The Great White Vintage: 2024 Burgundy
The changes in Burgundy over the last 25 years are pretty staggering. The region used to struggle nearly every year against rain, frost, hail, and mildew—while lately we find Burgundians wishing for more precipitation! In 2024 their prayers were answered—and then some! The 2024 vintage saw more cumulative rainfall than the 2022 and 2023 vintages combined. The challenge in 2024 was the fight against mildew; producers had to spray against mildew a record number of times in many places. There was little rest for the weary farmers, but it looks to have all paid off with a stunning vintage, especially for the whites. The 2024 white Burgundy vintage looks to rival the last two great white vintages—2014 and 2017, respectively. The white Burgundies of 2024 are flush with beautiful, delineated fruit with great acidity, drive, and cut. There’s wonderful precision and balance with excellent complexity and integration of all parts. Another wonderful aspect of the 2024 is that most alcohol levels are in the classic 12.5 to 13.5% range. The first batch of 2024s just landed in our stores, and they live up to the hype!
2024 Domaine Paul Pernot
I have been working with and tasting the wines of Paul Pernot for 20 years now, and I can confidently say these are the best batch I have ever tasted upon release. Paul Pernot is now in his 90s and still intimately involved in winery operations, with his son Michel running the show. Pernot has impressive holdings strewn throughout Puligny-Montrachet as well as the Grand Crus of Batard-Montrachet and Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet. Paul’s grandchildren have even been able to take some vineyard space to create both Pernot-Belicard as well as the up-and-coming Alvina Pernot wineries. These vast holdings in conjunction with experience and winemaking acumen contribute to Paul Pernot’s excellent wines. The best part? They’re incredibly well-priced when juxtaposed against their peers.
2024 Domaine Paul Pernot Bourgogne Aligoté $23.99 Aligoté has definitely benefited from the warmer vintages, and the 2024 Paul Pernot Aligoté is wonderful. Cool white fruit deftly mixes against savory notes of thyme and menthol. This Aligoté is so distinctive while retaining that classic freshness, acidity, and verve. Lovers of Aligoté would be well served to grab a few of these bottles!
2024 Domaine Paul Pernot Côte d'Or Bourgogne Blanc $32.99 The consistent improvement in quality of Bourgogne Blanc across the board in Burgundy is admirable, and it is clearly evident in this bottle. It’s bright and fresh with notes of orchard fruits, flint, and wet stone. This feels a bit like a “baby” Puligny Montrachet. Tough to beat this wine when it comes to quality-to-price ratio.
2024 Domaine Paul Pernot Puligny-Montrachet $79.99 This wine literally knocked my socks off… it is that good! So pure, fresh, and chiseled, this wine literally jumps from the glass with intoxicating aromas of orchard fruits and wet stone. These aromas are translated perfectly to the palate where they shimmer thanks to the ample acidity that gives the palate a chiseled feel. This is an outstanding value and $30 less than the next available Puligny-Montrachet option we have on the shelf.
2024 Domaine Paul Pernot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru "Les Folatières" $129.99 Paul Pernot is the largest single landowner in the “Les Folatieres” 1er Cru site, and they make one of its most distinguished offerings. This wine is mind-blowing from the first sniff: intense aromatics of white peach, nectarine, and flint. The purity of fruit juxtaposed against fresh Alpine water and stone makes this wine irresistible.
2024 Domaine Paul Pernot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru "Clos de la Garenne" $129.99 Garenne is one of the more underrated vineyard sites in Puligny-Montrachet. It consistently produces wines of wonderful depth and complexity, and, in 2024 in the hands of Paul Pernot, the result is wondrous. The fruit here bends more towards pear and apple while retaining that tell-tale verve and cut the 2024s will be known for.
2024 Domaine Paul Pernot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru "Les Chalumaux" $129.99 Chalumaux is another often-overlooked 1er Cru site, and in 2024 it has definitely delivered the goods. Tons of yellow orchard fruits spill out of the glass with sexy aromas of spice and flint mixing into a palate awash in pure orchard fruit flavors and subtle hints of oak. The drive and energy here really sets it apart and delivers a classic Puligny-Montrachet experience.
