2021 Meursault, Les Charmes Dessus, 1er Cru, Jérôme Patriarche, Burgundy
About this WINE
Jérôme Patriarche
Based in Meursault, a village in the Côte de Beaune region of Burgundy, Jérôme Patriarche produces white wines from Chardonnay grapes, mainly from the appellations of Meursault and Bourgogne Côte d’Or. He also makes a small amount of red wine from Pinot Noir grapes.
Jérôme Patriarche is known for his meticulous and organic approach to viticulture and vinification, respecting the terroir and the environment. He works with low yields, manual harvesting, natural yeasts, and minimal intervention in the cellar. His wines are aged in oak barrels, with moderate use of new wood, resulting in expressive, elegant, and balanced wines reflecting the character of each vineyard.
Some of Jérôme Patriarche's most acclaimed wines are:
Meursault Les Vireuils: A single-vineyard wine from a plot located above the village of Meursault, with a southeast exposure and limestone soil. This wine has a floral and fruity nose with hints of citrus, honey, and almond. The palate is fresh, mineral, and complex, with a long and creamy finish.
Meursault Les Charmes Dessus Premier Cru: A Premier Cru wine from a parcel situated in the heart of the Charmes vineyard, with a southwest exposure and clay-limestone soil. This wine has a rich and intense nose, with aromas of ripe pear, peach, vanilla, and toast. The palate is full-bodied, round, and powerful, with great depth and length.
Meursault
There are more top producers in Meursault than in any other commune of the Côte d’Or. Certainly it is the most famous and popular of the great white appellations. Its wines are typically rich and savoury with nutty, honeyed hints and buttery, vanilla spice from the oak.
Even though it is considerably larger than its southerly neighbours Chassagne and Puligny, Meursault contains no Grands Crus. Its three best Premiers Crus, however – Les Perrières, Les Genevrières and Les Charmes – produce some of the region’s greatest whites: they are full, round and powerful, and age very well. Les Perrières in particular can produce wines of Grand Cru quality, a fact that is often reflected in its price. Meursault has also been one of the driving forces of biodynamic viticulture in the region, as pioneered by Lafon and Leflaive.Many of the vineyards below Premier Cru, known as ‘village’ wines, are also well worth looking at. The growers vinify their different vineyard holdings separately, which rarely happens in Puligny or Chassagne. Such wines can be labelled with the ‘lieu-dit’ vineyard alongside (although in smaller type to) the Meursault name.
Premier Cru Meursault should be enjoyed from five to 15 years of age, although top examples can last even longer. Village wines, meanwhile, are normally at their best from three to 10 years.
Very occasionally, red Meursault is produced with some fine, firm results. The best red Pinot Noir terroir, Les Santenots, is afforded the courtesy title of Volnay Santenots, even though it is actually in Meursault.
- 305 hectares of village Meursault. The best vineyards include Clos de la Barre, Tesson, Chevalières, Rougeot, Narvaux
- 132 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards (17 in all). The finest vineyards include Les Perrières, Les Genevrières and Les Charmes
- Recommended producers: Comte Lafon, Arnaud Ente, Coche Dury, Guy Roulot, Jean-Philippe Fichet, Patrick Javillier, François Jobard, Michel Bouzereau
- Recommended restaurant: Le Chevreuil
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is often seen as the king of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or.
Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.
It is quantitatively important in California and Australia, is widely planted in Chile and South Africa, and is the second most widely planted grape in New Zealand. In warm climates Chardonnay has a tendency to develop very high sugar levels during the final stages of ripening and this can occur at the expense of acidity. Late picking is a common problem and can result in blowsy and flabby wines that lack structure and definition.
Recently in the New World, we have seen a move towards more elegant, better- balanced and less oak-driven Chardonnays, and this is to be welcomed.
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