Maison Henri Gouges - Montagny 1er Cru White 2023

Grape

100% Chardonnay

Soil type: Marls and marly limestones of the Jurassic lias and older trias

Tasting notes

The 2023 Cavea Famille Gouges Montagny 1er Cru 'Nos Lieux Dits' (historically tied to the Henri Gouges family venture) is a bright, expressive 100% Chardonnay from the Côte Chalonnaise. White flowers, fresh pear, and citrus zest lead the nose, backed by a precise, vibrant palate and a long, chalky, saline finish.

More About The Winery

Henri Gouges inherited nine hectares of prime Nuits-Saint-Georges vineyards just after the First World War and expanded his holdings significantly between 1920 and 1934. He was among the first growers in Burgundy to reject the négociant trading system of the era, choosing instead to bottle and market his wines directly from 1933 — a rare and progressive practice at the time.

As both mayor of Nuits-Saint-Georges and an appointed member of INAO in the 1930s, when Burgundy's appellations were first codified, Henri successfully led the campaign against classifying his own village's vineyards as Grand Cru, believing the terroir did not merit it — a rare act of integrity that still defines the domaine's exacting standards today.

The estate's 14.5 hectares include seven of Nuits-Saint-Georges' finest Premier Cru climats — Les Saint-Georges, Les Chaignots, Chênes Carteaux, Clos des Porrets-Saint-Georges, Les Pruliers and Les Vaucrains — alongside the rare white La Perrière, propagated from a Chardonnay-like mutation of Pinot Noir that Henri discovered growing spontaneously within Clos-des-Porrets in 1936. The entire vineyard has been farmed organically since 2008.

Today the domaine is run by Henri's grandsons Pierre and Christian, with Pierre's son Grégory overseeing winemaking. The low-yield, minimal-intervention philosophy Henri established a century ago continues to define wines of remarkable precision, structure and ageing potential.