Jean-Charles Fagot Saint-Aubin 1er Cru 2023
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The Land
Saint-Aubin exists because of a fold in the hills. The village sits in a side valley running west off the main Côte, tucked out of sight behind Chassagne-Montrachet and Puligny-Montrachet, and for most of its history that invisibility was the whole problem: the RN74 runs past its neighbors and not past Saint-Aubin. The geology does not care. The vineyards climb to higher elevation than the villages below them, on thin limestone and marl soils, cooler and later-ripening, and more than half the appellation is classified premier cru, one of the highest proportions anywhere in Burgundy. What comes out is Chardonnay with more cut and less flesh than Chassagne, which in a warming Côte de Beaune has stopped being a liability.
The Wine
100% Chardonnay from premier cru parcels. Fagot vinifies traditionally and slowly, using oak foudres rather than barriques and holding the wine 12 to 14 months in the cellar before bottling. The foudre matters: large-format wood gives gentle oxygen exchange and integration over that long élevage without laying any toast or vanilla on top of the fruit, which is the wrong thing to do to a wine whose whole appeal is tension. Lemon curd, white peach, crushed hazelnut, chalk, and a smoky, flinty finish, with real acid drive and a saline close. 2023 produced a large, warm crop in Burgundy, and the whites came down to picking dates; growers who went in early held onto acidity, and those who waited did not.
The People
The Fagot family has lived in Corpeau, just outside Chassagne-Montrachet, since 1860, and the domaine dates to 1920. Jean-Charles is the fifth generation in the village and the third to own vineyards in Chassagne. He also took a detour most Burgundian vignerons do not: after the wine school in Beaune he studied percussion and voice at the Mâcon Conservatory, then went to Paris and Los Angeles to record albums and produce a television show. He came back to Corpeau in the mid-1990s to take over from his father, and in 1998 opened a restaurant in the village, the Auberge du Vieux Vigneron, which is still running. The estate farms under lutte raisonnée, intervening chemically only when the season demands it, and makes about 35,000 bottles a year across a wide range.
Food Pairing
Taut, flinty white Burgundy is more flexible than its reputation suggests. Roast chicken with lemon and butter, sole meunière, a warm goat cheese salad with hazelnuts, or scallops seared hard and finished with brown butter. The acidity handles butter and cream without the wine going flabby, and the smoky, chalky finish meets shellfish and browned proteins directly. Serve it at 50 degrees rather than refrigerator-cold, and give it fifteen minutes in the glass.
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Burgundy, in eastern France, encompasses several subregions, but it is the Côte d'Or that is home to many of the world's most expensive and revered wines. The region, primarily a single east-facing slope, has mixed limestone soils that vary dramatically from village to village and even vineyard to vineyard. White wines, crafted from Chardonnay, range from rich and opulent to lean and intensely mineral, while Pinot Noir produces silky, perfumed red wines of exceptional finesse and complexity. Centuries of winemaking tradition have resulted in every plot being meticulously recognized and scrutinized, making the Côte d'Or a true capital of terroir.
Burgundy - Cote d'Or
Chardonnay, one of the world's most versatile and beloved white grape varieties, showcases a remarkable spectrum of styles, from the lean, mineral-driven expressions of Chablis in France to the rich, buttery, and oak-aged versions from California's Napa Valley. Its adaptability extends to cooler climates such as Burgundy, where it achieves elegance and complexity, and to regions like Australia's Yarra Valley, known for producing vibrant and fruit-forward renditions. This grape's ability to reflect its terroir, coupled with winemaking techniques, results in a wide array of profiles, including unoaked, crisp varieties with apple and citrus notes, to full-bodied wines with tropical fruit flavors and creamy textures.
