Côte de Beaune blanc 2023 Domain Joseph Drouhin

The Côte de Beaune Blanc 2023 from Maison Joseph Drouhin is a particularly precious cuvée within the range, drawn largely from the domaine's own vines and young parcels of the celebrated Clos des Mouches. A true delight and beautiful harmony. An entry point into the world of great whites from Beaune, signed by one of Burgundy's most respected and consistent houses, in a vintage that Drouhin himself describes as exceptional.

Terroir and the 2023 vintage

The soil is clay-limestone. This lighter soil allows the wines to develop towards great finesse. 2023 stands as one of the warmest years in Burgundy, even surpassing 2022. The grapes were harvested at perfect maturity. The wines are highly aromatic with notes of yellow fruits and flowers. On the palate they are broad and full-bodied. They combine generosity, freshness and finesse, with a climate that enhances terroirs without overwhelming them. Both 2023 and 2022 should be very appealing. Vinification begins with slow pressing of whole bunches in a pneumatic press. Last-press juices are separated from free-run juice. The whites go into barrel directly after settling. Alcoholic and malolactic fermentations and ageing take place in oak casks, of which 10 to 15 percent are new. Côte d'Or wines came in with excellent maturity levels, good sugar-acid balance and satisfactory health. We took advantage of the excellent state of the grapes to use indigenous yeasts during alcoholic fermentations.

Tasting profile

Its colour is a pale gold, very brilliant. The aromas evoke honey, almond and lemongrass, developing with age into intense flavours of hazelnut and toasted almond. The wines are highly aromatic with notes of yellow fruits and flowers. On the palate they are broad and full-bodied. The generosity of the 2023 vintage speaks clearly in the glass with immediate clarity: a broad, well-nourished texture, supported by the natural acidity of the clay-limestone soils of Côte de Beaune which brings freshness and tension to a generous whole. The influence of Clos des Mouches, one of Beaune's most renowned parcels, imparts complexity and depth that far exceed its rank. The finish is long, fruity and lightly toasted, with an agreeable persistence that confirms the quality of the blend and vintage.

The house

Maison Joseph Drouhin is a family house, now led by the fourth generation, cultivating 73 hectares of vines spread across exceptional terroirs. Committed for more than two decades to environmentally respectful viticulture, the house favours an organic and biodynamic approach. Organic farming has been practised since 1990, then biodynamic viticulture some years later. Soils are nourished with compost from manure and white wood, tilled mechanically or by horse. Treatments use only products authorised in organic agriculture. Throughout ageing, decisions are guided by weekly tastings, barrel by barrel, with constant objectives: finesse, expression of terroir and respect for the vintage.

Food pairings

This Côte de Beaune Blanc pairs beautifully with scallops in chive cream, grilled fish with beurre blanc, sole meunière, mushroom and Parmesan risotto, farm chicken in cream or langoustine gratin. It will also harmonise well with soft-paste cheeses such as Chaource or aged Brie de Meaux. Served between 11 and 13°C, it will reveal all the fruity generosity and natural finesse of a Chardonnay from Côte de Beaune signed by one of Burgundy's most rigorous houses.