by Patrick Ogle
Celine & Laurent Tripoz Bourgogne Aligote 2015 is one of those rare Burgundy whites that is not chardonnay. Aligote, the second white grape of the region, is the star here.
At first sniff I couldn't draw a clean line from the smell to appropriate words. I thought there was something that reminded me of baked goods, not the breadiness of Champagne or the malolactic butteriness of a California chardonnay. Think of a fresh croissant. The nose has hints of tropical fruit. I also smelled and tasted apple. This fruit is not pronounced. The citrus isn't a run of the mill lemon but some exotic relative of the lemon. I almost ran to the computer to look one up. There is also a mineral stoniness here, something slate-like.
The wine is acidic and tart with a bit of a bitter finish that holds on and persists. It is a really lively wine with what seems to be a lot of co2. The acidity is up there with those acidic wines riesling and chenin blanc. But it is not analogous to either of those for many reasons. The tartness, the sharpness in the wine calms down with even a little air.
Since chardonnay is king in Burgundy the vast majority of experts will talk of aligote as inferior or a curiosity (or a component in the drink "Kir"). It is, in fact, its own thing (a phrase I repeat ad nauseum). Aligote is a worthy grape and a This would be a great Thanksgiving wine for Americans; it would be great with turkey or ham.
Celine & Laurent Tripoz Bourgogne Aligote 2015 is one of those rare Burgundy whites that is not chardonnay. Aligote, the second white grape of the region, is the star here.
At first sniff I couldn't draw a clean line from the smell to appropriate words. I thought there was something that reminded me of baked goods, not the breadiness of Champagne or the malolactic butteriness of a California chardonnay. Think of a fresh croissant. The nose has hints of tropical fruit. I also smelled and tasted apple. This fruit is not pronounced. The citrus isn't a run of the mill lemon but some exotic relative of the lemon. I almost ran to the computer to look one up. There is also a mineral stoniness here, something slate-like.
The wine is acidic and tart with a bit of a bitter finish that holds on and persists. It is a really lively wine with what seems to be a lot of co2. The acidity is up there with those acidic wines riesling and chenin blanc. But it is not analogous to either of those for many reasons. The tartness, the sharpness in the wine calms down with even a little air.
Since chardonnay is king in Burgundy the vast majority of experts will talk of aligote as inferior or a curiosity (or a component in the drink "Kir"). It is, in fact, its own thing (a phrase I repeat ad nauseum). Aligote is a worthy grape and a This would be a great Thanksgiving wine for Americans; it would be great with turkey or ham.
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