2019 Domaine de Baronarques, Blanc, Limoux, Languedoc

Chardonnay is often seen as the king of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or. Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.

In southern France's Occitanie region, Limoux has a storied role in sparkling wine history predating Champagne. The famous Blanquette de Limoux, an early sparkling wine, uses traditional bottle fermentation with Mauzac, Chardonnay, and Chenin Blanc grapes. Limoux also produces Crémant de Limoux and still wines, including whites (Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc) and reds (Bordeaux varietals, local grapes).

Domaine de Baronarques is a wine estate in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in the South of France. It lies in the Saint-Polycarpe commune within the appellation of Limoux, part of the Aude department. Once owned by the eighth-century Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Polycarpe, the domaine is now part of the Baron Philippe de Rothschild group. The portfolio includes leading Bordeaux properties Châteaux Mouton Rothschild, Clerc Milon and d’Armailhac, among other notable names. Domaine de Baronarques and the wider group belong to Camille Sereys de Rothschild, Baron Philippe Sereys de Rothschild and Julien de Beaumarchais de Rothschild.