Description
Philippe Chavy, Bourgogne Chardonnay
I’m going to keep this short and sweet: There’s no wine I’d rather be drinking than white Burgundy—anywhere, anytime, any season. Although it can’t all be Montrachet or Cailleret, a top producer’s “Bourgogne” can enrapture and delight all the same. Philippe Chavy’s checks all the boxes, dancing the razor’s edge between opulence and uprightness without missing a beat.
Their fully biodynamic 2017 Bourgogne Blanc displays impressive intensity, voluptuousness, and minerality,—but then again, it’s hardly “just” a Bourgogne: 90% of the blend comes from Puligny-Montrachet, the other 10 from Meursault! What’s more, the oldest Puligny holdings were planted by his father in the 1950s, while the oldest Meursault goes even farther back to 1932, from his mother’s side—an inherited wealth he seeks to preserve with every snip of his secateurs. So, to summarize: biodynamic Chardonnay, grown in two of the world’s most prestigious villages, made by a master, and priced for weeknight drinking. If you’re not ordering a case, you’re not paying attention!
This nimble Bourgogne Blanc showcases Chavy’s prodigious skill in clean, broad strokes. In a superlative vintage such as 2017, his regional bottling takes on extra luminosity and represents all the more value for its modest price point. I savor the Bourgogne Blanc knowing it received the same wealth of specialized attention as his 1er crus. Philippe states it right there on his website, “Each and every vine and the grapes they yield command respect.” It’s a herculean labor of love considering the diversity of his holdings—eight hectares amounting to roughly 30 plots, which produces wine from 14 appellations…that’s Burgundian math, for you.
Philippe melds the old-school and the new without batting an eyelash—it’s simply the best way to care for his vines. He achieved biodynamic certification in 2010, plows his vineyards himself, and racks with the lunar cycle, but doesn’t hesitate to vinify in temperature-controlled stainless steel. Chavy just flows intuitively, without ego or agenda, and the quality of his wines benefits enormously as a result. After hand-picking the fruit for the 2017 vintage, he used a delicate pneumatic press to separate the juice from the skins, and opted for a native-yeast fermentation in stainless to amplify the vibrance of his fruit. The Bourgogne Blanc was barreled in French oak, 10% new, for a total élevage of 14 months.
The 2017 Bourgogne Blanc needs several moments to stretch—60 minutes in a decanter pulls a little more richness and tension from an initially neutral bouquet. It’s rewarding to watch it open up in the glass; notes of lemon cream become notes of lemon zest, crabapple turns to Pink Lady, white flowers are joined by honeysuckle, and a tiny exotic note unfurls at the core. All throughout, there is a clean, chalky minerality that makes your ears ring. It’s generously fruited, crisp, and impressively intense for a regional Bourgogne Blanc. It’s dangerously drinkable today, but more complexity is destined to emerge if you tuck this bottle in the cellar for another year or two. While this makes a fine aperitif, it’s got enough depth to accompany a piece of crispy, butter-fried fish to your table. Good juice, all around.
