You can never have too much Meursault. Thomas Jefferson once declared, “I need Meursault urgently,” and I often find myself saying the same thing 200 years later!
The world’s grandest wine lists and most ardent collectors have plenty of it. Meursault as an appellation produces more white wine than Puligny-Montrachet, even more than Chassagne-Montrachet, but, by no means is Meursault inferior (despite inexplicably having no Grand Crus). Meursault is home to Chardonnay’s elite messengers like Lafon, Ente, and Roulot, families that have built exceptional reputations not on the prestige of Grand Crus, but on overperforming lieux-dits and Premier Crus. Michelot is no exception, and they have managed to consistently produce wines that embody Meursault’s delicious dichotomy—the invisible harmony of rich and light, powerful yet delicate, satiating yet utterly refreshing. Today’s wine is hardly the first wine we’ve offered from Domaine Michelot, nor will it be the last—this estate continues to wow us with whites that combine opulence and tension like only great Meursault can. Sadly, there’s not a lot to share today, so we must limit orders to six bottles per customer until our allocation runs out. If you like to drink elite white Burgundy as often as possible, this might be a day to take your limit!
Following the plumper style of 2015, the 2016 vintage more closely resembles the supple precision of 2014. Without a doubt it is a “quality over quantity” year, scripted by a lethally frosty spring, and as one reputable source states, it was a tale of “Who Survived Nature’s Wrath.” Today’s wine is proof that Michelot not only survived, they triumphed, giving us one of the smartest values in the holy trio of Chardonnay (Meursault, Puligny, Chassagne). Part of this value stems from Michelot’s deep history in Burgundy. Winemaker Jean-François Mestre and his son Nicolas represent the sixth and seventh generation of the family who strengthened its reputation under the charismatic leadership of Bernard Michelot in the 1960s. Under Bernard’s direction, they grew, acquiring Chardonnay vines in Meursault’s finest terroirs. Today they farm more than 19 hectares, a rather fat inventory by Burgundy standards, which allows them the fortune of being picky, and especially fortunate in low-yielding harvests like 2016. Like all great producers, they sacrifice ordinary fruit, but their resources run far and wide.
Today’s 2016 Meursault is a blend of four well-known lieux-dits: “Sous La Velle,” “Le Limozin,” “Les Narvaux,” and “Grands Charrons”; it is essentially a blend of Chardonnay grown on different soils, a mix of the classic clay-limestone soils of the mid-slope and the warm gravelly soils of the lower slope. The Michelot intent is to create a wine that is opulent and fruity yet lifted by minerality and guided by finesse. This is the Michelot style, and in this vintage, for this price, it’s Jefferson good.
The quality of Chardonnay in today’s bottle is so good that it is worthy of Premier Cru treatment (à la Michelot’s “Charmes”) in the cellar… it quietly slips into an extra dollop of new oak, for a little longer than usual. With a combination of 228L and 400L barrels, about 30% new, the wine ages for about 17 months before bottling. Meursault is often served too cold; we recommend taking the wine from the cold refrigerator and decant for about 45 minutes, then serve the wine in a nice wide Burgundy stems at what should be roughly cellar temp (55F) at that time. In the glass, a shimmery straw-gold core expands into light yellows, flecked with silver. On the nose, the wine reaches out with cold yellow fruits and warm spice, energized by Meursault’s hallmark scents of wintry chestnuts and hazelnuts. The texture echoes a fine red Burgundy, velvety and silky, then the zest of minerality, the cool touch of stone and limey rocks, cuts through the middle and takes flight. If you’ve dined at Michelin-starred restaurant, you’ve most likely experienced a Meursault with some type of seafood or poultry combed with butter or cream—the perfect sauce, shiny and unbroken presented like strokes of paint. The pairing is iconic, yet those fine tablecloth experiences are rare, so at home, I like the “dumbed-down” version which costs you just five minutes of prep time. Like Jefferson, you’ll be needing some Meursault urgently, so don’t hesitate on the 2016 Michelot—it’s killer white Burgundy that won’t last long!
