2023 Barraud Pouilly Fuisse En Buland

"From Barraud's 89-year-old vines opposite Les Crays located on northfacing incline (hence no Premier Cru classication) the 2022 Pouilly-Fuissé En Buland proves why consumers should not restrict their choices to the new top level: some cuvées are Premier Cru in all but name. This has a captivating bouquet with yellow fruit, wet clay, yellow owers and just a hint of peppermint, extremely well-dened, one of those aromatics that stop you in your tracks. The palate is supremely well balanced with a ne bead of acidity, taut and fresh with a composed, almost understated nish. This will bide its time, so stick it away in a cellar for a few years, because this is Pouilly-Fuissé from the top drawer. Magnicent." Drink 2027 - 2042

"Daniel Barraud is now officially retired, and his son Julien is now in charge who briefly described 2021 as one "where we lost 50% of the potential crop to the April frost and then lost even more in Fuissé due to a late June hailstorm. Our yields there were a miniscule 7 hl/ha. We didn't make some of our normal cuvées as it was necessary to combine various vineyards to have sufficient quantities. Slightly more prominent wood frames aromas of ripe apple, fennel, wet stone and a plethora of citrus elements. The rich, concentrated and impressively scaled big-bodied flavors coat the palate with sappy dry extract that also buffers the firm acid spine shaping the bitter lemon zest and beautifully long if youthfully austere finish. En Buland always ages well, and the 2021 version should be no exception."