Joseph Drouhin Chassagne Montrachet Morgeot Marquis de Laguiche 1er Cru 2020

- 96 Punkte James Suckling: „A super-elegant Chassagne-Montrachet that offers all you want from this appellation, the balance of ripe-lemon character and flinty minerality spot-on. Super-silky and very graceful on the medium-to full-bodied palate. Then the finish doesn't want to stop. Drink or hold.“

- 96 Punkte, Wine Enthusiast (11/2023): “The freshness of perfectly ripe citrus in this wine allows one to appreciate concentration that remains modest in the glass. The palate is robust and exudes squeezed Meyer lemon. Salty and highly concentrated, it finishes with almond brioche. While balanced, the wine whispers with potent energy and attitude. Enjoy after 2026.“

- 92 Punkte, BURGHOUND, Allen Meadows: „A deft application of wood frames the overtly floral-suffused nose of petrol, white peach, lemon zest and subtle spice wisps. The medium-bodied flavors are also rich to the point of opulence, yet the firm acid spine saves the balance on the saliva-inducing, long and powerful finish. This fine effort is very Morgeot in character and worth a look. Drink: 2028+“
Producer note: As is usually the case, I met with Véronique Drouhin who pulled no punches in describing 2020 as "a magnificent vintage and, most unusually, one that is great in both colors. One of the most difficult, and perhaps the most critical of all, aspects of this vintage was deciding when to begin the harvest. Ultimately, we chose to pick basically from the middle of August and in another unusual aspect for this vintage, we began with the pinot. Because there was so little disease pressure during the hot and dry growing season, the fruit was super-clean with good ripeness levels, which is to say between 12.5 and 13.5% in white and 13.5 to 15% in red. Yields though were another story because while around 40 hl/ha in white is comfortable if not high, in pinot they came in between 20 and 30 hl/ha. One of the characteristics that is tough to explain is why the heat had such an impact in terms of volumes on the pinot, yet the chardonnay behaved as though the growing conditions were normal. For the vinifications, we used between zero and 50% whole clusters and while we are always careful with the extractions, we were particularly attentive in 2020 with its very thick skins to be sure that we didn't advertently produce overly tannic reds. As to the wines, the reds are dense and powerful but balanced while, despite the elevated ripeness levels, the terroir is incredibly clear. Moreover, while the same could be said of the whites, they are much less marked by the warmth of the vintage, and it would be perfectly appropriate to describe them as classic." As the scores and commentaries confirm, I found several excellent whites in the Drouhin portfolio, and they are worth searching out.

- 17 Punkte Jancis Robinson: “Big and sinewy but with excellent acidity. Convincing, solid stuff. Long and fresh too. Great stuff! 2025-2037 (JR)