Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru 'La Grande Montagne', Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard, 2022
Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru 'La Grande Montagne', Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard, 2022
- 75cl
- 13.5%
- White Still
- Chardonnay
- Organic
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Optimal drinking window: 2027 - 2038
Fresh and focused, La Grande Montagne 2022 opens with citrus, white peach and pear, layered with subtle floral notes and a touch of almond. The palate is poised and mineral, with bright acidity and a long, chalky finish. A natural match for scallops, lobster, roast chicken or creamy mushroom dishes.
From a strong 2022 vintage, this Premier Cru shows both ripeness and precision. Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard is a benchmark name in Chassagne-Montrachet, known for its measured use of oak and wines that prioritise balance, clarity and terroir expression.
What the critics say:
"Cooler and notably more elegant aromas include those of just sliced Granny Smith apple, lemon-lime, spice and mineral reduction. There is once again a really lovely texture to the vibrant and overtly stony middleweight flavors that terminate in a bone-dry, youthfully austere and beautifully persistent and well-balanced finale. This is excellent and a wine that should amply repay extended keeping. *Outstanding*"
La Grande Montagne sits on the upper slopes of Chassagne-Montrachet, where the soils are predominantly limestone and white marl over hard Bathonian rock — the same geology that gives the village its reputation for steely, mineral-driven whites. The elevation here means cooler temperatures than the valley floor, which preserves natural acidity and keeps the fruit precise rather than generous. That combination of lean soils and altitude is exactly why this lieu-dit produces wines with such a stony, driven character rather than the rounder, fleshier style you find lower down the slope.
Chassagne-Montrachet is one of the Côte de Beaune's most celebrated white wine villages, sharing the famed Montrachet Grand Cru with its neighbour Puligny to the north. Its Premiers Crus cover a wide arc of hillside, and the wines vary considerably depending on where they sit — some are rich and broad, others tight and mineral. What unites them is Chardonnay grown on ancient limestone soils, vinified under strict Burgundy AOC rules with relatively low yields. Compared to Puligny, Chassagne tends toward a slightly more textural, stony style, though the best Premiers Crus can age every bit as well.
The 2022 growing season in Burgundy began with a worryingly dry spring that had vignerons checking soil moisture levels weekly, followed by a summer that alternated between intense heat and welcome rainfall. The vines handled the stress remarkably well, producing smaller berries with concentrated flavours, though yields dropped significantly across both the Côte d'Or and Chablis. Harvest began earlier than usual, with many producers picking in late August under bright skies.
What emerged from the cellars shows a vintage of surprising finesse given the challenging conditions. The Pinot Noirs display vivid fruit and firm tannins without the jammy weight you might expect from a hot year, whilst the Chardonnays retained their mineral backbone alongside ripe stone fruit flavours. We're finding the village-level wines particularly compelling right now, drinking beautifully with just a year or two of bottle age, though the premier and grand crus will reward patience until the late 2020s.
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