Malcolm Jolley finds an affordable and tasty white Burgundy…

The house of Bouchard Père et Fils is big but respected, and while the top end of the Burgundy negociant’s product list are denominated in hundreds of dollars a bottle, they make some great value wines as well. The 2015 Bouchard Père et Fils Les Deux Loups Coteaux Bourguignons ($17.95 – LCBO# 424911) is one such wine that delivers classic Burgundy round citrus flavours without a hint of oak and with a good zing of food friendly acidity. It’s remarkably well balanced and fancy tasting, I think it could easily be put up against lesser Burgundies that command twice the price. Maybe it’s priced under $20 because it’s not a 100% Chardonnay wine but a Chardonnay-Aligoté blend. Aligoté is known for its acidity, and perhaps it’s giving the Chardonnay from the hot year of 2015 a bit of lift. In any event, if you’ve given up hope of finding anything good under $20 on the Burgundy shelves, this wine will restore your faith in being able to drink well without taking out a second mortgage. It’s certainly worth a try.