Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
The three domaine-owned parcels in Saint-Aubin La Chatenière are now 60 years of age, while a third, smaller plot was replanted 10 years ago. All are located on limestone-rich slopes, face south and west, enjoy the afternoon sun and ripen precociously. In 2019, it is not as forward as the village-level offering, but more substantial, with lush, ripe apple fruit, a rewardingly creamy texture and the substance, and structure, to age for years.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Saint-Aubin 1er Cru La Chatenière unwinds in the glass with notes of pear, hazelnuts, freshly baked bread, dried white flowers and struck match. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and chiseled, it's deep and concentrated, with racy acids and a long, saline finish. This has turned out very well indeed and will reward some patience. Best after 2026. Rating: 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.