SommSelect subscribers cleaned us out quickly when we offered an earlier vintage of today’s wine last year. The praise was unanimous and vocal, but not at all surprising.
After all, my colleagues and I know that few estates in Meursault are as uncompromisingly traditional and consistently outstanding as Domaine Bitouzet-Prieur. If you long to experience pure, textbook Meursault, Bitouzet is your ticket. Especially in the superlative, built-for-white-Burgundy 2014 vintage, today’s extremely limited “Clos du Cromin” deserves your undivided attention. I’m thrilled to hit the “send” button on this offer: While we don’t have much of this stellar wine to share, I’m absolutely certain that lovers of über-traditional white Burgundy will revel in its elegance and grandeur. Furthermore, with ever-rising prices and the microscopic yields of 2016, this 2014 is a coup for Burgundy collectors! [PLEASE NOTE: due to extremely limited inventory, we can only offer a maximum of 6 bottles per customer until we sell out.]
No wine lover can dispute that Burgundy produces the most diversely thrilling expressions of Chardonnay on earth. For each of the region’s top sites, there is a corresponding terroir character—the crystalline purity of Grand Cru Chablis; the regal and broad-shouldered luxury of Puligny-Montrachet; the brooding complexity of mature Corton-Charlemagne. And let’s not forget about Meursault—this famed village’s best whites are the epitome of texture and opulence. Great Meursault wraps you in layers of creamy richness, fresh but integrated acidity, and perfectly ripe fruit with hints of hazelnut and lime blossom. To illustrate the timeless singularity of this village, we couldn't ask for better than Domaine Bitouzet-Prieur.
François and Vincent Bitouzet farm all their parcels organically, relying on zero shortcuts with chemicals or systemic treatments, and all of the fruit is harvested by hand. This restraint is echoed in the cellar; juice is vinified gently and slowly with minimal sulfur. The end goal of the entire process is to produce wines that mature in the cellar for many years, and gradually evolve in aromatics and structure. In a region increasingly overrun with estates bottling young, forward, “modern” whites, the Bitouzet family are arch traditionalists. The family’s wines are rarely open and enjoyable upon release, but they offer a consistently impressive reward to those patient enough to cellar the wines.
The family has been farming in Meursault and Volnay for hundreds of years. Their Meursault holdings encompass both humble lieu-dits and some of the village’s top Premier Crus (Meursault has no Grand Crus). The vines that produce today’s wine come from the Clos du Cromin, a single, ancient, walled vineyard that sits atop a gently sloping hill in Meursault’s northern section, nearly to Volnay, and a stone’s throw from top Premier Crus “Les Cras” and “Les Caillerets.” This vineyard’s acidic soils combined with its cool, windswept location demand a significantly later harvest than that of neighboring vineyards. The resulting wine has a deep and pure mineral core, and often requires a few extra years in bottle before it begins to open up. Fortunately for all of us, the wine’s US importer, Neal Rosenthal, is renowned for holding releases until they reach optimal maturity. So, while other top Meursault producers have already released their 2016s in the US, we are just getting our first shot at this 2014—and boy was it worth the wait!
The 2014 Meursault “Clos du Cromin” from Domaine Bitouzet-Prieur is a sublime expression of the ancient Meursault terroir. There is no questioning this bottle’s origin and provenance when the first aromas rise from the glass. Citrus blossom, white peony, Bartlett and Asian pear, toasted nuts, raw butter, and spring herbs come together in a symphony of aromas. While the nose is all feminine beauty and delicacy, this wine’s palate is noticeably more powerful, firm, and intense. A wall of oyster shell and deeply mineral limestone supports plump yellow pear and apple fruit, before dissolving into a seductively rich and creamy finish. If you love Meursault, this is your wine! Together, my team and I share significant experience cellaring village/lieu dit-level Meursault from top-tier, traditional estates like Bitouzet-Prieur. So, I can say with confidence that today’s wine will likely peak between six and 12 years of age. We have another 12-18 months before this wine really reaches 100% perfection. In the meantime, its bright, youthful acidity and chiseled structure are the stars of the show, so take care not to drink this wine too cold. I recommend pulling from the refrigerator and resting in a decanter at room temperature for 90 minutes prior to serving in large Burgundy stems (and perhaps alongside this roasted Monkfish preparation, while you’re at it!). If you can summon the patience, please save a few glasses for the second and third days to follow. This wine is overflowing with energy and life right now, and will provide ample pleasure if you can manage to stretch it across an entire weekend. It will not fall apart, I promise, and the more time you give it to open up, the more detailed and luxurious the experience. Finally, I want to stress that a wine with this much depth and and staying power is a sure thing for the cellar. Particularly with the heat of 2015 and the small yields of 2016, the outstanding and relatively lower priced 2014 vintage is a gift for collectors. So, I’m stashing six bottles of this outstanding Meursault and I urge you to do the same. Cheers!
