1999 Chambolle-Musigny Les Clos de l'Orme Domaine Sylvain Cathiard ...

The 25 vineyards in Chambolle-Musigny (listed below) are designated as Premier Cru vineyards. Their wines are described as Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru, followed by the vineyard name – for example, as Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru Les Grands Murs: Les Véroilles, Les Sentiers, Les Baudes, Les Noirots, Les Lavrottes, Les Fuées, Les Feusselottes, Les Grands Murs, Aux Beaux Bruns, Aux Echanges, Les Gruenchers, Les Groseilles, Les Combottes, Les Charmes, Les Plantes, Aux Combottes, Derrière la Grange, Les Borniques, Les Hauts Doix, Les Chatelots, Les Cras, Les Carrières, Les Chabiots, Les Amoureuses, La Combe d'Orveau. Les Amoureuses (5.40 hectares) The most celebrated Premier Cru in Chambolle.

The vines are situated just below Le Musigny but above the significant drop down into Vougeot Premier Cru La Perrière, caused by quarrying rather than a fault line. When young it is almost ludicrously charming, yet it does not age quickly. Leading producers are Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé, Domaine Georges Roumier, Château de Chambolle-Musigny (Frédéric Mugnier), Domaine Robert Groffier, Domaine Amiot-Servelle and Domaine Bertheau. Les Baudes (3.42 hectares) The last of the Chambolle vineyards before the boundary with Morey St Denis, making a relatively firm style (especially in the hands of vignerons from Gevrey-Chambertin such as Christian Sérafin). Les Charmes (7.51 hectares) In common with other Charmes vineyards the wines are plump and rounded. Look for Chambolle Charmes from Domaines Amiot-Servelle, Barthod, Bertheau, Christian Clerget, Ponsot and Patrice Rion.

Sylvain Cathiard’s grandfather, a foundling from Savoie, came to Burgundy and found work with Domaine de la Romanée Conti (DRC) and Lamarche, subsequently buying a few parcels of vineyards for himself. His son André Cathiard began to bottle some of the crop. In due course Sylvain began work with his father but then separated to start his own small domaine, until on his father’s retirement in 1995, Sylvain could take back the family vineyards on a renting agreement. He has now been joined by his son Sébastien, and a spacious new cellar is currently under construction. The Cathiards have 5.5 hectares of vineyards in Vosne-Romanée, Nuits-St-Georges and Chambolle-Musigny, including tiny holdings in Clos de Vougeot and Romanée-St-Vivant. A recent addition (from 2006) to the range is the Nuits-St-Georges Aux Thorey. This is not a complicated domaine: the vines are looked after meticulously with the fruit being sorted on a table de tri and destalked. After fermentation the wines go into barrel, with 50 per cent new oak for the village wines and 100 per cent for premier cru and above. Most of the barrels come from one cooper, Rémond, albeit with the wood sourced from different forests. The wines in their youth have an exceptional energy and purity of fruit. Jasper Morris MW, Burgundy Wine Director and author of the award-winning Inside Burgundy comprehensive handbook.

Chardonnay is often seen as the king of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or. Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.
It is quantitatively important in California and Australia, is widely planted in Chile and South Africa, and is the second most widely planted grape in New Zealand. In warm climates Chardonnay has a tendency to develop very high sugar levels during the final stages of ripening and this can occur at the expense of acidity. Late picking is a common problem and can result in blowsy and flabby wines that lack structure and definition. Recently in the New World, we have seen a move towards more elegant, better- balanced and less oak-driven Chardonnays, and this is to be welcomed.