Domaine Guillemot Michel 2017 Vire-Clesse "Quintaine" 750ml

The 2017 Viré-Clessé Quintaine is showing beautifully, unfurling in the glass with a refined bouquet of white peach, green orchard fruit, honeycomb and spring flowers. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, satiny and lively, with lively acids, promising structuring dry extract and a long, delicately honeyed finish. From vines that have been biodynamically farmed since 1991, this cuvée always attains a pH of 3.2 or lower, even in the warmest vintage. While it is always approachable, to my palate, this bottling is at its best with six to eight years of bottle age.

Score: 93+ points -- William Kelley, The Wine Advocate, 2019

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Domaine Guillemot-Michel is located in the small village of Quintaine, south of Burgundy.  The original vineyards were planted by Pierrette's grandfather and father.  In 1985, Pierrette and her husband Marc (both oenologists) took over the Domaine from her father and they obtained organic certification in 1992, then became biodynamic the following year.  In 2013 their daughter Sophie returned to the Domaine after completing her degree in oenology.  The approximately 50 year old vines are densely planted, with between seven and eight thousand plants per hectare, and they are only hand-worked. The typical yield is just 2.5 tons per acre.  Pierrette and Marc's use of bio-dynamic methods can encourage botrytis, aka noble rot, a benevolent form of fungus that adds richness and complexity to wine.  In 2012 they experienced a wet spring, periods of strong sunshine in August, and harvest occurred in late September/early October.