2016 Meursault, Les Charmes, 1er Cru, Domaine des Comtes Lafon, Burgundy

2016 Meursault, Les Charmes, 1er Cru, Domaine des Comtes Lafon, Burgundy

Product: 20168005045
 
2016 Meursault, Les Charmes, 1er Cru, Domaine des Comtes Lafon, Burgundy

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Description

An all but invisible trace of wood toast still allows the elegant if slightly exotic nose of white peach, petrol, acacia blossom and ripe pear aromas to be appreciated. There is fine complexity to the vibrant, lightly stony and delicious medium-bodied flavors that possess good underlying tension; indeed this could reasonably be described as racy on the balanced, complex and firmly structured finish.

Drink 2026+

Burghound (Jun 2019)

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Critics reviews

Burghound92/100
An all but invisible trace of wood toast still allows the elegant if slightly exotic nose of white peach, petrol, acacia blossom and ripe pear aromas to be appreciated. There is fine complexity to the vibrant, lightly stony and delicious medium-bodied flavors that possess good underlying tension; indeed this could reasonably be described as racy on the balanced, complex and firmly structured finish.

Drink 2026+

Burghound (Jun 2019) Read more
Decanter94/100
The Charmes is excellent in 2016, with an expressive nose of spring flowers, yellow orchard fruit, honey, almond and hazelnut. On the palate the wine is deep and concentrated, with almost chewy extract and a lovely sense of completeness. Its acids are fresh and racy, and the finish is long and palate-staining. This has the balance to drink rather well out of the gates as well as develop nicely in the cellar.

Drink 2022-2040

Decanter (Oct 2017) Read more
Stephen Tanzer92-94/100
(Lafon put together a representative sample of the final wine, which will be a blend of three vines ages: 25, 50 and 90 years; production here was nearly 50 hectoliters per hectare): Bright lemon-yellow. Aromas of lemon and orange juice are enlivened by a mineral element. Plush, generous and sweet; in a distinctly broad, gentle, harmonious style. Citrus and spice flavors display early charm but the slowly building, tactile finish suggests that this wine will evolve gracefully. In a somewhat lighter style than the more serious 2015, but every bit as refined.

Stephen Tanzer, Vinous (Sep 2017) Read more

About this WINE

Domaine des Comtes Lafon

Domaine des Comtes Lafon

Domaine des Comtes Lafon is based in Meursault, where it has holdings in each of the finest Cru and Premier Cru vineyards in Meursault. They have a reputation for maintaining the signature character of each site in their wines. They don’t rest on their laurels, though, their red wines from their Volnay Premiers Crus are increasingly popular and should not be overlooked.

The domaine was established in 1869 by the Boch family and has remained in their care ever since – only changing its name when Marie Boch married Comte Jules Lafon in ‘94. When fourth-generation Dominique Lafon took charge in 1985, Domaine des Comtes Lafon already had a reputation for unconventional yet outstanding white wines.

At the time, most of the vineyards were leased out to sharecroppers; but by ‘93 Dominique had reclaimed all of his family’s vineyards and assumed full control of the domaine. Not only are the Lafons’ 15 individual vineyards located in the best appellations in Meursault and Volnay, but they tend to be very well situated within them, and are now cultivated according to organic and biodynamic principles. In 2010, Jasper Morris wrote in his book ‘Inside Burgundy’, that their white wines were “now consistently among the best in Burgundy, while since 1989 the reds have reached the top division”.

In ‘99 the Lafon family branched out, buying a domaine in the Mâconnais at Milly-Lamartine and making wines under the name of ‘Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon’. More recently, Dominique Lafon has also established a small label of his own bearing his own name.

When Dominique Lafon’s father René took over the domaine in 1956, he undertook a significant replanting programme in cooperation with the sharecroppers who managed much of his vineyards. Care for the vines is still paramount under Dominique’s stewardship; all vineyards returned to family control in ‘93, were fully converted to organic viticulture in ‘95 and to biodynamic in ‘98. The average age of the vines is maintained at around 40 years, and yields are kept low at about 35 hectolitres per hectare.

Wines are made differently each year due to practical reasons and vintage variation. However, there are some common practices.

Chardonnay grapes are whole-bunch pressed, settled in tanks at cool temperatures and then fermented and aged in wood. No new oak is used for the village wines; 25-40% new oak is typically used for the Premiers Crus and 100% for Le Montrachet, though these are subsequently racked into older wood where they spend a second winter before bottling.

The Pinot Noir grapes are 100% destemmed and vinified in stainless steel. Wines are matured for 18-22 months in about 30% new oak and are racked twice before bottling without fining or filtration whenever possible.

Domaine des Comtes Lafon have been certified as organic since 1995, and although biodynamic principles have been used since ‘98, they have not sought to become Demeter certified – citing “too much paperwork” as the main reason. The two newer businesses in the family portfolio are also organic, and when new vineyards are acquired, each is converted as soon as possible thereafter.

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Meursault

Meursault

There are more top producers in Meursault than in any other commune of the Côte d’Or. Certainly it is the most famous and popular of the great white appellations. Its wines are typically rich and savoury with nutty, honeyed hints and buttery, vanilla spice from the oak.

Even though it is considerably larger than its southerly neighbours Chassagne and Puligny, Meursault contains no Grands Crus. Its three best Premiers Crus, however – Les Perrières, Les Genevrières and Les Charmes – produce some of the region’s greatest whites: they are full, round and powerful, and age very well. Les Perrières in particular can produce wines of Grand Cru quality, a fact that is often reflected in its price. Meursault has also been one of the driving forces of biodynamic viticulture in the region, as pioneered by Lafon and Leflaive.

Many of the vineyards below Premier Cru, known as ‘village’ wines, are also well worth looking at. The growers vinify their different vineyard holdings separately, which rarely happens in Puligny or Chassagne. Such wines can be labelled with the ‘lieu-dit’ vineyard alongside (although in smaller type to) the Meursault name.

Premier Cru Meursault should be enjoyed from five to 15 years of age, although top examples can last even longer. Village wines, meanwhile, are normally at their best from three to 10 years.

Very occasionally, red Meursault is produced with some fine, firm results. The best red Pinot Noir terroir, Les Santenots, is afforded the courtesy title of Volnay Santenots, even though it is actually in Meursault.

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Chardonnay

Chardonnay

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.

It is quantitatively important in California and Australia, is widely planted in Chile and South Africa, and is the second most widely planted grape in New Zealand. In warm climates Chardonnay has a tendency to develop very high sugar levels during the final stages of ripening and this can occur at the expense of acidity. Late picking is a common problem and can result in blowsy and flabby wines that lack structure and definition.

Recently in the New World, we have seen a move towards more elegant, better- balanced and less oak-driven Chardonnays, and this is to be welcomed.

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