2019 Barraud Pouilly-Fuisse ‘Les Crays’ Vieilles Vignes

VIN91 The 2019 Pouilly-Fuissé Les Crays Vieilles Vignes offers tightly wound Nashi pear, earthy, granitic scents on the nose. This is less flamboyant than Barraud’s other Pouilly-Fuissés but there is good complexity. The palate is well balanced with orange rind and a tang of marmalade on the entry. Good tension from start to finish with modest weight, this represents a fine, quite cerebral Pouilly-Fuissé.
BH90-92 This had just finished its malo and thus the nose was muddled with secondary fermentation aromas though the underlying fruit does seem notably ripe. There is again very fine volume and intensity to the very rich, indeed even lavish, middle weight flavors that possess an attractive vibrancy before concluding in a saline, complex and sneaky long finish.
Estate Notes: 100% Chardonnay. Estate vines face south on this steeply graded plot in Vergisson; ‘Crays’ is sunny, resulting in ripe, generous wines with a mineral-inspired backbone. Soils predominantly limestone scree. Vine age 40-50 years.