2009 Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
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Tasting notes
White plum, fresh apricot, hazelnut, honey and nutty oak on the nose, perked up by a whiff of pineapple. Sweet, deep and powerfully structured, with the wine's fresh fruit flavors currently held under wraps by surprising acidity. Not showing the personality of the Clos de la Mouchere, but this grand cru's sheer energy and very long, rising finish promise a slow and eventful evolution in bottle. (ST)
Critic scores
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Allen Meadows, Burghound
More reviews and scores
The 2009 Batard-Montrachet comes across as big, rich, dense and quite powerful. There is plenty of intensity in the glass, but this remains a somewhat one-dimensional wine without a ton of complexity or pedigree. Anticipated maturity: 2015+. This is a beautiful set of wines from Henri Boillot’s negociant line. The entry-level wines in particular offer fabulous value. If anything, those are the most interesting wines here. When tasting Burgundy it is tempting to assume that premier crus are better than villages, and grand crus are better than the premiers, but that is often not the case, especially in a warm vintage where lesser sites ripened to a greate extent than is typically possible. Shrewd readers will find many jewels in this lineup, but they won’t be in the most likely places. In 2011 Boillot will have several new wines in his range, including Referts and Combettes. The 2009 villages were bottled in November, while the premier crus were bottled in January 2011. Importer: Various US importers, including Massanois Imports, Washington, DC; tel. (202) 470-6769
In contrast to the expressiveness of the Bienvenues and Criots, this is reserved to the point of being almost mute and only aggressive swirling coaxes reluctant aromas of white flowers, spice and a range of mostly yellow dried fruits. There is superb intensity to the mouth coating, powerful and weighty flavors that exhibit a taut muscularity on the opulent but focused and well-detailed finish. This is almost painfully intense and absolutely bone dry, which is unusual in the context of the vintage. A knockout!
Full, bright yellow. Pineapple and powerful minerality on the nose, complemented by notes of peach, stone, menthol, clove and smoke: an extraordinary nose for a Batard, in this case from the Puligny side of the appellation. The palate offers a rare combination of incredible sweetness and strong mineral lift; rocky and thick yet with great fruit. This Batard has it all: volume, complexity, lift and length. A knockout in the making.
About the producer
Based in Meursault and farming some of the finest vineyards in the Côte de Beaune, Henri Boillot is a leading address in Burgundy. He crafts fine Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but the estate is best known for its flagship monopole vineyard, Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru Clos de la Mouchère.