2019 Blanc Pernand-Vergelesses

I associate Puligny-Montrachet with Jean-Michel Chartron’s beaming smile. In the many years that I have been acquainted with him, Chartron has been one of the most important figures in Puligny, serving as president of the syndicate of growers as well as the committee that administrates solely for the Grand Crus. Fortunately, these duties have not dragged him away from the most important task – creating excellent wines at Domaine Chartron. “We had one big frost on 6 or 7 April despite the fact that we lit bales of straw. I didn’t have candles in 2019 though I’ve bought them now. This made a smoke screen, but we had a shower the previous night, so it was very humid. The temperature wasn’t too low. The lowest was around -4.5°C in Chassagne. But we still suffered damage, which was not the case in 2020 when it was much drier. It was chilly during the flowering with a bit of rain at the beginning. The summer was warm with some storms with very localized hail, though there was no damage. There were heat spikes up to 42°C with only minor grillure as we do not effeuillage [de-leafing]. We started picking on 5 September for the Crémant de Bourgogne and finished on 19 September in the Hautes-Côtes de Beaune. The berries had about 4.5g/l tartaric acid, which is about normal, whilst alcohol levels are higher than normal, between 13.5° and 14.0° except the Corton-Charlemagne at 14.5%. Most of the Village Crus were aged in 25% new oak and for the Premier Crus, around 30%. There is roughly half the production this year. Most of the whites Premier Crus have been racked from barrel into tank.” Chartron oversees an impressive portfolio of Premier Crus including monopoles such as Clos de Chevaliers and anomalies such as his Puligny-Montrachet Rouge. Alas he only ended up with a few litres of Montrachet this year - just one feuillette). I admire Chartron’s style of winemaking. His wines are nervy and minimalist in their youth, quintessential Puligny-Montrachet with malic notes at their core, despite 2019’s warmth. Standout is Chartron’s exceptional Puligny-Montrachet Clos du Cailleret that comes strongly recommended and at the lower end I was smitten by the pretty Pernand-Vergelesses Blanc. Chartron’s wines remain reasonably priced in the scheme of things and are well worth seeking out.