Mâcon-Igé
Château London 2019
A bottle of Mâcon contains a big smile from the south of Burgundy. It has a southern feel to it, as do the Roman tiles that top the flat roofs…
Origin
After a short interruption south of the Côte Chalonnaise, vineyards reappear around the town of Tournus. This region is a great producer of primarily white wines. One out of three bottles of white Burgundy comes from the Mâconnais!
Château London is not a brand name, but a vineyard whose name refers to the fact that its original owner lived in rue Landon in Paris. Over time, “Landon” became “London”.
Viticulture
Grape variety: chardonnay & muscat chardonnay
Soils: chalky white limestone
Orientation: South-West
Surface area under vine: 2.72 ha
Pruning: Guyot system
Yield: 27 hL/ha
Average age of the vine: 36 years old.
Vinification
Harvest date: 15 September 2019.
The grapes were handpicked.
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. Long fermentation using indigenous yeasts for added complexity and freshness.
Ageing
Maturation: aged for 8 months with no racking or stirring to bring out all of this wine’s minerality. A proportion of 30% new French oak barrels.
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: the wine was bentonite fined and very gently filtered before being bottled using gravity in July 2020.
Number of bottles: 9,492.
Vintage
A legendary vintages?
According to Grégory Patriat, this second harvest at the Ursulines winery will go down as a legendary vintage just like 1969, 1979, 1999, 2009, and 2019, because the concentration in the wines is very high indeed. Years with drought and low yields are always great vintages in Burgundy. We had some new premier crus come online last year, with three in Chambolle-Musigny, one in Gevrey-Chambertin, and one in Nuits-Saint-Georges; Le Clos des Argillères. Furthermore, we revived our tradition of producing white wines in villages better known for their reds, with a white Fixin.
Ageing potential: from 5 to 10 years.
Tasting notes
The color is yellow with golden reflections. The intense nose will seduce you with its aromas of brioche, peaches associated with hints of lemons and some woody notes. A complex and explosive bouquet! On the palate, this very greedy wine has a beautiful acidity and is distinguished by a slightly buttery finish.
