2014 Louis Latour Vire-Clesse Les Champs

Limestone Above Mâcon and the Monks of Cluny

The Abbaye de Cluny was founded by William I, Duke of Aquitaine, in the year 910. While only about one-tenth of the former Benedictine monastery remains intact, thousands flock to Cluny each summer to begin the trek to Santiago de Compostela.

But while the monks of Cluny were renowned for their rigid adherence to Rule of St. Benedict, on the calcareous slopes of Burgundy, the monks are better remembered for their gastronomic excesses when they weren’t deep in prayer. Despite their monastic discipline, when it came to food and wine, the brothers took a different view. Instead of limiting themselves to the traditional fare of broth and porridge, the monks ate very well, raising farm chickens for roasting — a luxe in France at the time — while engaging a full vineyard crew to determine where wine grapes could be grown on the east-facing hillsides of Mâcon.

After much careful study, one village stood out from all others. The slopes above the tiny hamlet of Viré were strewn with chunks of white limestone, much like today’s Premier Cru and Grand Cru holdings of Meursault and Montrachet. In the 12th century, over 900 years ago, in what can only be described as visionary viticultural awareness, the monks planted Chardonnay in what is now the most revered appellation of the Mâconnais, Viré-Clessé.

Today, Louis-Fabrice Latour is one of the largest landholders on the Côte de Beaune, holder of a gigantic 27-acre swath of Corton-Charlemagne above the family’s Corton Grancey in Aloxe-Corton. But when we asked the propriétaire who can afford to drink Montrachet and Corton Clos du Roi seven nights per week what he sips when he’s not swirling Grand Crus in oversized Riedel, Louis-Fabrice didn’t miss a beat.

“Chez Bocuse, Troisgros, or Guy Savoy, I like old vintages of Corton-Charlemagne. But when the kids are at the table, we toast the monks of Cluny and we drink great vintages of Viré-Clessé.”

The winter of 2013-2014 was mild, getting the vines off to a fast start. Spring — warm and dry — was even kinder, advancing the vines two weeks in their development. Flowering came early, though high temperatures caused some berries to dry out and drop off.

On June 28th, a hail storm battered Meursault and Corton-Charlemagne, but the Mâconnais was spared. Over the summer months, Nature rode the see-saw. July and August were rainy and cool, before one of the most beautiful Septembers in memory. It’s often said in Burgundy that vintages are made or lost in the last weeks before harvest. Such was the case in September 2014, as warm and sunny days, cool nights, and light northerly winds coaxed Chardonnay clusters to a beautiful level of maturity, resulting in white Burgundies of great juiciness, balance, and class.

The 2014 Louis Latour Viré-Clessé Les Champs is pale green-gold to the rim, infused with tantalizing notes of ripe apple, pear, acacia, and honeysuckle. Vinified in stainless steel to avoid muddling this Chardonnay’s exquisite purity, the attack is rich and juicy — packed with apple, pear, and quince — finishing with the bracing limestone backbone that lured the monks of Cluny to Viré more than 900 years ago.

$30 on release. As good as white Burgundy gets for $17/bottle. 100 cases are up for grabs, all shipped directly from Château Corton Grancey. Shipping included on 6.

• ABV 13.00%
• Enjoy right away
• % Chardonnay