Albert Bichot Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru 'Chateau Gris' 2019

Maison Albert Bichot was established in Beaune in 1831 by Bernard Bichot, grandfather of the first of a line of Albert Bichots.

The current managing director is Alberic Bichot (born 1964) who has revitalised the business which is now based around a series of domaines: Long-Depaquit in Chablis, Clos Frantin for the Côte de Nuits, du Pavillon for the Côte de Beaune and Domaine d’Adélie for Mercurey. Wines with one or other of these denominations will be from their own vineyards, while wines just bearing the name Albert Bichot will be from purchased grapes.

The company has separate vinification centres in Chablis, Pommard, Nuits-St-Georges and Beaune itself. Lupé-Cholet is an associated marque. Christophe Chavel has been looking after the vineyards since 2000, ensuring that they are all ploughed and no fertilisers are used. Alain Serveau, originally from a domaine in Morey-St-Denis, is technical director. Fermentation takes place in wooden vats of varying sizes depending on the specific plot of vines in question, using natural yeasts. Maturation is in oak barrels without too much new wood: 20 to 30 per cent for village wines, from 50 to 100 per cent for grands crus.

Bichot is now a serious player with some excellent red wines which avoid showing too much of a house style, and some fine whites

Built in the early 19th century, Château-Gris sits on a slope to the south-west of Nuits-Saint-Georges, at the heart of a 8.5 clos (walled vineyard). Back then, the locals named it as such because its roof is covered with grey (gris) slate whereas glazed tiles are more common in Burgundy and the name hasn't changed to the present day. Following a court decision in the 1920s, the name Château-Gris has taken precedence over the name "Les Crots", where the plot is located.

The vines are planted on terraces at altitudes of between 260 and 330 metres so that they can cling to the slope. The plots at the foot of the Château produce Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru "Château-Gris" red, while the higher altitude plots are planted with Chardonnay grapes. They produce this Nuits-Saint-Georges "Les Terrasses", a very rare wine, as fewer than 4% of Nuits-Saint-Georges wines are white.

The pinot noir grapes are hand picked before fermentation on oak barrels. The wine then ages for 14-16 months in 20-30% new oak.

The extremely elegant nose combines scents of red and black fruit (raspberry, strawberry, blackcurrant...) with subtle floral notes (rose, violet, peony...) and a delicate hint of oak. This wine is smooth on the palate and features rich, fleshy fruit flavours and structure owed to sophisticated tannins. A distinguished wine that offers a lovely sensation of freshness on the finish.