Corton Blanc, Domaine Chandon de Briailles 2017

Two thirds from Bressandes, one third from Chaumes. Heavier soil in these vineyards makes the wine approachable much younger than Charlemagne, according to Claude de Nicolay. The wine has been made using 20% new oak from Stockinger. I found this quite backward today, tightly knit with some yellow peach and apricot notes, and a slight youthful bitterness. It has gone into its shell since December. Tasted Jul 2019.

The 2017 Corton Blanc also had a late malo completion and, consequently, was still in barrel at the time of my visit and had not yet been racked. The wine is beautifully expressive on the nose, offering up a refined mix of apple, pear, orange blossoms, chalky soil tones, crème patissière and a nice touch of salinity in the upper register. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, pure and quite deep at the core, with sound acids, lovely focus and grip and a long, complex and bouncy finish. This is not quite as open for business as the Îles de Vergelesses Blanc, but it is not going to demand too much patience before it too is drinking with great breed and generosity. (Drink between 2021-2045)