Domaine A. et P. de Villaine Bouzeron Aligote 2006
I had a Domaine A. et P. de Villaine Bouzeron Aligoté 2006 last night with chicken soup. Aligoté is to Chardonnay as Gamay is to Pinot Noir in Bourgogne. Huge amounts of the stuff get consumed in the region, Chardonnay based wines being too expensive for many locals.
This wine is made from private holdings of Aubert de Villaine and his wife. It’s generally considered the best Aligoté one can buy (at 13 euros — remember that many bottles are 3 euros).
The nose of this wine is classic Aligoté minerally, green melon, white peach, a little lemon pith. The palate is very tart, like early picked Semillon. It is refreshing, a nice aperitif and definitely better than the other Aligoté I’ve had. I had no desire to put crême de cassis in it (as is common in Bourgogne — in fact, they put crême de cassis in anything unpalatable).
I’m told that some people have had old bottles of the de Villaine Aligoté and been surprised at the weight it had put on — but to many it’s like saying you should age a rosé I haven’t tasted one but would like to. I was hoping for a little bit more but it was enjoyable nonetheless.
