Montrachet, Domaine Marquis de Laguiche, Drouhin 2018

The 2018 Montrachet Grand Cru comes from the two-hectares on the Puligny side, comprising five parcels vinified separately (although I tasted the final blend). It has a very pure bouquet and, especially for Drouhin, an intense bouquet of lanolin, walnut and pressed flower aromas that if anything becomes even more powerful with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with superb balance, almost symmetrical, and just the right amount of salinity. This is a vibrant, precise Montrachet with touches of sea salt and ginger toward the very persistent finish, which fans out with brio. Deeply impressive. (Drink between 2024-2055)

A fine pale primrose colour. The bouquet shows vanilla and coconut oak but in harness with the intensity of the fruit. There is an all-pervading sense of nobility to this Montrachet. The coconut is quite prevalent though. Warm, welcoming, succulent on the one hand, real tension on the other. The fruit builds significantly so as to overcome the effect of the oak. Little touch of pineapple?

What a glorious white with such length, complexity and character that changes all the time. Dried-apple, cream, pineapple and honey notes, as well as light tropical fruit and honeysuckle. It’s full-bodied and very tight and compact. The finish goes on for minutes with honey, flint, cream and apples. A dream. Of course, you are supposed to age this, but it’s so beautiful now.