Domaine Sylvain Langoureau
Domaine Sylvain Langoureau is to St-Aubin what Paul Pernot is to Puligny-Montrachet with extensive holdings scattered throughout St-Aubin, including many 1er Cru vineyards. The husband-and-wife team of Sylvain and Nathalie have been in St-Aubin since 1989, and they are fashioning the best values to be found in St-Aubin. From their humble Bourgogne Aligote and the way up to their lieu-dit Chassagne Montrachet and Puligny Montrachet1er cru vineyards it is just one high point after another. The key to their success is picking their grapes at optimal ripeness while retaining freshness and acidity. In a vintage like 2024 the results are wines rich in fruit but also with impeccable cut and drive.
2024 Domaine Sylvain Langoureau Bourgogne Aligoté $22.99 This is a great Aligoté that delivers racy acidity with hints of wintergreen and menthol. Bright with plenty of verve and cut, this is a wonderful example of Aligoté.
2024 Domaine Sylvain Langoureau Bourgogne Blanc Hautes Côtes de Beaune $29.99 This was the first 2024 that made me start to think 2024 might be something special. Wow! There’s so much beautiful orchard fruit on the nose that before you even take the first taste you’ll be impressed. There’s so much pure orchard fruit and wonderful acidity, drive, cut, and complexity here. It is hard to believe this is just a humble Bourgogne Blanc.
2024 Domaine Sylvain Langoureau St-Aubin $44.99 If you were to look up the word “value” in Webster’s dictionary I am pretty sure a picture of Domaine Sylvain Langoureau’s St-Aubin would be staring you square in the eyes. What a great introduction to this fabulous white Burgundy village! There’s ample fruit that runs the gamut from pear to orchard fruits while deftly combining notes of hazelnut and crushed stone. The acidity here is electric and the finish lingers on the palate long after it has passed through the lips. A great introduction to the St-Aubin appellation.
2024 Domaine Sylvain Langoureau St-Aubin 1er Cru "En Remilly" $59.99 If we were to crown a king of St-Aubin it would be the 1er Cru vineyard of “En Remilly.” Located over the hillside from the famed vineyard of Montrachet Grand Cru, En Remilly is easily the vineyard site producing the deepest, richest, most complex wines in all of St-Aubin. There’s a wealth of fruit and substance here that allows this wine to feel like it could have easily come from either neighboring village Chassagne-Montrachet or Meursault. Hard to find better 1er Cru white Burgundy than this for under $60.
2024 Domaine Sylvain Langoureau St-Aubin 1er Cru "Les Frionnes" $59.99 Always one of the vineyard sites displaying the most ripeness the Frionnes in 2024 does not disappoint. This wine is loaded with fresh citrus and orchard fruit notes with subtle spice and hints of flint to round it out.
2024 Domaine Sylvain Langoureau St-Aubin 1er Cru "Champlots" $59.99 I always find the Champlot vineyard to be deceptively complex. It sneaks up on you with subtle flavors that start with citrus then run the gamut ending in peach and nectarine. Always medium-bodied but with excellent cut and drive this is an often-overlooked site that makes damn good St. Aubin.
One Last Stunner Not to Miss
2024 Château de la Charrière Chassagne-Montrachet "Les Champs Morjot" $59.99 This is one of our best annual values in White Burgundy but in 2024 it is truly outstanding. I have said more than once that a wine from 2024 is the best I have tasted from a producer and this is easily the best version of Chateau de la Charriere Chassagne Montrachet Champs Morjot I have ever tasted. The energy, drive, cut and delineation here are other-worldly with beautiful aromatics of citrus, flint and dried herbs while the palate is a kaleidoscope of fruit that frames perfectly against the racy acidity. The feel here is regal and the finish lingers on the palate for at least 30 seconds which is an amazing accomplishment for our least expensive Chassagne Montrachet that we carry by $20. This wine is the true meaning of value!