Bouchard Pere & Fils, Montrachet Grand Cru 2019
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98
James Suckling
This is still a bit closed on the nose, but on the palate it is rippling with ripe-apricot and orange character. Dense and rich, almost to the point of being unctuous, although this is properly dry. Serious tannin structure behind the lavish exterior, which, together with the fresh acidity, keeps this on course through the very generous finish. Drink or hold.
From a 2.33ha parcel of Chevalier-Montrachet on the terraces just above Le Montrachet. Slightly cooler temperatures and a bit less soil make the wine less opulent than Montrachet, but only just. The texture is still dense, but there is a tension and a beautiful line of acidity that has its own genius. Here the oak is not over done and the wine has great purity of expression, with a lemon zest on the attack that evolves to more exotic tropical notes with time. Marvellous.
Aromas of white flowers, fresh peach, toasted bread, mandarin oil and pastry cream introduce Bouchard’s 2019 Montrachet Grand Cru, a full-bodied, layered and multidimensional wine that’s deep and concentrated, with racy acids, terrific mid-palate amplitude and a long, saline finish. Broad shouldered and powerful without being at all overbearing, it’s an exemplary rendition of this celebrated site.
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Bouchard Pere & Fils, Montrachet Grand Cru 2020
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98
James Suckling
Very impressive nose of Amalfi lemon, bergamot, tarte a l’orange and wild herbs. Very ripe and rich, but with a massive structure beneath all the richness. Built on a huge scale, but with excellent freshness. So much chalky power, and this makes it feel like a huge wave is pouring over you. So precisely balanced, with great minerality at the bold finish. From an 0.89-hectare plot. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.
This wine has everything. Bouchard farms 0.89ha of well-positioned vines in Montrachet – south of Ramonet on the Puligny side (and north of the first DRC block in Chassagne). The grapes are pressed slowly as whole clusters before fermentation in cask (only 15% new) to accent the purity of fruit. The exquisite aromas range from citrus and green apple, to riper apple, apricot and peach, with hints of chamomile, cream and bitter underpinned with a firm minerality. This vintage truly has an impressive depth of flavour and persistence on the palate.
The compelling 2020 Montrachet Grand Cru wafts from the glass with aromas of ripe pear and citrus fruit mingled with honeycomb, white flowers, fresh bread and baking spices. Full-bodied, ample and multidimensional, it’s richly layered, with a textural attack that segues into an ample, fleshy mid-palate and a long, saline finish. Despite its scale, it remains beautifully precise. This is first rate.
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Bouchard Pere & Fils, Montrachet Grand Cru 2022
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98
James Suckling
Built on a grand scale for the long term. Starts quite gently on the full-bodied palate, but it is a giant of concentration and structure. Lots of almond paste and candied lemon, but also wild herbs and chalk. And somehow all this manages to retain a grace and subtlety that makes it hard to resist. From organically grown grapes. From a 0.89 hectare plot in this world-famous site. Drinkable now, but best from 2025.
The 2022 Bouchard Montrachet is slightly reserved but has an immense presence on the palate, with a ripe apple and quince fruit, hints of white flowers, chalk, and exotic tangerine peel. The wine has enormous extract but all of the freshness necessary for balance as well – this is a superb expression of finesse and power at the same time. The grapes are from the domaine’s 0.89 hectares on the Puligny side; they are lightly crushed and gently pressed, and only the finest must is fermented in cask before ageing over two winters in cask (15% new). This wine is a towering achievement.
The 2022 Montrachet Grand Cru has a fresh, Granny Smith apple and sea spray-scented bouquet that gradually unfurls. The palate is well-balanced and vibrant, with superb weight, a taut line of acidity, and touches of orange pith and wild peach towards the finish. Excellent…but maybe I prefer the 2021?
The 2022 Montrachet Grand Cru is striking, exhibiting even more texture and power than the benchmark 2020 vintage did at the same stage. Wafting from the glass with aromas of pear, hazelnuts, white flowers, buttery pastry and confit orange, it’s full-bodied, rich and layered, with incredible mid-palate volume and intensity. Large-scaled, textural and mouthfilling, it concludes with a long, expansive finish.
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