2024 Pommard 1er Cru Les Bertins, Domaine Chantal Lescure

• Style: Savoury, classic Pinot Noir from Pommard
• Taste: Poised, concentrated, unforced, ready from the first sip
• Food: Roast dinners, mushroom and truffle, stews, beef, game
• Critic: 92 critic score
• Occasion: Gifting; Cellar worthy
• Serve: Open at the table alongside a roast

In the Glass — Tasting Notes

The 2024 Pommard 1er Cru Les Bertins from Domaine Chantal Lescure is a savoury, classic Pinot Noir grown on old vines, and what sets it apart is the brown limestone scree those vines grow in. An aggregate critic score of 92 backs up that claim. Balance and concentration define the wine from the first pour, and it never tips into heaviness. Mature vines on this soil tend to give depth without bluntness, so it suits a glass before dinner as much as a bottle opened beside a plate. Pommard has long been known for powerful reds, and this one carries that weight without losing clarity. Anyone who has tasted widely from the region will recognise the restraint, and it is a fine place to start exploring more Burgundy. Expect a wine that asks for attention rather than a loud first impression.

The Winery — Domaine Chantal Lescure

Chantal Lescure founded the domaine with Xavier Machard de Gramont; Eric Rousseau, who also works at Domaine Armand Rousseau, now co-owns it. Based in Nuits-Saint-Georges, the estate farms 19 hectares split between the Côte de Nuits and the Côte de Beaune. Certified organic since 2006, the estate carries that care into the cellar. This wine comes from a lieu-dit beside the Volnay border, which is why we keep a close eye on Pommard. Picked by hand, the fruit is sorted and destemmed, then left uncrushed for a pre-fermentation maceration. Long, gentle fermentation in stainless steel precedes ageing on lees in French oak, partly new. Weather made the season hard, with heavy rain and little sun, and careful vineyard work plus late August sunshine saved the crop. For the drinker, that means a wine that feels composed from the first glass. Should this be your first Lescure, the rest of the Domaine Chantal Lescure range is the natural next step.

At Your Table — Food Pairing & Serving

Sunday roast beef is the obvious partner, especially with roast potatoes and a rich gravy. Mushroom and truffle risotto suits it just as well, and so does a venison haunch or a slow-cooked beef stew. Let it stand a little before the food arrives so the glass has time to settle, and pour generously so the wine has room to open. At 13.5% it sits at medium body, so it never overwhelms the plate. Ideal for the host who wants a bottle that fits a long lunch, and for the cellar keeper who lays a few down. Open one now and keep a few back, because the structure will reward patience over the coming years. If this is your kind of bottle, our Côte de Nuits reds are where to look next. Put this one in the basket for the next roast, because it turns an ordinary Sunday into a table people remember.