2019 Meursault, Clos des Ecoles, Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat, Burgundy

Domaine Hudelot-Noellat

Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat has extensive vineyard holdings based around the Noëllat heartland of Vosne-Romanée and covering all the villages from Nuits St Georges to Chambolle-Musigny.

Charles Hudelot arrived at the domaine to take over from his grandfather Alain in 2008, assisted also by Vincent Munier who has been working there since 2005. There is no intention to deviate from the previous style of fine, fragrant wines however.

Small changes include the purchase of a new destemmer which sends the grapes into the fermentation vats uncrushed. The vineyards continue to be run according to lutte raisonnée though Charles is open to an organic approach in the future. New oak remains unobtrusive, with 20% for the village wines and up to 50-60% for the grands crus wines.

Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Wine Director and author of the award-winning Inside Burgundy comprehensive handbook.

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.