Les Ruchottes Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Chardonnay

A touch of butterscotch with really precise flavors. A whiff of mint and good acidity

2007 | Chardonnay
Domaine Ramonet; Les Grandes Ruchottes 1er Cru
Burgundy; Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet, France
(93-95; drink 2022-27+)

From our cellar, at Little Cat Lodge, Hillsdale, NY.

Absolutely stunning and explosive nose, just want to keep smelling. It’s layered with both ripe tropical and citrus fruit, lilies, marzipan, melted butter and signature Ramonet spearmint that comes in after some air. It’s immensely powerful and concentrated with such incredible density, weight and texture, yet not at all heavy as just enough acidity provides its richness with both lift and focus. While no doubt still young and primary, its attributes are in perfect display, simply rocking tonight in every way. To no surprise, 2012 Ruchottes is a Grand Cru-Premier Cru 😉

A late evening pop and pour. Light canary gold color. Notes of citrus and white stones, tan spice. Nice mouth feel with ample acidity to match the nice fruit-forward nature of this wine. This was tight and quiet, given the lack of air it had. Still, a high-quality wine and bottles in condition like this have 10+ years in front of it. 93+

Tasted blind. Verging on dark gold color, not overly viscous. Leesy nose with notes of citrus, apricot, mint and wet stone. Very fruit-forward. Nice richness leads to a lasting finish. The mint makes me go with a guess of 85 Ramonet BBM. This was in a great spot and powered through the afternoon.

Light gold color, youthful in the glass. Notes of lemon, white peach, honeysuckle, some spearmint, some white acacia flowers and a nice tropical sea breeze. Tight and solid in the mouth, despite 2 hours of air in a decanter. Has a great minerality in its delivery. Good structure and acidity. Still early in its journey, at least this bottle was.

Imposing power and richness with an absolutely explosive and stunning nose. Lemon curd, white flowers, grilled nuts, spices and melted butter are layered in its fine mineral infusion to provide the perfect balance. There’s great weight, excellent mid palate depth and a fresh and intense lemony acid spine that cuts the wine’s richness seamlessly before its long and lingering finish. Fantastic bottle.

Lovely nose. Mint. On the palate a bit rich and honeyed on the end. Not as good s as you’d hope but still fine

Another excellent showing, although a little less vibrant than a bottle 3 years ago. The wine actually gained some vibrancy and became more expressive after 90 minutes in decanter.

Perfumed and complex, this 30-year white was showing its maturity with grace, maintaining class and power. Baked hazelnut, apple jam, marshmallow spread, dried mums.