2022 Pernand-Vergelesses Blanc, Domaine Follin-Arbelet, Burgundy
Critics reviews
Pale lemon colour, a light if quite attractive bouquet. There is something in the aromatics reminds me of tastings years ago, it is fresh, zesty, and rather attractive but without the weight for long keeping.
Drink 2027 - 2029
Jasper Morris MW, Inside Burgundy (December 2023)
The 2022 Pernand-Vergelesses Blanc comes from vines planted in 2015 that are apparently relatively difficult to work as they tend to be vigorous. The very backward on the nose is a little timid at the moment, letting the Aloxe-Corton Blanc do all the dancing, so to speak. The palate has a fine spine of acidity, not complex but well-balanced, fresh with tangy mandarin and marmalade on the energetic finish.
“It was way easier than 2021 or 2023,” Follin-Arbelet explained when we broached the 2022 vintage. “It was a bit like 2019. We were lucky to have no frost and good conditions throughout the summer. It was hot in May, but we had showers to prevent hydric stress, and there was just a little oïdium in some parcels. We had one parcel in Aloxe-Corton that was touched by hail…we don’t know when that happened, probably around when there was the storm.
We started picking on August 28 when we had expected to start on August 15, commencing with the reds and the Corton-Charlemagne, then took a week off and started again with a smaller team for the Chardonnay, which was quite challenging in terms of recruiting pickers. The alcohol levels are between 13.5% and 14.5%, with just a little chaptalization to extend the fermentation. The wines are racked into older oak barrels after nine months. After racking the wines in stainless steel vats for three months, they will be bottled in January or February.”
Drink 2025 - 2035
Neil Martin, Vinous.com (January 2024)
About this WINE
Domaine Follin-Arbelet
Franck’s ancestors owned vineyards in Aloxe-Corton, which they sold off towards the end of the 19th century.
As a child, he spent holidays in the village, working part-time in the vineyards and, in due course, marrying a local girl, Christine. Her family had some vines – enough for Franck to set up as a vigneron in 1993, subsequently adding further vines through rental agreements. In 2017, Franck was joined at the domaine by his son, Simon.
In the vineyard
Franck favours the most simple and natural form of farming possible. The grapes are entirely destemmed, vinified in wooden vats for about two weeks. The wines are aged for 18 months in barrel, initially with 20 to 25 per cent new wood before racking into older casks after 12 months.
Pernand Vergelesses
Pernand-Vergelesses is a beautiful, small village tucked away behind the hill of Corton. Coming from Beaune, you have the Vergelesses and excellent Ile des Vergelesses vineyards on your left, facing due east, and the Corton-Charlemagne vineyards on the right, facing south-west. The red wines of Pernand (60 percent of production), excepting the two Vergelesses vineyards, can be on the austere side while the whites are racy and mineral.
Pernand-Vergelesses is an excellent source for fine Burgundy at a relatively affordable price. Jadot have registered their own name, Le Clos de la Croix de Pierre (The Stone Cross), in a vineyard which is shown on the maps as En Caradeux, facing the mighty hill of Corton. The lower part of the slope is an excellent site for Pinot Noir, while whites are grown on lighter soils higher up.
- 138 hectares of village Pernand-Vergelesses and 57 hectares of Premier Cru
- Recommended producers: Chandon de Briailles, Sylvain Loichet, Louis Jadot
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.
When is a wine ready to drink?
We provide drinking windows for all our wines. Alongside the drinking windows there is a bottle icon and a maturity stage. Bear in mind that the best time to drink a wine does also depend on your taste.
Not ready
These wines are very young. Whilst they're likely to have lots of intense flavours, their acidity or tannins may make them feel austere. Although it isn't "wrong" to drink these wines now, you are likely to miss out on a lot of complexity by not waiting for them to mature.
Ready - youthful
These wines are likely to have plenty of fruit flavours still and, for red wines, the tannins may well be quite noticeable. For those who prefer younger, fruitier wines, or if serving alongside a robust meal, these will be very enjoyable. If you choose to hold onto these wines, the fruit flavours will evolve into more savoury complexity.
Ready - at best
These wines are likely to have a beautiful balance of fruit, spice and savoury flavours. The acidity and tannins will have softened somewhat, and the wines will show plenty of complexity. For many, this is seen as the ideal time to drink and enjoy these wines. If you choose to hold onto these wines, they will become more savoury but not necessarily more complex.
Ready - mature
These wines are likely to have plenty of complexity, but the fruit flavours will have been almost completely replaced by savoury and spice notes. These wines may have a beautiful texture at this stage of maturity. There is lots to enjoy when drinking wines at this stage. Most of these wines will hold in this window for a few years, though at the very end of this drinking window, wines start to lose complexity and decline.
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Description
This comes from the upper, village-level part of En Caradeux – a vineyard so steep it has to be tended by hand. The wine has a pale gold colour and a delicate aroma of citrus, apple and honey. The taste is crisp and refreshing, with hints of lemon, pear and almond. The finish is long with a touch of minerality.
Drink 2025 - 2032
Berry Bros. & Rudd
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