Domaine Olivier Merlin Les Chevrieres Pouilly-Fuisse Premier Cru 2023

If you do a quick scan online, you’ll find no other retailer in the U.S. has Olivier Merlin’s single-vineyard 2023 vintage Les Chevrières – other than us, that is. Master of Wine and Inside Burgundy critic Jasper Morris called this wondrous Pouilly-Fuissé “perfectly balanced,” and we don’t need a whole lot more convincing after hearing that… However, a price under $45, down from $88, seals the deal pretty darn well!

Olivier Merlin is a name that white Burgundy lovers know well. He and his wife Corinne took over a domaine in La Roche-Vineuse in 1987, and over the decades they’ve built a reputation for expressive and site-driven Chardonnay from the Mâconnais. Today, their Pouilly-Fuissé lineup includes three Premier Cru bottlings, a status only just granted to the appellation’s top vineyard sites in 2020.

Les Chevrières is one of them – a single vineyard in Chaintré, the southernmost commune in Pouilly-Fuissé, planted on clay-limestone soils veined with iron oxide. Olivier’s parcel faces east, so the fruit ripens more slowly, and in 2023, it was the first of his Premier Crus to be picked. The vines average about 75 years old, which means low yields and concentrated, majestically layered fruit.

Barrels of orchard fruits come first – bosc apples and anjou pears – accented with a bit of fresh cream, white pepper, lemon oil, and river stones, finishing with a bright and mouthwatering acidity. It’s pure and fresh and impeccably layered, with paralyzing elegance and poise. Under $45 on a single-vineyard 1er Cru white Burgundy with 92 points is borderline bonkers, but we’re happy to be the crazy ones to bring it your way! Grab 4 or more and shipping’s covered, too.

FOOD PAIRINGS: Seeing as we’re in prime soup season, a classic French creamy seafood stew of blanquette de la mer would be a charming match for this balanced white Burg.