The Rock Sisters
Jordan Salcito and Alix de Montille's
2011 Bellus White Burgundy
The Perfect Spring White Burgundy?
Jordan Salcito may be the nicest, most loved sommelier in New York City.
She is also one of the most serious, with a decade-plus worth of experience in New York institutions such as Crown, Eleven Madison Park and Daniel. Just a few weeks ago, Jordan was named Wine Director for David Chang's Momofuku Restaurant Group.
However, Salcito has also decided to venture out beyond the restaurant cellar and take advantage of her deep connections in the wine world, to get closer to the process of making wine itself.
 |
Thus was born the Bellus label. The first wine, a $25 Tuscan stunner has proven to be one of the most popular reds in the store.
For the second release, Salcito has gone to Burgundy. In fact, Salcito has teamed up with one of Burgundy's greatest practitioners of white wine - Alix de Montille. Those of you who have ever had a top vintage de Montille Caillerets, you know what we're talking about!
Alix has an incredibly sensitive touch with her whites - these wines emphasize minerality, clarity, finesse - acidity as a tool to sculpt a wine. Alix's husband, Jean-Marc Roulot, works a similar style with simply epic results.
The 2011 Bellus Bourgogne Blanc "Les Roches Soeurs" sources grapes from both Puligny-Montrachet and Meursault. The name itself holds significance: "Les Roches" references "Roche Mère," or "Mother Rock," a subterranean sheet of limestone that informs Burgundy’s terroir; "Soeurs" is French for "sisters" - a nod to both the duality of the two villages and women who collaborated to make the wine.
From the Puligny vineyard the wine gains an intense focus, a lovely polished minerality and finesse. From the Meursault vineyard comes the depth of the mid-palate, the purity of the orchard fruit and the force of the wine.
This really is an extraordinary wine of balance - a beautiful partnership of tension, minerality with a restrained little touch of opulence. It maintains great palate weight, a presence that feels much, much deeper and weightier than most wines in this price-range, to say nothing of wines in the $40 range and beyond.
Salcito and de Montille have managed this dance of fruit and minerality perfectly and this dance is at the heart of all great white Burgundy, from Lafon to Leflaive to Roulot and beyond. This bottling has comparable pedigree at a much, much, MUCH more reasonable tariff!
Spring is springing! Give us your maximum order and we'll do our best and keep in mind six-pack pricing ends Sunday!
To order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Ian McFadden
Director of Fine & Rare Wines
Crush Wine & Spirits
2011 Bellus Bourgogne Blanc
Compare at up to $39