Pierre Girardin· Meursault
About the domain.
Pierre Girardin was raised inside Burgundy, the thirteenth generation of his family in Meursault, and yet his own domaine is barely older than a child. He bottled his first wines in 2018, under his own name, and the trade noticed almost at once.
He farms not quite five hectares of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, plowing the grand cru parcels by horse and the rest by tractor. Very little new oak, ten to twenty percent, whole-cluster ferments, unfined and unfiltered. What comes out is precise, saline, lifted, Meursault without weight.
I watch the young growers of the Côte closely, and few have arrived as fully formed as Pierre. This is a name to follow for the next forty vintages.
Tension and weight.
The Corton-Charlemagne is austere in its youth. The Montrachet was harvested 2 September.
Acid-driven, classical.
A cooler year. The Meursault Genevrières is the standout, showing the mineral depth this climat is known for. Low alcohol, 12.5%.
Rich, concentrated.
Warm vintage. Pierre harvested early to preserve acidity. The Puligny Les Combettes has more flesh than usual but holds its line.