2012 Corton Charlemagne

The 2012 Corton-Charlemagne from Bouchard Père & Fils had improved since I last tasted it in 2012. Poured from magnum, it has a lovely mineral-rich, vanilla pod scented bouquet that has developed more complexity in recent months. The palate is just as poised, perhaps even more so, its richness effortlessly offset by that razor-sharp line of acidity and the poise on the oyster shell-tinged finish. I can see this continuing to improve over the next few years. Tasted at the Bouchard dinner at La Gavroche.

Tasted blind at the Burgundy 2012 tasting in Beaune. The 2012 Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru from Bouchard Père has a well defined bouquet, the oak present but more integrated than Sylvain Loichet’s: subtle with hints of white flowers and minerals developing with aeration. The palate is balanced and poised, the acidity well judged and combines well with the viscosity. It comes across as quite an understated and feminine Corton-Charlemagne that I was hoping would improve in the glass, but instead, it seems to lose some of its initial promise.

Healthy pale yellow. Lemon, powdered stone and oak char on the nose, along with hints of very ripe fruits. Big, full and rich but quite closed today, even monolithic, in need of time in bottle to reveal more personality. This pulpy wine boasts good underlying minerality but not quite the lemony cut of the Chevalier-Montrachet. During the elevage the team thought they had picked this fruit too late in 2012.