Winemaker Notes
The 2020 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru reveals a pale gold hue. Round and generous, its nose reveals aromas of grilled almonds and vanilla. It presents a beautiful amplitude in the mouth - exposing a melted woody and mineral finale. Very good persistence. Although very flattering in its youth, this wine deserves a few years in the cellar to reach its peak.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A very cool and tight Corton Charlemagne with the intense spice, bold structure and steeliness that we expect from this appellation. Staggering concentration, which at this early stage makes the wine slightly austere, but all this gives it great aging potential. Fantastic integration of oak, fruit and mineral acidity at the amazing finish.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2020 Domaine Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne is pure, concentrated, and long. TASTING NOTES: This wine excels with aromas and flavors of ripe peach skin, stone fruits, and a subtle note of nuttiness. Enjoy it with grilled lobster in a decadent cream sauce. (Tasted: May 10, 2023, San Rafael, CA)
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Wine Spectator
An opulent white, powerful even, yet with a vibrant structure that keeps this focused and drives the seemingly endless finish. Featuring persistent floral, peach, melon and mineral flavors, this fades gracefully for more than a minute. Best from 2024 through 2033.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2020 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru reflects all the sunshine of the growing season. Full-bodied, rich and glossy, with a sweet core of fruit and broad shoulders, its bouquet evokes peaches, buttery pastry, golden orchard fruit, baking spices and vanilla pod. This will appeal to readers who gravitate toward richer, more extrovert styles of white Burgundy.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
Prevailing over the charming village of Aloxe, the hill of Corton actually commands the entire appellation. Corton is the only Grand Cru for Pinot Noir in the entire Côte de Beaune. Its Grand Crus red wines can be described simply as “Corton” or Corton hyphenated with other names. These vineyards cover the southeast face of the hill of Corton where soils are rich in red chalk, clay and marl.
Dense and austere when young, the best Corton Pinot Noir will peak in complexity and flavor after about a decade, offering some of the best rewards in cellaring among Côte de Beaune reds. Pommard and Volnay offer similar potential.
The great whites of the village are made within Corton-Charlemagne, a cooler, narrow band of vineyards at the top of the hill that descends west towards the village of Pernand-Vergelesses. Here the thin and white stony soils produce Chardonnay of exceptional character, power and finesse. A minimum of five years in bottle is suggested but some can be amazing long after. Fully half of Aloxe-Corton is considered Grand Cru.