“Puligny-Montrachet is where Burgundian Chardonnay is at its most complete,” writes Clive Coates MW. The tiny town, covering less than one square mile, has made highly sought after wine for nearly a thousand years. Today most consider it, as Coates puts it, “the greatest white wine commune on earth.”
What makes this tiny corner of Burgundy so special? On the ground, it’s a combination of soil content (limestone, clay, and other minerals), slope, and exposition. In the glass, Puligny is a white Burgundy with added structure, more tension, and a beautiful, angular elegance. Or as Jay McInerney puts it, Puligny is “the Grace Kelly of wines.”
Winemaker Gérard Thomas owns a tiny sliver of land in Puligny-Montrachet — just over a hectare. His Puligny 1er cru has the richness and concentration of neighboring Meursault and Chassagne, but adds a sort of lively raciness only found in Puligny. This is smooth, energetic wine backed up by a rich and tension-filled core.
Like all of Thomas’s 2016s, the Puligny shows a beautiful balance between richness and liveliness. Jancis Robinson found it “rounded,” “creamy,” and “tightly crisp,” calling it “very good and impressively long.” We find notes of hazelnut and lemon in the nose, and golden apple, almond, and toast in the mouth.
Serve this with a chicken roasted with rosemary and garlic; drink for another 3-5 years.
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Thomas Puligny-Montrachet 1er cru 2016
bottle price : $65
FREE EAST COAST SHIPPING ON ANY 12 BOTTLES
