Batard-Montrachet
It has been said that the Grand Cru vineyard of Bâtard Montrachet, located at the base of the Montrachet hill, is so prestigious that it would be unfair to limit it to one village alone. As such, the legendary, 20-hectare climat,famous around the world for its exceptional and exclusively Chardonnay vines, is shared by two adjacent communes in Burgundy’s sub-region of Côte de Beaune, with nearly a third of the vines resting in Chassagne-Montrachet with the remaining in Puligny-Montrachet. Part of Burgundy’s ultra-prestigious Montrachet family of Grand Crus, Bâtard Montrachet also has the benefit of equally impressiveneighbors: Le Criots and Le Montrachet in Chassagne-Montrachet, and Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet in Puligny-Montrachet.
Bâtard Montrachet’s unwavering dedication to growing Chardonnay grapes of unrivaled quality has earned it the honor of
Bourgogne wines generally use only one grape varietal, and Bâtard Montrachet is no exception. For this appellation, Chardonnay is the defining grape, with the minimum grape maturity being 11.5% potential alcohol. Signature wines present a golden color that deepens with age, and offers the palate a pleasant experience of butter, spice, honey, dried fruit and creamy warmth. Structured and harmonious, they are nonetheless highly finessed, and are known for being considerably profound, especially for a white wine.
Finally, it would be remiss not to mention the reference to the “bastard” in Bâtard Montrachet. History claims that the name of this region was derived from the legend of the Seigneur de Puligny: this local lord supposedly divided this land among his children including his eldest son (the Chevalier), his daughters (the pucelles, or maidens), and his illegitimate son, the bâtard. While the term may sound derogatory, the wines from Bâtard Montrachet are nothing short of noble.