2021 Louis Latour Vire-Clesse Les Champs Burgundy 750 ml

The late, beloved Louis-Fabrice Latour was a man with limitless access to the finest wines Burgundy has to offer. Between what he made at his family's winery—the historic, lauded Louis Latour—and his connections in Beaune, he could choose to drink Grand Crus like Montrachet and Chambertin every night.

But we weren’t surprised when he told us that his everyday go-to was Latour’s Viré-Clessé Les Champs. After all, it has become a member-favorite here as well, earning a scorching 4.5-star rating last vintage. That impressive score earned it a place at the very top of our white-Burgundy list.

“Chez Bocuse, Troisgros, or Guy Savoy, I like old vintages of Corton-Charlemagne,” Louis-Fabrice used to say. But on non-MICHELIN-starred nights, he confessed, “We toast the monks of Cluny and we drink great vintages of Viré-Clessé.” With a sly smile, he added, “Let me show you why.”

He then took us on a journey south along A6 from Beaune. About an hour later, we turned off to the hamlet of Viré—a hidden gem that most négociants rush past on their way to the more famous Pouilly-Fuissé.

Pulling up to the small, carefully manicured Les Champs vineyard, he parked, then pulled the cork on an unlabeled bottle of “Les Champs” that he’d brought along. He leaned up against a vineyard post, poured us a glass, and invited us to walk the vines. It’s a moment we’ll never forget.

The age-old lesson of Burgundy rings loud and clear: location, location, location! In this narrow strip of land between the towns of Viré and Clessé, Les Champs is a jewel of the region, and it’s why we try and offer this wine whenever we can.