2022 Celine Boudard-Cote Bourgogne Cuvee Julia
“This wine ranks as one of my best
red wine deals EVER!”
Back in April we offered an exquisite red bourgogne: 2022 Celine Boudard-Cote Bourgogne, Cuvee Julia. You might remember, it had gobsmacked us on our last trip and we offered up 40 cases… only to be double gobsmacked. It sold out within hours and left us flooded with queries for more!
Good news… I secured everything she had left and the remaining stock arrived last week. Weather permitting, it’s ready to ship. Add this one to your upcoming shipment before it’s gone… you will thank me!!!
We first met Celine Cote at a wine fair in Paris. Faun was dragging me around to taste every Champagne under the sun. It was the end of the conference, so vendors grew weary, as did we! Under the fluorescent lights of a cavernous warehouse, there is no romance, just another booth, another wine, another sloppy spittoon.
With no introduction or forewarning, we stumbled onto Celine Cote’s booth. She matched our mood…friendly but by no means enthusiastic about our struggle to converse in Google-French. But after my knees nearly buckled with surprise and delight at what I experienced in my first sip, I started to perk up! Everytime you put a red burgundy to your lips, with that moment of anticipation, THIS is what you hope for. “I want to buy your wine” also did wonders for our communication!
The following week we visited Celine Cote’s farm-winery-family home in the village of Molosmes (on the outskirts of Tonnerre) but now her daughter was in attendance to translate.
Their story is remarkable. If you have time, read below!
-STORY-
The land of Celine Cote’s family around Molosmes was a wasteland for decades. When the Phylloxera crisis hit the region in the late 1800’s, as it had in so many other regions throughout France, church bells rang for the death of the vines and for the families equally devastated. It is not dissimilar to the church bells tolling during the bubonic plague, and commensurate panic and chaos ensued.
Until Phylloxera, Celine Cote’s family had cultivated the vines for centuries and prior to that, it had been developed by monks dating back to the 13th century. These centuries of history had been laid to waste until Celine’s parents reimagined their terroir, with all of its rich Kimmeridgian soil, producing outstanding wines again. It was a dream, but one made more realistic by their daughter Celine, trained in biotechnology and viticulture-oenology. Few families were so prepared!
In 1999, Celine and her parents replanted the steep, 1.5 hectare southeast facing slope surrounding their home (from which Cuvee Julia is made). From the very beginning, Celine insisted on farming organic, but she told me they have been farming biodynamically the entire time. She applied for the certification in 2016 when she felt the vineyard was starting to mature; their Demeter certification came in 2021.
Celine Cote understands and lives by three guiding principles; 1) control the yields, 2) high health quality of the berries and 3) adequacy between the maturity of the grapes and the organoleptic qualities. Her attention to detail and the way she speaks about caring for every vine in the vineyard reminded me of how many vignerons describe their Grand Cru vineyards in Burgundy. Celine cares little that this is a $27 Bourgogne grown in an unheard of village. She strives for the best possible outcome and this is a show stopping Bourgogne.
Today the family has approximately 8 hectares of vines mostly planted to pinot noir, but with some chardonnay as well. This wine ranks up there as one of my Best Red Wine Deals Ever! There is not a better Pinot Noir on the market for anywhere close to this price.
