Beaune 1er Cru Les Grèves Le Clos Blanc 2018 6x75cl

This unusual rare and rather exotic white wine is full, rich and spicy, with broad fruit flavours and exceptional depth offset by notes of almonds, earth and gently toasted oak. It has the potential to age a minimum of 7 years.

Vineyards

The Beaune vineyards are the most extensive of the Côte de Beaune, between Savigny to the North, and Pommard to the South. There are no Grands Crus but there are 36 Premiers Crus vineyards in this commune. Les Grèves' is situated in the North between 'Les Toussaints', 'Les Bressandes' and 'Les Theurons'. In French, 'Grèves' means sandy, small stones, which describes the soil of these vineyards. Grèves is one of the few vineyards to yield a white equal in stature to its red. In the 1980s André Gagey acquired just under a hectare of Chardonnay vines of this celebrated parcel.

Vintage

2018 has, in short, been probably the most successful vintage since 2015, with some growers harping back to 1990 and even 1947! However, unlike both these vintages, the yields were kind to the growers such were the perfect weather conditions from bud break through to harvest. The end of the vegetative growth cycle took place in hot and often very dry conditions across the region. Isolated localised thunderstorms in July brought with them a sprinkling of rain. In the Côte de Nuits, the south of Nuits Saint-Georges was struck twice by hailstorms. Luckily, however, there was little damage to the vineyards. The vines remained healthy and the sun shone consistently throughout summer. There was barely any need for triage, and it took us a fortnight to pick the entire domaine. For the whites there was an excellent levels of ripeness that lead us to expect great white wines that will be both rich and opulent but balanced by appropriate levels of freshness. In reds, the level of concentration is rare indeed. Colours are deep, yet tannins have an incredibly supple character, the result of perfect levels of ripeness at harvest.

Winemaking

This unusual rare and rather exotic white wine is full, rich and spicy, with broad fruit flavours and exceptional depth offset by notes of almonds, earth and gently toasted oak. It has the potential to age a minimum of 7 years.

Enjoy with:

• Grilled and Roasted White Meats
• Mild Creamy Cheeses

Chicken and mushroom stroganoff