Domaine Ponsot : Morey-Saint-Denis 1er cru "Clos des Monts Luisants" 2021

Tasting characteristics and tips for the Morey-Saint-Denis 1er cru "Clos des Monts Luisants" 2021 from Domaine Ponsot

Tasting

Color

The color displays a pale yellow hue with golden highlights, characteristic of Aligoté.

Nose

The nose reveals a complex, mineral aromatic palette, with notes of green apple, gooseberry and tarragon. Aromas of crème fraîche, lime zest, white flowers, fresh bread and almond paste complete this elegant, refined bouquet.

Palate

On the palate, this wine unveils a lively, satiny texture, carried by incisive acidity and a very present chalky minerality. The palate shows remarkable flavor weight with controlled fruit ripeness, never excessive. The finish lingers at length on persistent, thirst-quenching mineral notes, reflecting exceptional aging potential.

Food and wine pairing

This Morey-Saint-Denis 1er cru "Clos des Monts Luisants" 2021 pairs perfectly with fresh seafood, oysters and scallops. It also matches delicate white fish, poultry in cream sauce, aged goat cheeses or soft cow’s-milk cheeses. Tarragon-based preparations, asparagus and composed salads with vinaigrette also make excellent pairings.

Serving and cellaring

It is recommended to serve this Morey-Saint-Denis 1er cru "Clos des Monts Luisants" 2021 at a temperature between 10 and 12°C. This wine can be enjoyed now but will gain in complexity with at least 5 to 10 years of aging in the cellar.

A unique white premier cru from Morey-Saint-Denis

The estate

Founded in 1872 by William Ponsot in Morey-Saint-Denis, Domaine Ponsot remains an outstanding family-owned Burgundy estate. Now led by Rose-Marie Ponsot with the support of Alexandre Abel as technical director, the estate spans around seven hectares of vines among the most prestigious in the Côte de Nuits. A pioneer of estate bottling as early as 1921, Ponsot stands out for its commitment to authenticity, notably through its fight against counterfeiting and the development of anti-fraud technologies. The estate practices sustainable viticulture and natural winemaking with no added sulfur, favoring the pure expression of its terroirs.

The vineyard

Clos des Monts Luisants covers around one hectare at the top of a steep slope in Morey-Saint-Denis, at nearly 350 meters of altitude. This Domaine Ponsot monopole lies on thin clay-limestone soils, made up of chalky scree over grèzes and white oolite formations. The vineyard takes its name from the luminous appearance of Aligoté’s yellow foliage in autumn. The vines, 85% of which were planted in 1911, are among the oldest producing Aligoté vines. This poor, steep terroir gives the wine a characteristic mineral intensity and high acidity.

The vintage

The 2021 vintage in Bourgogne proved particularly challenging. After a relatively mild winter, severe spring frosts devastated the vineyards in early April. May brought strong downy mildew pressure, with regular rainfall making treatments complex. The summer was cool, without excessive heat, allowing slow ripening. September offered more stable conditions with seasonal temperatures that helped bring ripeness to completion. At Domaine Ponsot, harvesting began on September 28, with disastrous yields of around 8 to 9 hectoliters per hectare in Morey-Saint-Denis—about a quarter of a normal crop.

Vinification and aging

The grapes for the Morey-Saint-Denis 1er cru "Clos des Monts Luisants" 2021 are harvested by hand and sorted in the vineyard. After whole-bunch pressing, fermentation takes place with indigenous yeasts in temperature-controlled vats. The wine is then aged for 16 months in French oak barrels averaging 15 years of age, with no new oak. No racking takes place during aging, except before bottling. The wine is neither fined nor filtered, in keeping with the estate’s minimal-intervention philosophy.

Grape variety

100% Aligoté, Burgundy’s traditional white grape variety. This wine is the only premier cru in Burgundy made exclusively from this grape.