Familiar.Trusty.Timeless
A mountain wine, breezy and fresh, billowing with meadow flowers, gooseberry and blackcurrant aromas, so, in that respect, reminiscent of Sauvignon Blanc, but there’s a little twist of nutmeg that takes it off in an interesting oriental direction too. Dry, vibrant and delicately refreshing. From vineyards situated at 720 metres above sea level, fermented and raised in stainless steel with the wine kept on the lees until bottling. 13% alc. Drink now-2027.
“Exciting and lively. A real success for immediate enjoyment.” -Jancis Robinson MW
“The 2024 Blanc Sec Lions de Suduiraut is fabulous.” - Antonio Galloni, Vinous
The last time the words ‘Bordeaux’ and ‘bargain’ were found in the same sentence was when Henry II married Eleanor of Aquitaine and she mentioned that the dowry included a sizeable chunk of western France. However, we think we’ve found something of a Bordeaux bargain here, a dry white from Chateau Suduiraut, most famous for making one of the great sweet Sauternes, but their ‘Lions Sec’ is a dry, barrel-aged blend of Semillon (56%), Sauvignon Blanc (29%) and Sauvignon Gris (15%), which shows the lemongrass, sage and cut lawn aromas of the Semillon, the citrus notes of the Sauvignon Blanc and the cedar and sandalwood effects of the 10% new oak. With its stylish packaging and elegant flavours, this is my go-to white whenever I’m invited to a dinner party. 13% alc. Drink now-2030
Press review:
Vinous: “The 2024 Blanc Sec Lions de Suduiraut is fabulous. Intensely aromatic and deep, the 2024 is so impressive right out of the gate. Orchard fruit, white flowers, sage, mint and tomato leaf race across the palate, framed by brisk acids that pull it all together. Drink now-2030.” 92 points
“Very good value.” - Jancis Robinson MW
“Taut and linear with a sapid finish that urges you back. Very fine.” - Neal Martin
As Mark Twain once said, “the only certainties in life are death and taxes and quotes being misattributed to me”, because it was actually Benjamin Franklin, who made that famous pronouncement, but he forgot to include one other certainty: the price of Burgundy going up every year.
The price of this white Burgundy has not gone up, however, seemingly making it the exception to the rule, but the sole reason for that is that this is Domaine de la Monette’s debut release under the stewardship of the highly-talented Pierre-Etienne Chevallier. You can be absolutely certain that it will go up a fair bit next year and in the years to come, because it’s radically underpriced for what’s in the bottle, but you can only charge so much without a track record, so we’re really excited to have discovered it on first release.
It’s a finely chiselled Bourgogne Chardonnay and feels as if the winemaker has chipped away at everything that wasn’t needed, leaving just the essence of the grapes and the place where they were grown. We love this style of white Burgundy – mineral and terroir-focused - the kind that leans a little more towards acidity and away from opulence, tasting of grapefruit, white peach, grapefruit (back for an encore), nutty oak and filo pastry drizzled with honey and orange water.
It would sit comfortably alongside village wines from Saint Romain or Saint Aubin and if I had to pick a domaine that it emulates in style, I would suggest Hubert Lamy: bright and crystal-clear wines, keenly acidulated, yet perfectly balanced by the fruit ripeness. 13% alc. Organic certified. Drink now-2028.
Press review:
Jancis Robinson MW: “Very savoury nose (more Côte d'Or than Chalonnaise). Nicely interesting and balanced. VERY GOOD VALUE. Drink now-2030.” 16.5 points
Neal Martin: “The 2023 Bourgogne Blanc originates from vines in the Bouzeron appellation and offers more complexity and nuance than the Bouzeron itself, with well-defined veins of yellow fruit. The palate is fresh and vibrant on the entry, taut and linear with a sapid finish that urges you back. Very fine. Drink now-2031. “ 88 points
Customer comments:
“We really enjoyed it--delicious white burgundy. Thanks for the recommendation. Can we get some more?” - Mr. J.S.
“It’s great stuff - should have ordered more to begin with.” - Mr. N. S.
What stood out at first was the lovely pale silver-sage colour with green flecks at the edge. It looked so refreshing and made me crave my first sip. The taste aligned perfectly with the visual impression, with cool, crystal-clear Trebbiano flavours awakening my tastebuds like a mountain stream flowing over aquatic grasses, although this mountain stream tasted of lime, pear, sweet apple and green melon! It’s the perfect wine for a dinner party, as it’s elegantly understated and has universal appeal, but it also has enough interest to merit a little quiet inner contemplation, should your dinner guest turn the topic of conversation to loft conversions. It can also be that idyllic glass of white wine, frosty from condensation, iridescent in its shades of green, that you have been thinking about all day at the office. It’s almost worth having an awful day at work, just to be able to come home to this! 13% alc. Unoaked. Drink now-2028.
