Cote de Beaune Wines

wines

Bottled in late July. Pale lemon colour. A pure and fresh bouquet, mostly white fruit. Particularly stony this year behind a raft of white apple fruit, plenty of energy, starting to soften at the back. Middleweight plus, quite attractive. Tasted Oct 2023.Jasper Morris | 92 JM

Though delineated by its vibrant acidity, this white shows some weight, with a creamy texture enveloping flavors of vanilla, buttery croissant, lime blossoms and hazelnut. Lithe and persistent on the finish, where the notes of lime blossoms carry over, with accents of citronella and baking spices. Drink now through 2032. 2,310 cases made, 462 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThis emblematic premier cru is a lovely introduction to Domaine Leflaive, with hints of passionfruit, pomelo, coconut milk, spice and smoke. The texture is lush with extract, but there is enough acidity to bring everything into balance. Although this 2022 doesn’t show the same intensity or concentration of the other premier cru wines, the combination of ripe fruit and smoky reductive notes make it a tempting wine for mid-term cellaring.Decanter Magazine | 94 DECThe 2022 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon unwinds in the glass with a gently reductive bouquet of pear, sweet citrus zest, wet stones and wheat toast. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and racy, it’s bright and saline, with a long, penetrating finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RPThere is just enough reduction to push the fruit to the background though a whiff of floral character can be discerned. On the palate there is both more volume and concentration to the beautifully textured middleweight flavors that are also appealingly vibrant and particularly so on the complex, balanced and impressively long finale. This is notably better than it usually is and a wine that should amply repay a decade or so of keeping.Burghound | 92-94 BHLight lemon colour. Attractively floral, then a similar little wash of line. This is light on its feet, has the required density without an especial weight, with a pleasing length of finish. Drink from 2028-2035. Tasted Apr 2024.Jasper Morris | 92 JMThe 2022 Puligny-Montrachet Clavaillon 1er Cru is much more backward and rocky on the nose; sea spray and crustacea come through with aeration. The palate is fresh and malic, with plenty of energy. It is a little spicy towards the finish with a persistent peppery aftertaste. The palate was more expressive on the day that I tasted it, though it seemed just a couple of paces behind Leflaive’s other Premier Crus. Cellar for two or three years.Vinous Media | 91 VM

This is a blend of Le Charlemagne, and Hautes Mourottes, which from 2024 Pierre-François will make separately, calling the former Charlemagne and the latter Corton-Charlemagne. In 2023 there are eight barrels worth, made in two new barrels, two older barrels and a concrete egg. These have been racked to tank since just after the harvest. Pale in colour, stony with a little toast also. Crisp white orchard fruit with a little flesh behind, and good tension. Nicely balanced at 13.5% alcohol. Drink from 2029-2038. Tasted Oct 2024.Jasper Morris | 93-96 JM

The 2023 Chassagne-Montrachet Clos Saint-Jean 1er Cru shows less reduction than other cuvées. This has a beautiful bouquet with white peach, citrus lemon and crushed stone, a little Puligny in style. The palate is well-balanced with a fine bead of acidity, tensile and mineral driven. A hint of popcorn appears on the saline finish. The 2023 is very promising.Vinous Media | 92-94 VMA clear pale colour and the least showing on the nose of the 1ers crus. Leaner on the palate, then a little waft of oak at the back which integrates well with the fruit even so. Precision at the back, just less easily definable character than most of the other wines. Drink from 2027-2031. Tasted Oct 2024.Jasper Morris | 91 JMModerate reduction is enough to overshadow the fruit today so if by chance you’re going to try a bottle young, be sure to give this some air. On the palate the barely middle weight flavors are not nearly as concentrated and while they do possess good energy and an attractive texture as well as a bone-dry, balanced and youthfully austere finish, the overall impression is a wine that is less complete. Granted, while this perfectly nice effort may well add weight with a few years in bottle, I very much doubt it will catch either the Chenevottes or Clos de la Truffière.Burghound | 90 BH

The 2023 Puligny-Montrachet Les Chalumeaux 1er Cru is more understated but more complex than the Hameau, with fine delineation and crushed stone infusing malic scents. The palate is well balanced with a twist of sour lemon on the entry, tensile and focused with a precise and quite persistent finish. This is a well-crafted Puligny that will give a decade’s drinking pleasure.Vinous Media | 92 VM

This deeply coloured wine from the Pommard side of the village boasts a pronounced plummy fruit with nuance from hints of wood smoke and saddle leather. The texture is firm and draws the wine to a lingering finish. The grapes are from d’Angerville’s 1.06ha parcel. The 2023 vintage has more stuffing than many, although there is no lack of charm. This wine will probably require five to seven years to show its best. A lovely success.Decanter Magazine | 94 DECA medium crimson tint to the colour. An extrovert riper fruit on the nose, sheer beauty on the palate, a slightly darker tint to the raspberry behind. And then it all comes flooding back incrementally across the palate. “A wine which levitates”, suggests Guillaume. Very persistent indeed.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91-93 RPA bright and wonderfully fresh nose also offers up ripe cherry scents are laced with hints of spice and red currant. The mouthfeel of medium-bodied flavors is fine to the point of being borderline delicate while delivering good punch on the firm, serious and saline-inflected finale. Lovely.Burghound | 91 BHA medium crimson tint to the colour. An extrovert riper fruit on the nose, sheer beauty on the palate, a slightly darker tint to the raspberry behind. And then it all comes flooding back incrementally across the palate. “A wine which levitates”, suggests Guillaume. Very persistent indeed.Vinous Media | 90-92 VMA lighter crimson colour. Crushed strawberries on the nose, but no whole bunches here. More about the sensuality than precision in this wine, a riper style of fruit though not necessarily any higher in degree. A long and agreeable finish. Drink from 2030-2037. Tasted Nov 2024.Jasper Morris | 90-92 JM

The 2023 Meursault Les Perrières 1er Cru has an attractive bouquet that seems to "expand" in the glass: apricot and peach skin meet a touch of melted candle wax, all nicely defined. The palate is medium-bodied with fine mineralité, fresh and focused, gaining weight towards the finish, which actually reminds me of the Perrières from Ballot-Millot. Excellent.Vinous Media | 93 VM

A wine to seek out. Racy and very fine, the grapes come from the very top of the slope, and offer forward aromas of lime peel and gooseberry with a flinty, mineral edge. Marvellous acidity and great depth of flavour on the palate, along with a pleasantly silky texture. Although this will be attractive when bottled, it can also be aged.Decanter Magazine | 94 DECGrapes from less vigorous plants, situated on the limestone upper hillside. Very pale, stones in whitewash on the nose. Classy and classical, with an extra kick of fresh white fruit and lemon acidity at the finish. Persistent, more my style of wine. More nuanced at the finish. Drink from 2027-2031. Tasted Oct 2024.Jasper Morris | 91 JM