Domaine Couturier Mâcon Loché Longues Terres (2023)
750mL / Mâconnais, Burgundy / France
The Domaine Couturier Mâcon-Loché Longues Terres 2023 is a rounded, citrus-driven Chardonnay from the southern Mâconnais in Burgundy, with more depth than the appellation usually gets credit for. Ripe stone fruit sits over a firm mineral spine, so the wine feels generous without turning soft.
Aromas lead with white peach, lemon curd and yellow apple, backed by crushed hazelnut, a touch of chalk dust and white blossom. The palate follows through with grapefruit pith and nectarine, gathering a faintly savoury, bread-crust character as it opens in the glass.
Longues Terres is a flagship bottling for the Couturier family, drawn from mature Chardonnay vines that have passed down through generations, and the concentration shows. Texture is the strong point here: a broad, almost waxy mid-palate pulled tight by clean acidity, with a dry, faintly bitter almond edge on a long finish. The warm, generous 2023 growing season across Burgundy gives the wine a riper fruit profile than cooler years, but there is no shortage of drive.
Roast chicken with lemon and thyme is the obvious match, though it handles more: pork loin, scallops in butter, gruyère tarts, or a bowl of mussels. Serve it around 11 degrees rather than fridge-cold, or the aromatics stay shut.
Drinking well now and worth holding through to 2029, with the fruit likely to give way to nuttier, more savoury notes from around 2026.
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