2017 Rully Blanc, Monopole Clos Folie, Domaine de la Folie, Burgundy, France
£22.68 justerinis.com
I have written-up recent 2019 Burgundy En Primeur findings in various posts on my website, but we all need beauties to drink now while we are waiting for young wines to mellow. This week I have a pair of exquisite whites from two world-famous estates and they are both eminently affordable and drinking now.
Folie’s history dates back 300 years, but the recent renaissance at this Domaine is thanks to Clémence and Baptiste Dubrulle. It was Clémence’s grandfather who made the wines famous in the Sixties and Seventies and, after a prolonged slump, they are back to stellar form. This single-vineyard creation is sensational. Planted with 40-year-old vines, this north-northeast, clay and limestone monopole is regarded as one of the finest chardonnay vineyards in the Côte Chalonnaise. With no oak in the mix, this is a pristine wine with white flowers on the nose and a racy, citrus palate.
My second choice is a hugely stylish piece of artistic winemaking: the 2017 Bourgogne Blanc Bachelet-Monnot (£19.18) bears the indelible signature of brothers Marc and Alexandre Bachelet. This is a tremendous wine with a flavour that could easily command twice the price. Layered, sexy, louche and memorable, it is the perfect counterpoint to the more straight-laced Foli
Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition’s Communicator of the Year (matthewjukes.com)