2018 Dominique Cornin Bourgogne Blanc 750 ml

We met wunderkind wine critic William Kelley at Meadowood in Napa Valley back in 2017. He was writing for Decanter at the time, but less than a year later, the Oxford-educated Brit landed one of the wine world’s plum assignments: a gig at The Wine Advocate.

Kelley’s an ace with wines from all over the globe, but his deep knowledge of Burgundy is why the Advocate snapped him up. We read every word he writes on the region, and he’s always gaining credibility in our book—especially when he sings the praises of hidden-gem vintners like Dominique Cornin. 

“This is a serious estate” that “deserves to be better known,” Kelley wrote about the father-and-son operated Cornin, whose wines are usually snapped up by somms at MICHELIN-starred destinations like Eleven Madison Park. He went on to say that “Cornin’s commitment to his vineyards is just as evident as his diligence in the cuverie and cellar.” 

Cornin makes a series of coveted single-site wines, but when we tasted their breathtaking 2018 Bourgogne at San Francisco’s iconic Nopa, we were blown away. We moved heaven and earth to get an allocation, calling in a favor with the legendary Bay Area-based importer who brought this wine to the States. 

From vines up to 53 years old, Cornin’s Bourgogne is a handmade cuvée that screams white-Burgundy luxury. Tightly coiled with ripe citrus and orchard fruit, satiny and seamless on the palate, it shows the kind of quality that usually commands a hefty price tag—a bargain-hunter’s white Burgundy dream come true.