2013 Louis Latour Chassagne Montrachet "Morgeots" 1er Cru 750 ml

On the Edge of Burgundy: Latour’s Chassagne Montrachet Jewel

The 2013 Louis Latour Morgeot Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru is an opulent and expressive Côte d’Or gem that we discovered during that visit to Domaine Louis Latour. Grown on a legendary terroir in Chassagne-Montrachet, crafted and cellared by a revered producer, Chardonnay simply doesn’t get much more classic than this.

Simply put, this is what every barrel-fermented Chardonnay aspires to be. If you are already in love with Côte d’Or whites, you know exactly what we’re talking about. If you are a fan of Chardonnay but haven’t tried a wine like this, well, you have one beautiful revelation ahead of you.

We have had a fantastic relationship with Latour for decades, and this past harvest season we were invited by Louis-Fabrice Latour to visit some of his family’s most impressive holdings—Grand Cru and Premier Cru sites around Burgundy—to “see the vines, walk the soils, feel the northerly breezes that refresh the vineyards,” as he put it. And then, of course, to taste and fully realize the impacts of the local terroir on the finished wines.

The 2013 Morgeot begins in a vineyard with pristine pedigree: The Premier Cru site is located in the famed village of Chassagne-Montrachet, and all of the quality factors are there: The vines grow on south-east facing, mid-slope vineyards composed of the clay and chalk that have been renowned for centuries for producing incomparable Chardonnay.

A Premier Cru site located in the renowned village of Chassagne-Montrachet, Morgeot was dubbed “Morga”—Latin for edge, or limit—in the year 864, as it then formed the boundary between the Côte d’Or and the Saone-et-Loire region. The vineyard sits at about 820 feet above sea level, enjoying the exposure and soil composition that make this one of the world’s special places for white wine.

Chassagne, especially compared to its neighbor Puligny-Montrachet, is known for producing opulent examples of Chardonnay, laden with ripe orchard fruit and hazelnut characteristics. This Latour Morgeot stood out during an intensive tasting at Corton-Grancey—one that featured Grand Cru wines from several of Latour’s most hallowed sites—and it waves the Chassagne flag proudly by showing a rich golden-yellow hue, aromas of yellow pluot and honey, and a creamy texture enlivened by a brisk mineral streak.

Domaine Latour’s home base is Château Corton-Grancey, which looks up at the famous Corton hill from the village of Aloxe Corton at the northern end of the Côte de Beaune. Latour’s white wine holdings stretch south from there, dotting the Côte and ending just past Morgeot, Latour’s second-to-southernmost white wine source in the region.