Beaune Les Avaux 2017

The 2017 Côte de Beaune harvest was defined by dramatically reduced yields following spring frosts, yet the fine weather that followed delivered wines of exceptional concentration and genuine character from the small quantities that achieved optimal ripeness in the finest Premier Cru vineyards of Beaune. Bouchard Père & Fils' 2017 Beaune Les Avaux is a fine and composed expression of this Premier Cru, the estate holding 4.36 hectares in a particularly steeply sloped parcel whose clay-limestone sub-soils are the consistent origin of the racy elegance for which this vineyard is celebrated, the vintage's naturally reduced yields producing a wine of exceptional concentration from Bouchard's long-established holding. Les Avaux takes its name from the lieu-dit “Vaux” designating a depression in the slope where the vines are situated, with Bouchard Père & Fils having been very present in the terroirs of Beaune for almost three hundred years and holding one third of this steeply sloped parcel whose clay-limestone sub-soil has established it as one of the most characterful and elegantly refined Premiers Crus of the entire appellation. The wine is produced from 100% Pinot Noir, aged 12 to 14 months in French oak with 30 to 40% new barrels.