2012 Bouchard Half-Bottles
Beaune 1er Cru l'Enfant Jésus
& Le Corton 375mls
The half-bottle is a great little format.
It's the perfect format for the casual weekday sip, for red-wine pairings when the dinner's focus will be white, or for the solo diner. We get tons of requests for half-bottles, so you all have your own reasons.
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Also worth considering, especially with impressive Burgundy, is the fact that half-bottles age differently (more quickly) than regular bottles - they offer a glimpse into the future. I've met a lot of serious, thoughtful collectors who cellar half-bottles for that very reason.
Both of these bottles have made up our core picks from Bouchard for some time. They sell out every year when we do an email offer on them.
Le Corton is a serious, storied terroir and deserving of a place in even the most elite and coveted cellars, though it's priced such that we can all tuck a little bit away. Le Corton is perhaps unique in the Côte d'Or with its combination of profound mineral and fortress-like structure with an ultra-fine layer of fruit.
In the 2012 vintage, all of these qualities are laid bare with a beautiful clarity of fruit and mineral. Burghound calls it "an old school Corton" because of its serious structure. It will age extremely well because it not only has the structure, but also the persistence and balance.
Now onto, l'Enfant Jésus, a bottling that defies Burgundy's neat hierarchies. L'Enfant Jésus is a 1er Cru that has no problem hanging with Grand Crus. This makes it one of Burgundy's great secrets. The value and aging potential help l'Enfant Jésus find its way into the cellars of serious collectors vintage after vintage.
Unsurprisingly the 2012 is a beautiful example of this wine showing lovely fine-ness and power. Above all else, it's a very classic showing of the concentrated elegance of l'Enfant Jésus that we love so much. Burghound nails it when he writes that it has "a beguiling sense of underlying tension."
Both bottles represent some of the greatest values in Red Burgundy that we know. They are legendary for how well they age. As with so many 2012s, there's simply much less wine than we're accustomed to. Please give us your ideal order and we'll try our best.
To order, reply to offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Ian McFadden
Director, Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits
Burghound: "There is a trace of reduction present but not enough to materially detract from the violet, plum and liqueur-like dark currant aromas that are trimmed in a discreet application of wood. There is a beguiling sense of underlying tension to the broad-shouldered, rich, intense and like the Clos de la Mousse, relatively powerful flavors that exude a fine minerality on the serious, balanced and saline-inflected finish. This should be excellent in time though note that patience will be required."