Bourgogne Chardonnay
Les Ursulines 2021
The beating heart of the Maison Jean-Claude Boisset is Les Ursulines, and this wine is the quintessential expression of the winery, and is both an initiation into Burgundy and a great wine in its own right.
Origin
This ‘vast’ appellation brings together four great regions; Yonne to the north, with its fresh, mineral wines, followed by the Côte d’Or, with its rounder, deeper whites, the Côte Chalonnaise with its pleasant wines, and lastly the Mâcon region to the south, with a range of styles varying with the individual soil and exposure.
Viticulture
Grape variety: Chardonnay
Soils: clay-limestone
Orientation: mostly southeast / south
Average age of the vines: 25-45 years old.
Vinification
Harvest date: between September 21 and October 1, 2021.
The grapes were handpicked and collected in 20-kg perforated crates.
At the winery: The whole bunches of grapes were gently pressed for 2½ hours. The temperature of the must was brought down to 12°C then was immediately transferred to barrels with no settling to preserve a maximum of lees. Very long fermentation using indigenous yeasts.
Ageing
Maturation: aged for 6 months with no racking or stirring to bring out all of this wine’s minerality. A proportion of 10% new gently toasted French oak barrels were used for very delicate oaking.
Barrels: French oak barrels that had been toasted at low temperatures for a long time to impart a subtle, delicate touch of oak were used.
Bottling
Bottling: in May 2022.
Vintage
A complex vintage!
It is both a winegrower and winemaker’s vintage ! 2021 will unfortunately be remembered quantity-wise for a long time by its disastrous frost early april. Direct consequence: this is probably one of the smallest vintages ever in Burgundy . It offers a very nice and subtle representation of each terroir and its expression, with fruity, freshness and great finesse wines.
Ageing potential: from 3 to 5 years.
Awards
Bourgogne Aujourd'hui Magazine - 15,5/20
Tasting notes
With a nice pale yellow color with white reflections, this wine develops very fresh aromas of yellow lemons and white flesh fruits with some floral and subtly smoky notes. On the palate, it has a nice freshness and minerality, with a nice lively structure.
