Making the Winning Chardonnay
From the very beginning, we set out to produce world-class wines. Thousands of decisions are involved - from the vineyard to the bottle.
Behind the ScenesJudges and Scores
On May 24, 1976 in Paris, France, one of the most prestigious and formidable groups of wine tasters in the world held a blind tasting of Chardonnay and White Burgundy wines.
OFFICIAL RESULTS
| Vintage | Wine | Place | Total Points | 1st place votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Chateau Montelena | 1st | 132 | 6 |
| 1973 | Meursault-Charmes (Roulot) | 2nd | 125.5 | 0 |
| 1974 | Chalone Vineyards | 3rd | 121 | 3 |
| 1973 | Spring Mountain | 4th | 104 | 0 |
| 1973 | Beaune-Clos des Mouches (Drouhin) | 5th | 101 | 0 |
| 1972 | Freemark Abbey | 6th | 100 | 0 |
| 1973 | Bâtard-Montrachet (Ramonet-Prudhon) | 7th | 94 | 0 |
| 1972 | Puligny-Montrachet 1er cru “Les Pucelles” (Dom. Leflaive) | 8th | 89 | 0 |
| 1972 | Veedercrest | 9th | 88 | 0 |
| 1973 | David Bruce | 10th | 42 | 0 |
THE TASTING PANEL
These were the tasters and their scores* for Chateau Montelena
| Taster | Place | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Mr. Claude Dubois-Millot - Directeur Commercial “Le Nouveau Guide” | 1st | 18.5 |
| Mr. Aubert de Villaine - Co-Gérant, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti | 1st | 18 |
| Mr. Raymond Oliver - “Le Grand Véfour” | 1st | 17 |
| Mr. Jean-Claude Vrinat - “Taillevent” | 1st | 17 |
| Mr. Christian Vanneque - Chef Sommelier, “La Tour d’Argent” | 1st | 16.5 |
| Mrs. Odette Kahn - Directrice, Revue du Vin de France | 1st | 16.5 |
| Mr. Pierre Tari - Château Giscours, Secrétaire Général, Syndicat des Grands Crus Classés | 2nd | 14 |
| Mr. Pierre Brejoux - Inspecteur Général, Institut National des Appellations d’Origine | 4th | 10 |
| Mr. Michel Dovaz - Institut Oenologique de France | 7th | 3 |
*Scoring was based on 20 point maximum
