Bouchard Père & Fils, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru, Burgundy, France, 2019

Overview of the Wine
Founded in 1731 in Beaune by Michel Bouchard, Bouchard Père & Fils, is one of the oldest wine estates in Burgundy, perpetuating tradition for nearly 3 centuries and 9 generations.

In 1775, Joseph Bouchard acquired his first vineyards in Volnay in the famous “Les Caillerets” climat and started to develop the family’s vineyard holdings.

During the French Revolution, property belonging to the clergy and nobility was confiscated and put up for sale. Joseph’s son, Antoine Philibert Joseph Bouchard, seized the opportunity to extend the family’s vineyard holdings in Beaune including the famous “Beaune Grèves Vigne de l’Enfant Jesus.”

This desire to build up an exceptional estate in Côte d’Or endured through the generations and acquisitions in the best Villages were added throughout the 19th century and again in the early 20th century.

Bouchard Père et Fils has been owned by the Maison de Champagne Henriot since 1995, and is currently headed by Christophe Bouchard, who has, in a few years, given a new lease of life to the expression of the estate's vineyards, and a coherence without false note to the trading activity that complements.

Grape / Blend
Pinot Noir

Origin
Cote de Nuits, Cote d'Or, Burgundy, France

Winemaker Notes
Intense aromas on the nose. Structured - though not excessively - and with lovely fleshiness, this is a sumptuous wine. Very good ageing potential.

93-95 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Wafting from the glass with notes of cherries, woodsmoke, dried flowers, licorice and loamy soil, it's full-bodied, bright and tightly wound, with real concentration and a long, precise finish.

93-95 Points - Burghound
Here too there is just enough wood present to remark upon mingling with the equally spicy nose that features notes of plum, various dark berries, exotic tea and hints of game. The sleek, cool and restrained larger-scaled flavors are finer still while flashing no lack of power and drive that really builds toward the intensely saline-suffused finish.

94 Points - Decanter
The wine is very precise, with a beautiful expression of ripe black cherry fruit, smoke, earth and exotic spices. On the palate, the wine is silky yet intense, with enough structure and extract to age gracefully for decades.

91-93 Points - Vinous
The 2019 Chambertin Clos-de-Bèze Grand Cru comes from the same source of purchased fruit as the Chapelle-Chambertin. This was slightly reduced on the nose but there appears to be very fine intensity. The palate is medium-bodied with silky-smooth tannins, and a little saline in the mouth, leading into a harmonious finish. I would just like to see more structure and maybe more Pinoté post-racking.

Product size: 750ml