Customer comment:
“Delicious!” - Ms A.S.
“Have you got any more of the Lugana? Tonight is the first time I have had an opportunity to try it. Really good. I will order 12 bottles if you have them.” - Mr I.M.
“The Lugana is the best I’ve drunk. Delicious.” - Mr. K.D.
“This wine was delicious! So easy to drink with or without food! So so good!” - Mr H.S.
“White Burgundy lovers should put this on their shopping list.” - Rebecca Gibb MW, 95 points
A very distinguished Chardonnay indeed and a fine partner to Novum’s beautiful Pinot Noir. It’s subtle and restrained in its aromas, less oaky than you might anticipate from a New World Chardonnay and more like an ambitious Pouilly-Fuissé, with its stylish impression of chiselled stone and shaved lemon peel, hazelnut yoghurt, oatmeal and a hint of cold white butter. It’s like a confluence between New Zealand purity and Burgundian elegance. Grapes are whole bunch pressed, settled overnight before being racked to French barriques for wild primary fermentation. The wine then spends an additional 11 months in barrel (20% new oak), where it goes through a wild malolactic fermentation, with the lees stirred on every full moon. 13% alc. Organic & biodynamic (not certified). Drink now-2027.
Press review:
Vinous: “This unshowy Chardonnay seduces you with its understated but savoury style. Full-bodied yet perfectly tied together by a fine line of acidity that pierces the rich core of fruit from its beginning to its lengthy finish. Expect subtle oak-derived nutty characters allied with oatmeal, citrus and nectarine. White Burgundy lovers should put this on their shopping list. Drink now-2025.” 95 points
Customer comments:
”Stunning!” - Mr. G.F.
This a really exciting new wine from Domaine Bernard Moreau, sourced from some of the best parcels in Saint Aubin and priced very keenly for a Premier Cru white Burgundy from the small-but-perfectly-formed 2020 vintage. It has real poise and balance and a classical feel, with the fruit concentration, the acidity, the oak influence and the mineral aspect all in perfect harmony. It has everything we look for in a white Burgundy and, what’s more, it’s almost exclusive to Vin Cognito (only one other UK merchant received an allocation, as 2020 yielded such a tiny harvest). 13% alc. Drink now-2028.
Organically farmed
It’s all about perspective. Rudy Kurniawan sold wines to the international fine wine market that appeared to be Grand Cru white Burgundy, but weren’t, and he received a 10-year jail sentence. Kumeu River sell wines to the international fine wine market that appear to be Grand Cru white Burgundy, but aren’t, and they get universal praise from the wine critics.
You could easily pour their Hunting Hill Chardonnay 2021 from a decanter instead of a Chevalier-Montrachet and your dinner guests will be none the wiser. In fact, they might even prefer it. It’s opulent and savoury and flecked with minerals and has all the poise and persistence that you would expect from a top white Burgundy. It’s drinking beautifully now, but there’s nothing to suggest that it won’t still be alive and kicking in a decade’s time. 14% alc. Drink 2024-2036.
Press review:
Jancis Robinson MW: “‘In the last few years this has really been blooming’, said Paul. All clone 15, facing south-west so it gets the prevailing maritime breezes. Clay over an iron pan. 25% new barrels, all François Frères. Pale straw. Strong lemon aroma with light smokiness and real lift. Lovely balance and great youth and extremely long. Raciness. This is just a treasure that deserves to be cellared awhile to take full advantage of its potential for complex development. It has the same steeliness but more obvious fruit than in typical fine Australian Chardonnays. Tight finish for the moment. Drink 2025-2036.” 17.5+ points
Richard Heming MW: “Absolutely stunning – gorgeous fruit purity complemented by sparky minerality, subtle oak spice and a gentle dairy quality. Fulfils every expectation. Drink now-2035.“ 17 points
Vinous: “The 2021 Chardonnay ‘Hunting Hill’ is its usual sinewy, taut and lightly floral self. Often in the shadow of ‘Maté’s Vineyard’, ‘Hunting Hill’ seems to be becoming more and more serious as the vines age - they’re around 20 years old. Expect a muscular, unyielding wine that has lemon and lime bitter notes, nectarine and even a whiff of seaside - all salty and briny. Drink now-2035.” 95 points
James Suckling: "Lots of minerality with crushed stone, chalk, white grapefruit, peach stones, white apricots, wild herbs and lavender. Touch of cedar. Evolves to nutmeg and crushed almonds. Wow. It really builds on the palate, leading to a crescendo and intensity that blows your mind. Compact and phenolic, yet so agile and refined. Goes on for minutes." 99 points
