Laurent Ponsot Masterclass

 Laurent Ponsot resigned from the family Domaine Ponsot at the end of 2017 and set up on his own with his son. Since then he has been on a steep growth path.

He is an interesting character. Recently I wrote a post about blending, and that it should perhaps not be rubbished. Laurent Ponsot has an interesting take on it. He blends from different plots, but only within one subregion, for example Gevrey-Chambertin and so on. He blends owned properties with purchased fruit, thereby mixing the mostly strict distinction between domain and negociant wines. His view is that this adds complexity, but preserves the terroir of each region. He also does not use any new oak. There are other innovations, such as in the measurements against fakes and his special cork.

This is the first time he visited Australia. It was a great success, a great opportunity to taste a number of his $2000 plus/bottles grand crus. This is the list of wines I tasted, all from the 2021 vintage.

- Bourgogne Blanc Cuvée 

- Meursault Cuvée du Pandoréa

- Corton Charlemagne Cuvée du Kalimeris

and the reds 

- Vosne-Romanée Cuvée du Cerisier

- Chambolle-Musigny Les Charmes Cuvée du Tilleul

- Gevrey-Chambertin En Ergot Cuvée du Mélèze

- Clos de Vougeot Cuvée du Cèdre

- Griotte Chambertin Cuvée du Saule

- Bonnes Mares Cuvée de l'Amandier

The white wines have a flower name, the red wines a tree name. Here are the highlights:

The Corton-Charlemagne comes from 12 plots. It is a big wine, but balanced. Stone fruits and marzipan on the palate, long finish (95 points).

The Gevrey-Chambertin En Ergot from the smallest 1er cru in Gevrey-Chambertin is quite light. It is a silky, elegant, quite ethereal wine, and despite its lightness has a firm tannic finish (95 points).

The Clos de Vougeot from 10 sites and 7 producers in a similar way is light and elegant, but concentrated as well, showing savoury flavours, too (96 points). The Bonnes Mares, with only 788 bottles, is similar, but more aromatic (95 points).

My favourite wine was the Griotte Chambertin, a slightly bigger wine. It is quite intense, with good drive, dark fruits and savoury flavours (96 points).

Overall, these wines impress with their purity of fruit, their light touch, and elegance.