Domaine Vincent Latour is a small estate in Meursault, a separate domaine from the more commercially prominent Domaine des Comtes Lafon but drawing on the same family’s deep knowledge of the Meursault terroir and its Premier Cru vineyards. The Gouttes d’Or Premier Cru, whose name translates as ‘drops of gold,’ is a 5.32-hectare site on the mid-slope immediately south of Les Perrières and produces Chardonnay of considerable richness, body and ageing potential from its clay and limestone soils. The site’s name reflects the wines’ historically golden colour and the richness of flavour that the terroir’s particular combination of clay depth and limestone drainage reliably produces. The Latour estate’s approach is traditional and thoughtful: natural fermentation, restrained new oak and a respect for the Premier Cru’s individual character that allows the Gouttes d’Or to express its distinctly warm, textured and generous Meursault style without excessive manipulation.

The 2021 Meursault white wine vintage was one of the most challenging in recent memory, with spring frosts dramatically reducing yields across the Côte de Beaune and producing wines of unusual concentration and mineral intensity from the surviving crop. For the Gouttes d’Or, a naturally generous and full-bodied Premier Cru, the 2021’s low-yield concentration combined with the site’s inherent richness should produce a wine of exceptional extract and long-term ageing potential, at the cost of some of the site’s typical early accessibility. Collectors willing to wait several years before opening the 2021 Gouttes d’Or will be rewarded with a wine whose development trajectory is defined by the concentration of the frost-reduced vintage and the site’s natural mineral depth.

Meursault Gouttes d’Or from a small independent family estate with genuine knowledge of this specific vineyard offers a compelling alternative to the more commercially visible Meursault Premier Cru expressions. The combination of the 2021 vintage’s exceptional concentration and the Premier Cru’s natural richness and warmth should produce a wine worth considerable patience from those who acquire it now.

Gold with a concentrated and textured nose of ripe peach, golden apple, toasted almond, honey, cream and a fine mineral warmth from the Gouttes d’Or limestone and clay soils. Full-bodied with excellent concentration from the 2021 vintage, good natural acidity and a long, rich, structured finish of genuine Premier Cru weight and warmth. Best from 2026 through 2038.