2022 Puligny-Montrachet "Les Houlières", Domaine Machard de Gramont, Burgundy, France

The bouquet is ripe, concentrated and so well balanced. Hedonistic, almost beguiling sense of poise on top of the rich ripe white stone fruit and tight minerality. The oak is there, but not dominant, and the finish has a fresh salinity to it that acts like a counter-balance to the ripe quality of fruit. Very, very good!

This 20 hectare family estate is managed by Arnaud Machard de Gramont and his two sons Alban and Alexis. The cellars are located in Prissey, a neighbouring hamlet of Nuits-St-Georges. These cellars were built in the XIXth century. Their superb vaults give a "cathedral" effect to the winery. The 20 hectares of vineyards cover an impressive range of appellations spanning 50 kilometres, from Chenôve (south of Dijon) to Puligny-Montrachet (South of Beaune). This domaine is a great source of Burgundy at sensible prices. “Value for money” is not something that is often associated with the wines of the Core d’Or, however, we have dealt with this family domaine for many years for our commercial Burgundy needs – it offers more individuality than most negociants and consistently performs well. The family owns small parcels in several different appellations and manages to seduce the individual characteristics from each one. This estate now uses a blend of American and French oak, developing a unique style in the appellation of Nuits-St-Georges, Gevrey-Chambertin and Pommard.