Description
96 Points James Suckling
Although still a bit tightly wound, this is a wonderful example of this famous 1er Cru. Great Amalfi-lemon fruit here. Concentrated and very elegant, with intense, chalky minerality, this is super-focused and very precise. Really stony finish with pronounced salinity that’s so exciting and mouthwatering. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.
92-94 Points Robert Parker Wine Advocate
The 2020 Meursault 1er Cru Perrières is excellent, exhibiting citrus, crisp orchard fruit, wet stones, freshly baked bread and praline. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and incisive, with a tangy spine of acidity and a long, saline finish, it’s a tensile, penetrating wine that shows considerable promise. Technical director Frédéric Weber and his team have realized another fine vintage chez Bouchard Père & Fils, beginning harvest on 19 August and sorting to remove dehydrated berries. The vineyards fared well despite a significant hydric deficit, testimony to viticulture that’s among the best of the big houses; indeed, organic conversion is underway, and canopies are now hedged to 1.30 meters, around 30 centimeters higher than the classic low rognage that still predominates along the Côte—forward-thinking innovations that will no doubt find imitators in short order among other big players. In any case, the resulting wines have turned out beautifully, with alcohols in the region of 13% to 13.5% and lower pHs than in 2019. Vibrant, intensely colored and beautifully balanced, there are plenty of cuvées here that I’d be delighted to own. White wines chez Bouchard, readers should note, are bottled under DIAM closures.
91-93 Points Allen Meadows
An elegant, airy and cool nose reflects notes of mineral reduction, citrus confit, apple and anise wisps. The racy, intense and overtly mineral-driven flavors are not quite as dense, but they do offer excellent length on the slightly firmer and more austere finale. This is going to need a few years to flesh out as it’s presently quite compact and tightly wound. Outstanding!
