2018 Domaine Hubert Bouzereau-Gruere Chardonnay Bourgogne 750 ml

“Meursault, right?”

That was the first thing our Head of Wine, Vanessa Conlin, said after sampling the paper-bag-wrapped 2018 Domaine Hubert Bouzereau-Gruère Bourgogne. We were intrigued by her confidence, not just because Vanessa’s a Master of Wine who aced the test’s blind-tasting gauntlet, but because the bottle in question wore a humble Bourgogne label.

When we texted the importer to check the sourcing, they confirmed that most of the grapes hail from Meursault, the source of some of France’s greatest, richest, most voluptuous Chardonnays. Mineral-driven yet draped with creamy, textural layers, there’s no wonder why this wine is a sommelier favorite, poured at MICHELIN-starred destinations like Daniel and Vestry.

Hubert Bouzereau, who descends from a long line of vintners, founded the winery with his wife in 1970. Today, their daughters Marie-Laure and Marie-Ann helm the operation, tending to 24 acres spread across six communes in the Côte de Beaune

The daughters have changed little about their father’s traditional, terroir-focused approach, producing wines with quiet, Old World workmanship. Wine Advocate has hailed the estate as “an excellent source of classic white Burgundy that doesn't follow fashion or seek publicity, and which works with an enviable portfolio of appellations and an equally enviably elevated average vine age.”

That age—which averages 45 years—becomes immediately apparent when you see the hand-tended, gnarled old Chardonnay bushes in Meursault whose grapes lend this Bourgogne a complexity that pops like Technicolor. Bright aromas of Bartlett pears, yellow flowers, and citrus zest ooze from the glass, kissed by a touch of clove and baking spices.

This bottle is a blessing, capturing the signature beeswax concentration of the region and the craft of a great Côte de Beaune family.