Domaine Roulot Meursault Casse-Têtes 2024
We have 2 in stock (Inventory is live and accurate)
The Land
Casse-tête is French for a puzzle or a headache, and the name is a warning from the people who first tried to plant here. Les Casse-Têtes sits at the top of Meursault's slope, just south of Les Tessons and above the village's old quarries, facing east. There is very little soil: thin, pebbly, rocky ground over limestone, hard enough that earlier generations struggled to establish vines in it. With so little to hold onto, the vines draw straight from the rock, and the wine picks up a stony, almost flinty intensity rather than the hazelnut-and-butter richness associated with lower Meursault sites. This is Chardonnay from Meursault at its most mineral, shaped more by stone than by soil.
The Wine
100% Chardonnay. Pneumatic pressing, with a light crush first when the fruit is healthy, then fermentation with natural yeasts and roughly a year in barrel, no more than 20 percent new for village wines, before months in steel tank on the lees. Fining is minimal and filtration very light. Roulot first bottled Casse-Têtes in 2023, and early tasters found it more reductive than the other cuvées, with a flinty edge, pear and citrus peel fruit, and a chalky finish. The 2024 season in Meursault was cold and wet, pressured by mildew and hit by early summer hail, and it produced Roulot whites with low alcohol and cool, just-ripe fruit. Expect white pear, green apple, struck flint, and a linear, saline finish. Roulot Meursault Casse-Têtes 2024 will reward a few years in the cellar.
The People
Jean-Marc Roulot began stripping back chemical treatments after taking over in 1989 and realized around 2000 that the domaine was effectively farmed organically; certification followed with the 2013 vintage. There are no herbicides, only plowing. When old vines fail, they are replaced by massal selection, using cuttings from the domaine's best old vines, with the Clos du Haut Tesson, A Mon Plaisir, serving as the mother vineyard. That lineage matters here, because Casse-Têtes sits right beside Tesson. The parcel came to Roulot from Bouchard Père & Fils with the 2023 vintage, one of a handful of new sites Jean-Marc has brought in to extend his reading of the hillside.
Food Pairing
Casse-Têtes wants food with clean lines that will not bury its minerality. Oysters on the half shell with a shallot mignonette are the most direct match for the wine's salinity. Pan-seared sea bass with lemon, capers, and a drizzle of good olive oil lets the acidity sharpen the fish. Langoustines or large shrimp grilled with olive oil and Espelette pepper put a little smoke against the flint. For something earthier, try a risotto of spring peas and Parmigiano. Open it on a quiet night when there is time to watch the wine change in the glass over the course of dinner.
We ship wine to most states with a $100 minimum order for shipping. We don't ship spirits nor beer.
Weather shipping advisory: Orders placed during times of extreme heat or extreme cold will be held for no charge until more favorable weather returns.
Burgundy, in eastern France, encompasses several subregions, but it is the Côte d'Or that is home to many of the world's most expensive and revered wines. The region, primarily a single east-facing slope, has mixed limestone soils that vary dramatically from village to village and even vineyard to vineyard. White wines, crafted from Chardonnay, range from rich and opulent to lean and intensely mineral, while Pinot Noir produces silky, perfumed red wines of exceptional finesse and complexity. Centuries of winemaking tradition have resulted in every plot being meticulously recognized and scrutinized, making the Côte d'Or a true capital of terroir.
Burgundy - Cote d'Or
Chardonnay, one of the world's most versatile and beloved white grape varieties, showcases a remarkable spectrum of styles, from the lean, mineral-driven expressions of Chablis in France to the rich, buttery, and oak-aged versions from California's Napa Valley. Its adaptability extends to cooler climates such as Burgundy, where it achieves elegance and complexity, and to regions like Australia's Yarra Valley, known for producing vibrant and fruit-forward renditions. This grape's ability to reflect its terroir, coupled with winemaking techniques, results in a wide array of profiles, including unoaked, crisp varieties with apple and citrus notes, to full-bodied wines with tropical fruit flavors and creamy textures.