Vinous: “The 2021 Chardonnay Maté's Vineyard offers greater tension and sapidity compared with how the more relaxed 2020 did upon release. It will need time in bottle to shake off the rawness of youth. It is focused, concentrated and precise. There's sophisticated use of oak, which integrates seamlessly within the package. I got a cold the day after this was first opened, and almost a week later, when my senses returned, it remained impeccable, focused and compact. Drink 2023-2035.” 97 points
Jancis Robinson MW: “Savoury nose suggests a firm backbone. Really concentrated and richer than the Hunting Hill. Long and very youthful. For the moment, it’s a coiled spring with lots to chew on on the finish. Ideally it should be drunk at 9–10 years old but I suspect most of it is hoovered up long before that. Drink now-2038.” 17++ points
This may not come from a fancy village, like Meursault or Puligny-Montrachet, it comes from the less auspicious Maconnais region, but having a fancy postcode doesn't guarantee a great wine and this wine shows what can be achieved from humble origins. The stone fruit and hazelnut flavours float on a creamy texture and the acidity is completely in tune with the fruit. There are £25 Burgundies that don’t come close to the quality on offer here, so we are suggesting you load up, because it’s a cut above anything you will find anywhere in Burgundy at this price. 12.5% alc. Cork closure. Drink now-2030.
‘How to Holiday like a Hero’ - by Vin Cognito
Chapter 19: ‘Returning from your Summer Holiday’
As you drive away from your rented villa in the Dordogne, having promised the owners that you will return the following year (under no circumstances must you), you should doff your panama hat to the gardener, who despises you, and, with the labrador leaning out of the window, you head in the wrong direction for Calais. You miss lunch, because, as you should know, all French restaurants are closed to English tourists, so you buy a tube of Pringles and head for Burgundy, where you console yourself by buying a case of Macon from the wine merchant in the town square, who pretends he remembers you from last year and explains that the case is covered in dust, because he’s been keeping it especially for you. You glance at your watch and do a hasty mental calculation and realise that you might miss your crossing, so you bundle the family back into the car and floor it to Calais, ignoring pleas for toilet breaks from your furious children, only to arrive bang on time for your cancelled ferry. As you pass through French border control, you slow down, wave your passports in the air and announce pompously “British! Enough of your nonsense!” to the great amusement of your family and the utter disdain of the border guard, who will usher you to a lay-by where his colleagues will perform a full cavity search.
But, in all seriousness, if you do buy a Macon, make sure it has the word ‘Uchizy’ appended to it, because that’s the name of the little village beside the Saone River, which seems to be surrounded by the best vineyards in the region. This one is silky and elegant and tastes of white nectarine and hazelnut meringue, sweet citrus and peaches cooled by single cream. It has a perky little dash of acidity and a more than a dollop of serious Burgundian aplomb. We have sold this wine in previous vintages, but this is a real step up, hence the rallying cry to fill your boots (your car boots).
Customer comments:
“Incredible value for money!” - Prof. T.W.
“I agree with your description ………. It is stingingly good.” - Mr G.S.
“Excellent value. I would like to order another 24 if possible?” - Mr P.R.
“The wine is delicious. I would like another 12 bottles. Is that possible?” - Mr. S. H.
“Just to say I am enjoying my first bottle of the Macon-Uchizy, what lovely wine! As usual, your description of it matches the experience of drinking it which is not the case with many of your competitors! “ - Mr. P. A.
“Thanks for your latest recommendation. I totally agree with you about Talmard Macon Uchizy.” - Mr. M.C-W.
“It's fab and worth at least twice the price“ - Mr D.O.
“Three bottles of lovely Macon-Uchizy already gone! Lovely stuff, absolutely my kind of thing.” - Mr R.D.
“So good for £12.00!” - Mr J.C.
” We loved the Macon, it's a great find (particularly at that price!).” - Mr. A.H.
”The case of wine arrived safely and, as promised, is stonking good. Thank you so much!” - Mr. M.H.
”Amazing-so many compliments from friends this week, and from me!” = Mr. W.G.
”I loved this wine!” Mrs. N.R.
”The Macon Uchizy is a big hit!” - Mr. P. R.
”I ordered more Macon within 30 seconds of opening the first bottle. Unbelievable for 12 quid! “ - Mr. D.O.
”It’s way better than any Majestic offer!” - Mr. J. H.
”We loved it, additionally the price point is amazing.” - Mr. S.R.