Domaine de la Verpaille's Viré-Clessé has got to be one of the top White Burgundy deals I've offered this year. Golden colored, beautifully scented, grand and rich, I had trouble not drinking an entire bottle the other night.....
I can say with 100% confidence that this is the best sub-$40 White Burgundy I've ever had the pleasure to taste. From a 70-year-old plot of certified organic Chardonnay vines planted in limestone-rich soils, it is bright gold in color, with soaring notes of peach, poached pear, spiced apple, citrus blossom, and mineral. Wow, wow, wow!
Husband and wife Baptiste and Estelle Philippe of Domaine de la Verpaille quietly and humbly make this masterful bottle of wine. Their old vines only give them 1 ton per acre, and it's these Grand Cru-like yields that give this wine its intense flavors and mammoth concentration. They also choose to farm organically and bottle with minimal sulfur, and this allows that old vine character to truly shine.
I have a lot of respect for growers who choose this path. It would be easier to raise their price, to rip those old vines up and replant in order to get bigger yields, or to spray their vines with chemicals, but they take great pride in their work, and it shows in this gorgeous wine.
This is the "STUFF" you all; that elusive, extremely high-quality White Burg that has yet to be discovered....except by us! I bought every bottle in the state of NC, and I can't wait for you all to taste it. If scallops, sea bass, or salmon are on the menu anytime soon, you need a bottle of this for a perfect pairing.
Josh Spurling
Owner, Operator, Wine Monger
Table Wine Asheville
