Bouchard Pere & Fils Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru 2018
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It is said that Charlemagne was very fond of the wine from Le Corton which, at the time, was red. Towards the end of the Emperor’s life, the vineyards facing south were planted with Chardonnay to produce a white wine to avoid staining his white beard. In 1909, Bouchard Père & Fils acquired 60% of the prestigious vineyard at Le Corton which, has the rare particularity of being planted with both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Today, Bouchard Père & Fils is the third most important owner in Corton-Charlemagne with 3.65 hectares.
Intense bouquet with aromas of fruit and toast married to mineral notes typical of this appellation. Rich and powerful wine with an assertive personality.
Pairs well with fish and shellfish in sauce and foie gras.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
There is a creaminess to the texture in this white, whose profile borders on broad and muscular. Apple, lemon and stone flavors hold center court, while elements of spice and mineral lurk on the lingering finish. Best from 2024 through 2036.
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Decanter
Bouchard Père's Corton-Charlemagne hails from a cool, east-facing site on yellow marls soils in Aloxe-Corton and is one of the last parcels to be picked. Fermented in 20% new wood, it's still a pretty rich Grand Cru white, with breadth, texture and a drizzle of honey, but there's also plenty of balancing acidity, sap and minerality. Appealing stuff.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2018 Bouchard Père & Fils Corton-Charlemagne is power-packed and impressive. TASTING NOTES: This wine exhibits bold, ripe, and persistent. Enjoy its rich aromas and flavors of ripe apples, peaches, and oak with shellfish in decadent cream sauces. (Tasted: March 3, 2020, San Francisco, CA)
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James Suckling
This is very open, across a broad palate that shows ripe apples, pineapple and light tropical fruit. Hints of cream. Full-bodied, flavorful and delicious now. Will improve with age, but why wait? Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru is performing very well from bottle, offering up inviting aromas of pear, green pineapple, citrus oil, white flowers, lemon curd and fresh pastry. Medium to full-bodied, deep and nicely concentrated, it's muscular and structured, with racy acids and fine reserves of dry extract. This should age with class.
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Established in 1731, Bouchard Père & Fils is one of the oldest and most diverse Estate in Burgundy with approximately 130 ha (320 acres) of vineyards, the majority of which are Premiers and Grands Crus. Highly sought after, their wines benefit from optimal ageing conditions in the underground cellars of the Château de Beaune, the former 15th century royal fortress that the Domaine has occupied since 1820. Bouchard Père & Fils doesn't make wines; they bring them into existence. Cultivation and vinification, on a plot-by-plot basis, are a form of craftmanship that they pride themselves on which has led to the utmost respect for their terroirs. Bouchard Père & Fils obtained the highest level of sustainable agricultural certification (HVE3) in 2015, being the first in the Côte d'Or to do so.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
Prevailing over the charming village of Aloxe, the hill of Corton actually commands the entire appellation. Corton is the only Grand Cru for Pinot Noir in the entire Côte de Beaune. Its Grand Crus red wines can be described simply as “Corton” or Corton hyphenated with other names. These vineyards cover the southeast face of the hill of Corton where soils are rich in red chalk, clay and marl.
Dense and austere when young, the best Corton Pinot Noir will peak in complexity and flavor after about a decade, offering some of the best rewards in cellaring among Côte de Beaune reds. Pommard and Volnay offer similar potential.
The great whites of the village are made within Corton-Charlemagne, a cooler, narrow band of vineyards at the top of the hill that descends west towards the village of Pernand-Vergelesses. Here the thin and white stony soils produce Chardonnay of exceptional character, power and finesse. A minimum of five years in bottle is suggested but some can be amazing long after. Fully half of Aloxe-Corton is considered Grand Cru.