2020 Saint-Aubin, Rouge, Domaine François Legros, Burgundy
Critics reviews
The 2020 Saint-Aubin Rouge has an attractive bouquet with dark cherries and hints of blueberry, nicely defined. The palate is ripe and chewy on the entry with black plum and a touch of balsamic, quite firm on the finish but with decent length.
Another name that’s new to my report is Domaine François Legros, in Nuits Saint-Georges. Legros, who took over the domaine in 1988, is one of those “dirt under the fingernails” winemakers, a man who is happiest out working in the vines. “My ancestors worked at Château de la Tour and my parents still live in Vougeot,” he told me. “They lived in the chateau.” He has expanded the holdings to around eight hectares that, unusually, span both white and red in the Côte de Beaune and Côte de Nuits, this diaspora due partly to working parcels previously owned by his father-in-law. He is now assisted by his daughter Charlotte, who trained at the University of Beaune.
Legros has converted all his vineyards to lutte raisonée, works some parcels by horse, and hand-picks and sorts his fruit in the vineyard and then on a vibrating table. For the reds, around 90% is de-stemmed, with manual pigeage. He keeps the wines on the lees with no racking, employing around 30% new oak for his Premier Crus. He told me that the whites were bottled the previous week and came in with 13.6–13.8% alcohol. Tasting through his 2020s, I preferred his reds to his whites, which displayed traits of sur-maturité. By contrast, the reds were fresher and more terroir-driven and therefore come recommended. I look forward to returning to this address in the future.
Drink 2023 - 2028
Neil Martin, Vinous.com (December 2021)
About this WINE
Domaine François Legros
Domaine François Legros is a family-owned vineyard with a rich history and a commitment to quality winemaking. What began in 1988 as a small family wine estate has blossomed into a 6.7-hectare vineyard nestled between the Côte de Nuits and the Côte de Beaune. François Legros, the steward of this vineyard, cultivates both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes. The estate remains true to its roots, focusing on modernity, authenticity, and expertise.
Saint Aubin
Though tucked away in a side valley behind the two ‘Montrachet’ villages, Saint-Aubin is a great source of fine, steely white Burgundy and some attractively fruity reds. Production used to be about 50:50 between the two colours, but the whites have become the more sought-after and now represent two-thirds of the crop. There is a significant difference however between the best Premiers Crus – such as En Remilly – and the vineyards tucked away further up the valley.
- 80 hectares of village Saint-Aubin
- 156 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards (15 in all). The finest include En Remilly, Murgers des Dents de Chien, La Chatenière, Les Frionnes
- Recommended producer: Hubert Lamy
Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is probably the most frustrating, and at times infuriating, wine grape in the world. However when it is successful, it can produce some of the most sublime wines known to man. This thin-skinned grape which grows in small, tight bunches performs well on well-drained, deepish limestone based subsoils as are found on Burgundy's Côte d'Or.
Pinot Noir is more susceptible than other varieties to over cropping - concentration and varietal character disappear rapidly if yields are excessive and yields as little as 25hl/ha are the norm for some climats of the Côte d`Or.
Because of the thinness of the skins, Pinot Noir wines are lighter in colour, body and tannins. However the best wines have grip, complexity and an intensity of fruit seldom found in wine from other grapes. Young Pinot Noir can smell almost sweet, redolent with freshly crushed raspberries, cherries and redcurrants. When mature, the best wines develop a sensuous, silky mouth feel with the fruit flavours deepening and gamey "sous-bois" nuances emerging.
The best examples are still found in Burgundy, although Pinot Noir`s key role in Champagne should not be forgotten. It is grown throughout the world with notable success in the Carneros and Russian River Valley districts of California, and the Martinborough and Central Otago regions of New Zealand.
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Description
The 2020 Saint-Aubin Rouge has an attractive bouquet with dark cherries and hints of blueberry, nicely defined. The palate is ripe and chewy on the entry with black plum and a touch of balsamic, quite firm on the finish but with decent length.
Another name that’s new to my report is Domaine François Legros, in Nuits Saint-Georges. Legros, who took over the domaine in 1988, is one of those “dirt under the fingernails” winemakers, a man who is happiest out working in the vines. “My ancestors worked at Château de la Tour and my parents still live in Vougeot,” he told me. “They lived in the chateau.” He has expanded the holdings to around eight hectares that, unusually, span both white and red in the Côte de Beaune and Côte de Nuits, this diaspora due partly to working parcels previously owned by his father-in-law. He is now assisted by his daughter Charlotte, who trained at the University of Beaune.
Legros has converted all his vineyards to lutte raisonée, works some parcels by horse, and hand-picks and sorts his fruit in the vineyard and then on a vibrating table. For the reds, around 90% is de-stemmed, with manual pigeage. He keeps the wines on the lees with no racking, employing around 30% new oak for his Premier Crus. He told me that the whites were bottled the previous week and came in with 13.6–13.8% alcohol. Tasting through his 2020s, I preferred his reds to his whites, which displayed traits of sur-maturité. By contrast, the reds were fresher and more terroir-driven and therefore come recommended. I look forward to returning to this address in the future.
Drink 2023 - 2028
Neil Martin, Vinous.com (December 2021)
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