2018 Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet, Grand Cru, Olivier Leflaive, Burgundy
About this WINE
Olivier Leflaive
Olivier Leflaive studied at business school before heading to Paris, where he lived a rather bohemian life in the 1970s. He returned to Burgundy in ’81 to manage Domaine Leflaive with his uncle Vincent and, later, his cousin Anne-Claude.
He set up his own négociant business in ’84, leaving the family domaine a decade later; he gave 15 years’ notice that he would take back his share of the vines.
Winemaker Franck Grux now makes 85-90 different cuvées, vinifying the equivalent of 120 hectares – 17 of which are estate-owned. The focus is on elegance and finesse over power.
Bâtard-Montrachet
Renowned for its exceptional white wines, Bâtard-Montrachet is a Grand Cru appellation, situated in the heart of the Côte de Beaune subregion of the larger Côte-d'Or department. The vineyards are nestled between the villages of Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet.
The terroir is characterised by a mixture of limestone and clay soils, with a significant proportion of limestone, which contributes to the unique mineral character of the wines. The region benefits from a continental climate with some influence from the nearby Saône River, providing ideal conditions for cultivating Chardonnay grapes.
The wines are celebrated for their complexity, richness, and intensity and typically exhibit ripe fruit flavours such as citrus, pear, and peach, along with notes of hazelnut, honey, and minerals. Bâtard-Montrachet wines are known for their exceptional ageing potential, often improving and developing more complexity over many years in the bottle.
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.
When is a wine ready to drink?
We provide drinking windows for all our wines. Alongside the drinking windows there is a bottle icon and a maturity stage. Bear in mind that the best time to drink a wine does also depend on your taste.
Not ready
These wines are very young. Whilst they're likely to have lots of intense flavours, their acidity or tannins may make them feel austere. Although it isn't "wrong" to drink these wines now, you are likely to miss out on a lot of complexity by not waiting for them to mature.
Ready - youthful
These wines are likely to have plenty of fruit flavours still and, for red wines, the tannins may well be quite noticeable. For those who prefer younger, fruitier wines, or if serving alongside a robust meal, these will be very enjoyable. If you choose to hold onto these wines, the fruit flavours will evolve into more savoury complexity.
Ready - at best
These wines are likely to have a beautiful balance of fruit, spice and savoury flavours. The acidity and tannins will have softened somewhat, and the wines will show plenty of complexity. For many, this is seen as the ideal time to drink and enjoy these wines. If you choose to hold onto these wines, they will become more savoury but not necessarily more complex.
Ready - mature
These wines are likely to have plenty of complexity, but the fruit flavours will have been almost completely replaced by savoury and spice notes. These wines may have a beautiful texture at this stage of maturity. There is lots to enjoy when drinking wines at this stage. Most of these wines will hold in this window for a few years, though at the very end of this drinking window, wines start to lose complexity and decline.
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Description
This is sourced from six rows of vines planted in 1971, growing just south of the middle of the vineyard. Two barrels were made in 2018, but both are second-fill. There is plenty of heft here to go with the barley-sugar complexity.
Drink 2024 - 2030
Berry Bros. & Rudd
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