Winemaker Notes
Textbook Meursault from Nicolas Potel's Roche de Bellene micro-negociant operation. Emphasizes fruit and minerality over oakiness. High toned aromas of lemon rind, hazelnuts, fresh herbs and beeswax. Medium-bodied and tense on the palate, with bright acidity highlighting the citrus, oatmeal and nutty flavors. Great balance of fruit, acid, oak and earth. At its best with savory dishes like lobster, bay scallops, grilled swordfish or coq a vin.
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
Old vines have produced a lovely golden wine with sunny, fresh, rich, and tangy flavors; minerals, toasted oak, and elegant style add to the picture.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: I always fly at the opportunity to get a Meursault into my glass, and the 2018 Maison Roche de Bellene Vieille Vignes is one of the tastiest I have tasted recently. TASTING NOTES: This wine comes right at you with aromas and flavors of ripe fruit and savory spices. Enjoy its slightly elevated palate with pounded and breaded, pan-fried abalone, and don't forget the wild mushrooms. (Tasted: August 27, 2020, San Francisco, CA)
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Decanter
Produced from a 0.85-hectare old vine parcel that averages more than 50 years of age. Harvest got underway on 5 September, and the wine was fermented and aged for a year in cask (20% new) to deliver this wine with typical aromas of ripe apple, butter, and a touch of hazelnut. The texture is relatively rich and dense, yet there is enough freshness to carry it to a satisfyingly long finish.
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Wine Spectator
Toasty oak and a smoky aroma segue to peach, lemon and spice flavors in this intense white. It has a fine equilibrium and echoes the spice components on the finish. Drink now through 2024. 350 cases made, 200 cases imported.
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.
Known to offer a magical balance of smoothness and freshness, Meursault's quality is hard to rival. The village lies in the middle of Côte de Beaune, just south of Volnay. Meursault is said to mean “mouse’s jump” because in the past the plots producing Pinot Noir and those producing Chardonnay were no more than a mouse’s jump from one another. Today the village is almost exclusively Chardonnay. A tiny bit of Pinot Noir is produced here with the best coming from Les Santenots on its northern side near Volnay.
While there are no Grands Crus, Meursault’s numerous acclaimed Premiers Crus can compete with any other top-notch white Burgundy. Some to know are Les Perrières, Les Genevrières, Les Charmes, Le Poruzot, Les Bouchères and Les Gouttes d’Or.
Meursault produces outstanding village level wines as well. In general great Premiers Crus and even village level Meursault (Chardonnay) have enticing aromas of lime peel, tropical fruit, crushed rocks, spice and hazelnut. On the palate there is a wonderful balance of brightness and a seductive length with flavors of white peach, pineapple and citrus.