2023 Puligny Montrachet Clos de la Jaquelotte

Outstanding - A more elegant and slightly cooler nose reflects better layering with its aromas of a plenitude of floral elements that are liberally laced with citrus confit, spice and exotic tea. There is excellent punch to the overtly stony, detailed and more refined flavors that culminate in a bitter lemon, complex and chiseled finale. This is sufficiently compact to repay up to a decade of keeping. Fine quality here. Drink 2031+

The 2023 Puligny-Montrachet Clos de la Jacquelotte 1er Cru hails from a lieu-dit within 92 Champ-Canet (Jacques Carillon also owns vines here, but that fruit is blended into his Champ-Canet). It has a crisp and precise bouquet. Subtle yellow fruit, crushed rocks and hints of orange blossom gently unfold on the nose. The palate is fresh and vibrant with the oak seamlessly integrated, it's lightly spiced with a bright and vivacious finish. This is a strong follow-up to the excellent 2022. It was an unseasonably warmer late October morning when I made my solitary Saturday visit to Puligny-Montrachet to Philippe Abadie, husband of Alvina Pernot. This is a rare instance of a smooth transition between generations as piece by piece, Alvina taking over the vineyards that belonged to her father, Domaine Paul Pernot. Abadie told me that Pernot is in his mid-60s, too young to retire completely, and so will keep some of the holdings, like Philippe Colin in Chassagne. But vintage by vintage, there will be an expansion of Alvina's portfolio concurrent with some cuvées borne from exchanges in must being phased out, hence small differences between the wines in this report and those of 2022. "There were a few episodes of rain at good moments," Abadie tells me. "The season was generally quite easy. Flowering was OK. It was the inverse of 2024 - very hot in the summer. We began picking on August 26 to maintain acidity. It takes us only three or four days to pick and we only did that in the mornings. We used a vertical press for our own parcels [Paul Pernot uses a horizontal press). It was a little complicated in the cellar as the malolactic sometimes started before the alcoholic fermentation and that can risk some volatile acidity. We don't add SO2 until after the malo. The wines are well balanced because of the good volumes. The whites were bottled just before harvest and there are no reds this year [there was just a solitary Santenay in '22]." Alvina Pernot is going from strength to strength with a strong portfolio built around seven Puligny Premier Crus. These are precise and characterful, each respectful to their terroir. The apex is their brilliant Bätard-Montrachet that eclipses even their Chevalier-Montrachet, with an enthralling Corton-Charlemagne hot on its heels. But there is plenty to savor at all price points and I would refer readers to the pair of excellent Bourgogne Côte d'Or Blancs in this respect.

The 2023 Puligny-Montrachet Clos de la Jacquelotte 1er Cru hails from a lieu-dit within Champ-Canet (Jacques Carillon also owns vines here, but that fruit is blended into his Champ-Canet). It has a crisp and precise bouquet. Subtle yellow fruit, crushed rocks and hints of orange blossom gently unfold on the nose. The palate is fresh and vibrant with the oak seamlessly integrated. it's lightly spiced with a bright and vivacious finish. This is a strong follow-up to the excellent 2022.