2016 Ballot Millot & Fils Meursault Charmes Premier Cru 750 ml

Harnessing the world-famous Les Charmes Premier Cru terroir on a plot near icons like Domaine des Comtes Lafon (whose own 2016 Les Charmes goes for $297), this Ballot Millot & Fils classic boasts such nuance and energy, it’ll have you checking to see if Meursault classified its first Grand Cru. 

This wine is a trifecta of rarity. Ballot Millot & Fils’ limited production, plus worldwide demand for Les Charmes wines, plus low yields in the standout 2016 vintage all add up to scarcity on US soil. We’ve got a small allocation, but if Wine Access members react anything like we did when we tasted this wine, it’s as good as out the door.

Born of a 2016 vintage that Master of Wine Jancis Robinson called “seriously delicious,” the 2016 Les Charmes dazzles with aromas of Meyer lemon, nectarine, green apple, white flowers, and almond marzipan. Zippy citrus, roasted almond, and limestone showcase Charles Ballot’s alluring “Roulot-school” style—tensile and racy as opposed to the rounder, honeyed Meursaults that formerly dominated the market. 

Bottles exactly like this have led critics the world over to rank Les Charmes Premier Cru wines alongside Grand Cru white Burgundies. Our own Master Sommelier Sur Lucero argued that Les Charmes is “the site that would make the top of the list during a re-classification.” Fortunately for us (and you), the prices haven’t followed suit. 

In Burgundy, “Grand Cru” and “Premier Cru” can mean the difference between a $500+ bottle and a $120 bottle, but in Meursault, there are only Premier Cru sites and village-level vineyards. Luckily, we don’t need a designation to tell us what top-notch quality tastes like—we’d rather keep 2016 Ballot Millot & Fils Les Charmes hidden from the “Grands Crus only” collector types so we can keep it to ourselves, priced just as it is. 

Winemaker Charles Ballot couldn’t have asked for a better inheritance. When he became the 15th generation to helm the estate in 2001, he took over some of Meursault’s most coveted land, including five Premier Cru holdings. And he’s taken full advantage, crafting “textural, structured wines with lovely cut and concentration,” according to Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. 

The estate’s Charmes parcel borders Puligny-Montrachet, where clay-limestone soils conjure this wine’s energy and mineral complexity from 30-year-old vines. Hand-harvesting and indigenous yeasts help to maintain Les Charmes’ purity and vibrance, while one year in 20% new oak, followed by six months more in tank, contribute a refined complexity. 

A perfect confluence of excellent terroir, detail-oriented winemaking, and a stellar vintage come together in the glass as an exuberant Meursault with the legs to age for several more years.