Domaine André Bonhomme made me realize what incredible values are coming from southern Burgundy these days. The wine’s high-toned perfume and supple crispness will put the relatively obscure Maconnais appellation of Viré-Clessé on your radar for good.
Sure, we’d all love to drink Puligny-Montrachet and Meursault on a regular basis, but price inflation can cramp your style—especially with influential producers. That’s where lesser-known appellations come into play. Domaine André Bonhomme is a Viré-Clessé producer you can trust—they’re largely responsible for giving this area international acclaim and their wines epitomize value. Bonhomme’s 2016 “Les Pierres Blanches” is brimming with ample levels of ripe citrus, stone, even tropical fruit while retaining vibrant layers of freshness; this combination simply cannot be replicated at this price further north in Beaune. If the transitional days between Spring and Summer could be bottled, they would taste like this, and if this wine is any indication, 2016 is no letdown from the blockbuster 2015—it’s a worthy follow-up! For those who are still testing the waters south of Côte de Beaune, this bottle will have you diving in for real. Plus, there’s real aging potential here, so you can buy a case now and watch it evolve over the coming years.
The domaine was created in 1956 with the ten acres that André’s father, Joseph Bonhomme, had been bottling and selling under the Mâcon-Viré village appellation. André continued farming manually during the widespread transition toward mechanized methods and heavily pushed (and succeeded in 1998) to become the first Mâcon village with their own independent appellation. André has since retired and handed the domaine over to his daughter, Jacqueline, but the path he paved for Viré-Clessé will be long-remembered. More recently, Jacqueline’s sons, Aurélien and Johan, have also climbed aboard, equipped with enology degrees. The style and quality has remained unchanged—farming is still organic (officially certified as of 2014) and their traditionally-crafted wines are bursting with energy and depth. Furthermore, these are wines that age shockingly well. On a recent visit to the domaine, one of our importers recalls how shell-shocked they were upon blind-tasting an unlabeled wine given to them by Aurélien:
“Aurélien gave us a dusty bottle to taste later during the trip. I told him I would email him after tasting it with my colleagues and relay to him our guesses as to what it was. A couple nights later, I popped the bottle at our hotel. We were all blown away by how much exotic fruit showed, still buttressed by freshness. Our guesses: 1989, 1986, two 1985s and 1981. I emailed Aurélien the next day. His response: Nice try, but older. It was actually a Mâcon-Viré 1969.”
“Les Pierres Blanches” comes from a handful of parcels totaling five acres in limestone-clay soils with a heavy presence of white stones (hence the wine’s name). The vines reach up to 30 years of age and sit at an elevation of 1,100 feet—higher than most vineyards here. They are farmed and harvested (at low yields) by hand. In the winery, natural yeasts are used for both alcoholic and malolactic fermentation then the wine ages for 18 months in stainless steel. After bottling, they are kept in their cellar for additional resting and released later than most other producers in the region.
In the glass, 2016 Les Pierres Blanches shows a deep, yet brilliant yellow core with flashes of bright green and silver throughout. The nose is superb and while there are many classic White Burgundy notes, it teases with nuanced tropical fruits. The wine first rushes forward with floridity—honeysuckle, acacia, white wildflowers—and then greets you with Asian pear, white peach, quince, candied lime, lemon blossoms, guava, and an assortment of crushed minerality. The wine is impressively vibrant on the palate and reveals a medium-plus body. Thanks to full-malo, it finishes with a ripe, mouth-coating roundness, but there is a mineral “crunchiness” here along with fresh waves of acidity. Pull the cork and enjoy a bottle or two now, but remember, the Bonhomme wines age surprisingly well. I’ll bet this is still drinking beautifully in 10-15 years. Pour in Burgundy stems and allow to open up while consuming over a few hours, ideally with a citrusy, saucy seafood preparation that highlights its generous fruit. It’s sheer pleasure from start to finish. Enjoy!
