Domaine de Villaine - Rully "Les Saint-Jacques" 2023 (750ml)
Price: $71.99
| Producer | Domaine de Villaine |
| Country | France |
| Region | Burgundy |
| Varietal | Chardonnay |
| Vintage | 2023 |
| Sku | 205107 |
| Size | 750ml |
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Domaine de Villaine Description
Aubert de Villaine deserves the accolades he receives. He is a reluctant hero, an unlikely trait in a man of such accomplishment, intellect, and inherent sense of noblesse. Heir to one of the most enviable wine legacies of all time, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, the young Aubert was more interested in literature and law than wine. After spending time in New York working for an importer of Burgundian wines, he finally returned home in the mid-nineteen sixties to assume his role as co-director of DRC.
In the 1970s, Aubert and his American wife, Pamela, sought less pedigreed pastures to call home. They finally settled in the village of Bouzeron, well-situated between Chassagne-Montrachet, Santenay, Rully, and Mercurey, in the Côte Chalonnaise. However high profile his day job, Aubert still considers himself a vigneron like any other, and Bouzeron’s off-the-beaten-path location left him alone to make his own wines without the demands of upholding an international reputation. The domaine was horribly rundown when the de Villaines took over, but years of studying this unique terroir have made them pioneers in one of the last forgotten enclaves of Burgundy. The monks of the great abbey of Cluny first planted vines here in the twelfth century, leaving a legacy that has endured for centuries. Consequently, the grape varietal that reigns supreme today is the dry, white Aligoté—an unusual celebrity given its work-horse reputation in the middle of Chardonnay country. Bouzeron boasts the best Aligoté in Burgundy, the Aligoté Doré, (instead of the lesser clone, Aligoté Vert) which gives smaller yields to produce wines with more expressive aromatics. Although the grape was overlooked until 1979 when it first earned the appellation Bourgogne Aligoté de Bouzeron, the I.N.A.O. finally upgraded the appellation to A.O.C. Bouzeron in 1997, largely due to Aubert’s advocacy over the years. Aubert’s single vineyard Bourgognes, both in blanc and rouge, are equally outstanding representations of the unlikely pedigree found in this corner of the region.
Pierre de Benoist, Aubert’s nephew, currently directs the domaine, upholding the sense of tradition, excellence, and standards for which it has become so well-known. In 2010, Aubert was awarded Decanter Magazine’s prestigious “Man of the Year” Award, a distinction that, unsurprisingly, the modest Aubert seemed reluctant to accept.
Our vineyard in the "Les Saint-Jacques" parcel is located at the foot of an east-facing slope, just below the Clos Saint-Jacques- one of the Rully's most famous premiers crus. Planted in 1990, this vineyard is the legacy of an old Côte d'Or vineyard-it is made up of moderate-yield Chardonnay selections. The charm of our Rully Les saint-Jacques lies in its finesse and subtlety of aroma rather than its power.
Tasting Note: Bouquet is very aromatic benefits from a beautiful energy, with this sensation of ripe fruit. On the palate, the maturity of the Chardonnay linked to the bitterness of the skin and its acidity, gives the wine an important aromatic persistence.
Wine Pairing: Serve it with fish or white meat, again avoiding overly spicy sauces or seasonning, or with mild goat cheeses.
