Domaine Borgeot Puligny-Montrachet 'Vieilles Vignes' 2023
The so-called “golden triangle” of great white Burgundy—Meursault, Chassagne-Montrachet, and arguably the most distinctive, Puligny-Montrachet—represents the pinnacle of Chardonnay. This old-vine village Puligny from Domaine Borgeot captures that pedigree with finesse and precision. Brilliant and luminous in the glass, it offers a bouquet of orchard blossoms and ripe peach. The palate is silky and refined, carrying through to a long, graceful finish that lingers on floral and fruit notes. A standout expression of both Puligny-Montrachet and the Borgeot style.
BURGUNDY 2023 VINTAGE
The 2023 vintage in Burgundy was marked by abundant yields and a growing season that brought both challenges and rewards, resulting in a harvest that is notable for its charm, increasingly promising for its quality, but troubling for its irregularity.
The BIVB says it was the largest harvest in Burgundy’s history, producing approximately nearly 2 million hectoliters. This enormous crop was by and large healthy, with no signs of stress despite a record-breaking heatwave during the hottest harvest ever.
But let’s step back and look, as we do each year, at the lead-up to the that harvest.
The winter of 2022-23 was very mild and dry; the spring was mild, but wetter; summer was punctuated by storms and then came a heatwave late in the season that took the crop racing towards harvest.
So despite being perhaps less sunny that recent vintages, the heat and regular rains pushed the vines to grow rapidly and the grapes to develop, albeit without serious phytosanitary (oidium and mildew) issues, if the growers were vigilant.
That said, there were those who saw the huge crop coming, and removed lots of buds early in the growing season. This not only helped manage the yield, but it also reduced disease pressure. Some say this may have been the key to quality in 2023.
A hailstorm in mid-July hit Meursault and Volnay hard (with up to 40% loss of the crop).
The harvest saw temperatures soar, with a heatwave pushing daytime highs to around 40 C (104 F). Ripening happened at a frightening speed (one producer friend said that there were no Saturdays or Sundays during harvest). This forced some growers to pick early to preserve as much acidity as possible. The result was a vintage with abundant yields and generally healthy grapes, though quality varied depending on terroir and vineyard management.
It’s important to note that neither Pinot Noir nor Chardonnay like high temperatures and heat-wave harvests. So 2023 is yet another Burgundy vintage where you have to know who made the wine. Well-made whites at the moment are drinking brilliantly, with Chablis getting a lot of attention. The reds have developed slowly, but now, after some time in the bottle, they are loosening up. The fruit on both red and white is splashy. And the acidity levels seem good, considering the hot growing season. It may be a case of good malic acid replacing the lactic. But the results are showing charm. What vintages to compare these to? The whole is not far off of the precedent vintage, 2022 with maybe a little less class. Is particular, the reds remind me of 2017 (which is a personal favorite at the moment), and the whites are a bit like the 2018s, in their ripeness and acidity. Watch out for wines that have a green, vegetal edge; some producers got spooked by the heat and harvested too soon. But you won’t have to worry about that here at burgundywine.com. Enjoy the 2023s for what they are: ripe, juicy and voluptuous.
PULIGNY-MONTRACHET
COTE DE BEAUNE
Many think of Puligny-Montrachet, along with Chassagne-Montrachet, as the most perfect expression of the Chardonnay grape. As always of course, it depends on who makes the wine. But one thing is certain, the premiers crus do have pedigree, with most of them bordering the north side of the grands crus. The village wines are produced mainly in the flat-lands to the west of the village itself. Plots which adjoin the hamlet of Blagny produce a red wine, but in tiny quantities.
Produced only in the commune of Puligny-Montrachet, appellation Puligny-Montrachet includes 17 premiers crus. The commune of Puligny-Montrachet also produces 4 grands crus
Wine
Red wine is fast disappearing from Puligny-Montrachet due to the world-class reputation of and subsequent demand for the whites. A well-made one should be brilliant greeny gold color, becoming more intense with age. The bouquet brings together hedge-row blossoms, grapey fruit, almonds and hazelnut, lemon-grass and green apple. Milky and smoky mineral aromas are common, as is honey. Balance and concentration are the hallmarks of a good Puligny.
Terroirs
Brown limestone soils and soils where limestone alternates with marl and limey-clay are prevalent. The soils are deep in some places, and in others, the rock is exposed at the surface. Where there are clay alluvia, these are coarser higher up the slopes and finer at the base. Expositions run east and south-east at altitudes of 230-320 meters.
Color
Almost all whites - Chardonnay
Reds - Pinot Noir
Production surface area
1 hectare (ha) = 2.4 acres
Whites : 206.72 ha (including 96.58 ha Premier Cru)
Reds : 1.26 ha (including 0.27 ha Premier Cru)
Food
Puligny-Montrachet should be concentrated and well-bred. Balance, aromatic complexity, and purity call out for delicate but rich food. Poultry in sauce or sauteed veal with mushrooms. They go well with foie gras, lobster, crayfish, and grilled fish. On the cheese-board, it works with creamy goat cheeses or soft-centered cheeses like Brie de Meaux.
Appellations
Red wines from the defined area of this appellation may use the alternative appellation 'Cote de Beaune Village'
The following climats are classified as grands crus:
Chevalier-Montrachet
Montrachet
Batard-Montrachet
Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet
On the label, the appellations 'Puligny-Montrachet' and 'Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru' may be followed by the name of a specific vineyard, known as a climat.
The following vineyards are classified as premier cru:
Champ Gain
Champ Canet
Clavaillon
Clos de la Garenne
Clos de la Mouchère
Hameau de Blagny
La Garenne
La Truffière
Le Cailleret
Les Chalumaux
Les Combettes
Les Demoiselles
Les Folatières
Les Perrières
Les Pucelles
Les Referts
Sous le Puits
The following vineyards are village wines from a single vineyard, known as a lieu-dit:
Au Paupillot
Brelance
Champ Croyon
Corvée des Vignes
Derrière la Velle
La Rousselle
La Rue aux Vaches
Le Trézin
Le Village
Les Aubues
Les Boudrières
Les Charmes
Les Enseignères
Les Grands Champs
Les Houlières
Les Levrons
Les Meix
Les Nosroyes
Les Petites Nosroyes
Les Petits Grands Champs
Les Reuchaux
Les Tremblots
Meix Pelletier
Noyer Bret
Rue Rousseau
Voitte