2022 Montagny, Les Bassets, Maison Gautheron d'Anost, Burgundy

Maison Gautheron d'Anost

Maison Gautheron d’Anost is a young and promising winery located in Meursault, Burgundy. Founded by Bastien Gautheron, the estate follows a non-interventionist approach to winemaking, emphasising the connection between terroir and vineyard.

The vineyards are primarily organic-certified, with holdings in Savigny and Hautes-Côtes de Beaune. Bastien also collaborates with other organic winegrowers to source grapes. His winemaking philosophy involves simple vinifications, short macerations, and aging in barrels.

Notable wines from Maison Gautheron d’Anost include the Bouzeron ‘Les Louères’ (Aligoté), offering velvety fruit with lemon and greengage aromas; the Saint Romain ‘Les Perriéres’ (Chardonnay), a zippy and mineral wine; and the Hautes-Côtes de Beaune (Chardonnay), a delightful balance of citrus fruit and weight.

Montagny

The region of Montagny in the Côte Chalonnaise, which includes the communes of Buxy, Jully-lès-Buxy, Montagny-lès-Buxy and Saint-Vallerin, is an appellation which dedicates itself entirely to the production of white wines. These wines in themselves are also exclusively made from the Chardonnay variety of grape.
 
In the past, wines from Montagny could claim Premier Cru status as long as their alcohol content exceeded 11.5%, a rule which transcended the regular Premier Cru classification in Burgundy. These days however the modern system of attributing Premier Cru status is undertaken in Montagny, and despite this the appellation is still able to boast that around two thirds of its vineyards retain the prestigious Premier Cru classification, an extremely high proportion of high quality vineyard. Unfortunately for the producers this large number of Premier Cru vineyards means that certain names are diluted and find it harder to establish themselves as leading growers, leading some to simply declare their wines as ‘Montagny Premier Cru’ without naming the vineyard of their origin.
 
Montagny’s white wines are known for their higher acidity and more robust body than other Chalonnaise whites. The high levels of limestone in the soil help to develop these facets, as well as imparting a certain beneficial minerality on the wine.

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.