|
Here is all you need to know: when I first poured this for Daniel, he started dancing. ‘Nuff said! This will be unsurprising to those who 1) know Daniel, and 2) are aware of the hallucinogenic intensity of Cossard’s ’18 whites. Like Fred’s 2018 Puligny ‘Voitte’ there is that rich and thick honeycomb-y reduction that seems to at least partly account for the antic and unrelenting energy that is so particular to these. A few measly drops of the stuff suggest an immense and elemental intensity, as if the wine doubled as a wormhole into some other dimension.
We sell many ‘great wines’ and yet it is only a relative few among these that have such a rhapsodic hold over me. If you’re new to these whites, I can save you a bit of time in sharing that normal points of orientation won’t be helpful. At their best, they resist any attempt we make to categorize or define their particulars. What Burgundian purists should absolutely know is that Cossard’s best whites are not fundamentally predicated on expressing terroir, at least in any way that I understand. I’ve come to lovingly accept that some wines are vehicles to take us where we want to go, and some small number of others instead ask us to follow them where they want to take us. If you’re as willing to succumb as you are to understand, this wine just may make you fall in love with wine all over again. - Jason
Cossard nailed the 2018 vintage for his whites. If you love the style as we do, all of the village appellations on up (and not aged in quevri ;) ) are worth seeking out. They are unfortunately very difficult to find, so it was a delight to locate a parcel of the Beaune ‘Les Bressandes’ Blanc. From 50 year old vines in the premier cru site (not claimed as such for reasons that escape me), this is an absolute pleasure bomb.
Make no mistake, this is not simply a value Voitte substitute. While this shares the absurdly hedonistic yet high-toned reduction of its sibling, there is a beautiful depth that makes it a wonderful complement to that wine. Instead of only zinging lime, there is more bright orchard fruit here and the mid-palate opulence seems to linger ever so slightly longer. Regardless, this is an addictive and utterly delicious wine and the parcel is modest. This is the only availability in the US; no more than 6 bottles per customer, please.
A bit of background on monsieur Cossard: Frédéric Cossard must be the greatest former milkman to be making wine today (or ever; let me know who I'm missing). After a brief stint as a wine merchant Cossard set up shop in Saint Romain and began making Burgundy at once without chemicals in the vineyard nor sulfur in the cellar. The wines nevertheless avoided the imbalanced, grainy or yeasty fate of some other fellow low intervention winemakers in the Côte. No, Frédéric's wines, whether under his own name or that of Domaine de Chassorney, have managed to guard a purity that is the envy of many. These are wines to seek out.
Cheers,
- Spencer
|
