Christian Bellang et Fils Bourgogne Blanc Sous la Velle 2012

Yours truly was once invited to dinner at a gentleman’s club in Mayfair, courtesy of some minted friends and was stoked to experience one of the finer pleasures in life, for diddly squat. Get in! Well, this wine gives us a similar feeling, as half of the grapes come from Meursault AOC, but it’s only classified under Burgundy’s generic appellation, Bourgogne Blanc. All of which means you get a rich yet elegant Chardonnay, with heavenly citrus fruit and buttery undertones, for a ridiculously good price. Form an orderly queue…

With half of the grapes from Meursault, this is a rich, elegant Chardonnay with heavenly citrus fruit and buttery notes. A total bargain.

The Domaine Christian Bellang et Fils was started in 1974 by Christian Bellang himself and since 1990 his son Christophe has been in charge of the domaine. He now looks after all the vineyard and winery work and has continued to improve quality both in the winery and in the vineyards.

You can't make great wine without great grapes so working the vines is the most important step towards making the best wine possible from your terroir. Christophe likes wines which are elegant and refined yet show a lot of fruit and reflect both the terroir and the vintage.

Half the grapes for this Bourgogne Blanc come from vineyards in AOC Meursault Sous la Velle. The resultant wine is rich and concentrated and tastes like a mini Meursault!

Vineyard work is all important at this domaine and a severe de-budding kicks off the low yields which give this wine such rich fruit. They practice Lutte Raisonné (responsible agriculture) in the vineyards. The wines are vinified in the traditional way, with indigenous yeasts in oak barrels. The wine ages for 10 months in oak before being fined with casein and bottled.

A rich yet elegant Chardonnay that shows great class and leaves you wanting more. Citrus fruit and buttery undertones make this a classic Meursault-style, from a great grower.

It’s great on its own as a pre-dinner tipple, but it’s also a perfect accompaniment to creamy fish dishes, roast chicken or veal escalopes.