Some 16 years after the growers of Pouilly-Vinzelles, a small appellation encompassing only about 130-acres, applied for 1er Cru status, the French wine authorities awarded that accolade to three vineyards, one of which is the 32-acre Les Quarts, starting with the 2024 vintage. (For completeness, the other two are the 19-acre Les Longeays and the 7-acre Les Pétaux.) Like the regulations for the 1er Cru of neighboring Pouilly-Fuissé, rules prohibit the use of herbicides in these vineyards. Moreover, regulations for Pouilly-Vinzelles 1er Cru mandate hand-harvesting, the only appellation in France with that requirement. Despite its youthful tightness, the 2024 Les Quarts dazzles. A distinct, yet paradoxically subtle, stoniness harmonizes with a restrained green apple-like fruitiness. As it sits in the glass, it starts to blossom, so don’t rush it. Better yet, plan on a decade in the cellar, as you would with all great white Burgundies. My experience with their Pouilly-Vinzelles Les Quarts, even before it had 1er Cru status, is that it develops marvelously with bottle age.
96 Michael Apstein – April 1, 2026