Another Sensational Chardonnay Steal from this Soon-To-Be 1er Cru!

Like many of you, we love Burgundy.  So, it truly exciting that a new, passionate, dedicated generation has taken hold and among them are a number of vignerons committed to raising the bar.  Today’s latest offering from one of the most exciting new Chardonnay crafters on the planet being a wonderful case in point.

We did an offer not too long ago talking about the new Premier Cru designations in Pouilly Fuissé that would surely elevate the status (and probably the prices) of this long-respected region.  In a sense, like we said in that offer, it’s kind of like getting a stock tip, except that everybody knows it’s going to happen.  It just hasn’t happened yet.  Officially, started in the vintage 2020, the climats that were designated can bear the title Premier Cru.  

To illustrate the point, we offered out a brilliant effort from a site, one of 22, that was given the new Premier Cru designation, Pouilly Fuisse Aux Chailloux, from a relatively unknown estate named Trouillet-Lebeau.  That Chardonnay had it all, great fruit, terroir, complexity and structure.  It was a riveting bottle of white wine. Today we are offering another wine from that same estate and arguably one of the most engaging Chardonnay values we’ve tasted this year.

The estate itself was founded by Jean Guérin, who took over 4 hectares of share-cropped land from his father, Jules, and worked it for 45 years. Today the winery extends over 20 hectares and is owned and managed by Jean’s grandson and fourth generation vintner William Trouillet, who is helped by his mother (and Jean’s daughter) Marie-Agnès.  It is composed of vines in six villages that average 40-50-years-old planted in classic clay-limestone soils: Soluté-Pouilly, Fuissé, Loché, Vinzelles, Leynes, and Davayé.  The vines are grown sustainably, and tilling is largely carried out to encourage underground soil life and root development to obtain the richness and minerality required for the highest quality wines.

In the cellar, grapes are pressed gently using a pneumatic press and decanted rigorously for 24 hours, in order to obtain clear, pure grape juice. All vintages are vinified in oak vats, large barrels or casks from Burgundy, fully respecting the required cool temperatures in order to maintain all of the freshness and finesse of Chardonnay. The wines benefit from the exceptional terroir, which produces a wide range of dry and fruity wines with great complexity.  We told you that the Pouilly Aux Chailloux 2018 really lit us up.  So did the Trouillet-Lebeau Pouilly Loché Les Mures 2019, from their holdings in Pouilly Loché, next door to Pouilly Fuissé and one of the smallest zones in the region, encompassing a mere 33 hectares.

Pouilly Loché, the appellation, has existed since 1940.  But viticulture in this little jewel of a spot dates back to Roman times.  The ‘Les Mures’ vineyard lies on an east-facing hillside at 250 meters of elevation.  The vines here are 25 years old.  The grapes are harvested manually and aged in 100% French oak, 30% new.  It sees extended contact with the lees.  This vineyard wasn’t designated as a Premier Cru, but clearly the emerging superstar winemaker William Trouillet didn’t need a ‘title’ to ‘make magic’ here!

The nose shows precise yellow stone fruits with whiffs of spice and chalky minerality.  In the mouth, the fruit has breadth and weight, delivering on the promise of buoyant, perfectly ripe peach and apricot with a fine underpinning of lifting acidity and an insistent carry-through of the mineral tones, all ending with a hint of fine, wild herbs jumping on board at the finish.  A very tasty bottle of Chardonnay with surprising palate presence.  Because this isn’t a titled vineyard, it costs even less than the Chailloux and is easily one of the best Chardonnays we have has for under $25 in a long time.

It’s the kind of effort that will justify the recognition the area is having bestowed on it as well as showcase Trouillet Lebeau as a player in the ‘new order’.  Putting our money where our mouths are, we bought every box the purveyor had.  This drinks beautifully now and should develop further if one can leave it alone.  The price performance here is exceptional, and this stylish Chardonnay will definitely make a big impression.

Regardless of all of the political aspects of new Premier Cru status and the buzz it creates for the region, this producer is a marvelous discovery in and of itself.  Trouillet-Lebeau is still relatively unknown, though it has clearly proven to be one to follow.  It’s clear this label is going places and we suspect, given the performance of the few wines we have tasted (there was a stunning Saint Veran we bought as well), we don’t expect prices will stay the same much longer.  This is classy, complex Chardonnay of the highest order…at the lowest price.