Winemaker Notes
Highly mineral with nose of wet stones, green apple and chalk. Fruit is shy, but the structure is beautiful and aging will reveal more supple, honeyed fruit.
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2023 Saint-Aubin en Montceau 1er Cru hails from one of Damien Colin's favorite lieux-dits known for its poor marl soils not dissimilar to Le Trezin in Puligny, although the vines here ripen later. It has a generous, fresh, vibrant bouquet with crushed stone and fleeting sea spray scents. Indeed, you might mistake it for a Puligny! The palate is well balanced and just a little creamy in texture, with hints of chamomile and white chocolate on the finish. This is a Saint-Aubin predisposed to give as much pleasure as possible."
Barrel Sample: 91-93
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.
A steep, upcountry basin (referred to as a combe in French) in the southern end of the Côte de Beaune, St. Aubin is a direct westerly neighbor to Chassagne-Montrachet and Puligny-Montrachet. Recent years have seen a boom in white wine production so that now Chardonnay accounts for more than three quarters of area under vine here. Two thirds of St. Aubin is classified Premier Cru (30 total vineyards); most notable include Les Charmois, La Chatenière, En Remilly and Les Murgers Dents de Chie. The Premiers Crus of St. Aubin, wrapping like a ribbon upon the southeast and southwest facing slopes, produce fresh and elegant whites from Chardonnay. When young, these tout a refreshing grip and convey qualities of white flowers, citrus, pear, green almond and wet stone. Given some age, a graceful evolution occurs so that older St. Aubin whites express richer aromas of beeswax, honey, marzipan and spice.