2014 Chevalier-Montrachet, Grand Cru, Domaine Olivier Leflaive, Burgundy
Critics reviews
Neal Martin - 31/10/2017
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.
Chevalier-Montrachet
Chevalier-Montrachet is one of the most renowned Grand Cru vineyards in Burgundy. Located in the Côte de Beaune subregion, specifically in the villages of Puligny Montrachet and Chassagne Montrachet, Chevalier-Montrachet is famous for producing exceptional white wines. The terroir is characterized by its limestone-rich soils, which contribute to the minerality and complexity of the wines. The vineyard's exposure to the sun, slope, and altitude also play crucial roles in shaping the unique characteristics of the wines.
Only white wines are produced in Chevalier-Montrachet and are exclusively made from Chardonnay grapes. The wines are known for their richness, elegance, and complexity, often displaying a combination of citrus, orchard fruit, floral, and mineral notes.
Chevalier-Montrachet wines are known for their ability to age gracefully. The best vintages can evolve and improve in the bottle for several decades, developing additional complexity and nuance over time. Production is limited, however, due to the small size of the vineyards.
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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Description
Tasted blind at the annual Burgfest tasting, the 2014 Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru is showing reduction on the nose that snuffs out some of the terroir expression and mineralit compared to Chartron's Clos des Chevalier. The palate is smooth and quite oaky on the entry, well balanced and modern in style, but it does not quite convey the propitiousness of the vineyard with the same aplomb as its peers. Examining the wine over 20 minutes, that reduction becomes more accentuated, which is concerning. This could go either wayit's not quite up there with some of Olivier Leflaive's less renowned crus that performed extremely well this vintage.
Neal Martin - 31/10/2017
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