I felt this more than held its own.

Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Pucelle 2019 – Domaine Jean Chartron

All hazelnuts and cream. What’s interesting is that, whilst some wines in this flight lose mid-palate energy, this gains and crescendos. There’s more spice, more volume and more fruit as layer after layer unfurls. Lemon cream and citrus butter with accents of blossom and white flowers. A seriously beautiful mid-palate scent.

94/100 – Matthew Hemming MW

Puligny has an embarrassment of richness amongst its producers and there are some extremely fine wines to choose from in 2019. Michel Bouzereau, Vincent Girardin and Olivier Leflaive continued to impress, as they did throughout this tasting. Two growers whose wines had not featured previously also showed extremely well.

  • Bachelet-Monnot are making flamboyant, sophisticated wines that are beautifully charged with acidity and minerality.
  • Etienne Sauzet seems to be back in the game, making wines with fabulously judged oak spice and reduction married to great precision and cut.

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