Lucien Le Moine

Lucien Lemoine is a small, haute-couture négociant house was established by Mounir and Rotem Saouma in 1999. Their aim is to bring to the market each year a maximum of 100 barrels of premier cru and grand cru burgundy which they have raised in their vaulted cellars in Beaune according to their most exacting standards of élévage.

There is no winemaking involved as the wines reach them after fermentation. Often there is but a single cask of each wine – their 100 barrels of 2007 cover 68 different wines.

There are no contracts with growers, though they will frequently return to the same sources, and no specific requirements as to how the grapes should have been grown or the wines made. Indeed it was very interesting to taste a line-up of Vosne-Romanée wines and see some which had evidently been vinified with stems and others not.

According to Rotem, her husband’s strength is that he can sniff out the quality and style of a vintage at a very early stage. They work closely with their barrel supplier, Stéphane Chassin, to ensure the right barrels for the style of a given wine, using wood from the Jupilles forest which is apparently the slowest growing in France, thus giving the most fine-grained wood. One hundred per cent new wood is used.

The general recipe, although of course each vintage and if need be each wine may require its own treatment, is to ensure late malolactic fermentations, to stir up the plentiful lees for both red and white wines, to rely more on CO2 than SO2 to preserve the wine from oxidation and to maintain the wines unracked in new barrels until the final preparation before bottling.

Typically the wines end up with a soft, sweet-fruit character but otherwise little other evidence of new oak, and those I have tasted have displayed good typicity of their vineyard origins. They are not cheap.

Grands Echézeaux

Located in the larger Côte de Nuits sub-region of Burgundy, Grands Échezeaux is renowned for producing exceptional Pinot Noir wines with a rich history and a reputation for elegance and complexity.

The vineyard benefits from a diverse terroir that includes variations in soil types, exposure to sunlight, and elevation, contributing to the complexity and character of the wines produced here. It is divided among several wine producers, each with a distinct style and approach to winemaking. Some of the most notable producers include Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (DRC), Domaine Mongeard-Mugneret, Domaine Anne Gros, and Domaine de la Vougeraie.

The wines are known for their depth, complexity, and elegance. They often exhibit a dark ruby colour and aromas of red and black fruits, such as cherries, raspberries, and sometimes even darker notes, like blackberries. Floral notes, earthy undertones, and subtle spices are also commonly found in these wines. They typically offer a harmonious balance of fruit, acidity, and refined tannins on the palate, allowing them to age gracefully over time.

Like many premium Burgundy wines, Grands Échezeaux has the potential to age and develop beautifully over the years. Properly cellared bottles can evolve to reveal more complex and nuanced characteristics, making them highly sought-after.

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.