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Wine Description
The Story
Domaine Leflaive is the very summit of white Burgundy, producing outstanding wines that have the capacity to be very long-lived and develop richness, depth, and complexity with bottle-age. The Domaine owns and tends almost 25 hectares of vineyards mainly located in and around Puligny-Montrachet. Their holdings include 0.08 hectares of Le Montrachet, 2 hectares of Chevalier-Montrachet, 1.91 hectares of Bâtard-Montrachet, 1.6 hectares of Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet, and Puligny- Montrachet 1er Crus; Le Clavoillon, Les Combettes, Les Folatières, and Les Pucelles. Domaine Leflaive has been totally biodynamic since 1997. These are some of the most highly sought-after white wines in the world.
Origin / 4 parcels in the Bâtard-Montrachet appellation.
Bâtard 7: 7 ouvrées (0.74 acre) planted in 1974 (commune of Chassagne)
Bâtard 8: 8 ouvrées (0.85 acre) planted in 1979 (commune of Puligny)
Bâtard 9: 9 ouvrées (0.95 acre) planted in 1989 (commune of Chassagne)
Bâtard 21: 21 ouvrées (2.22 acres) planted half in 1962, half in 1964 (commune of Puligny).
Surface: 1ha 91a (4.72 acres).
Method of culture
Long, gentle pneumatic pressing, decanting over 24 hours, thenracking and running into cask of the must.
Alcoholic fermentation in oak casks, 25% new (maxi 1/2 Vosges,
mini 1/2 Allier).
Maturing: after 12 months in cask, the wine is aged 6 months in tank where it is prepared for bottling.
Homeopathic fining and very light filtering if necessary.
Biodynamic.
Manual harvesting with grape sorting and optimisation of choice of date through parcel-by-parcel ripeness monitoring
Vintage 2002
2002 VINTAGE in Burgundy
A Great Year
The trade is unanimous: the harvest was exceptional and 2002 is destined to be a great vintage for Burgundy. A dry summer, a sunny September, splendid grapes with highly concentrated sugars - everything came together to produce structured and complex wines with outstanding aromatic potential.
As early as the beginning of September, the sugar content in the grapes was often at exceptionally high levels and they had attained a degree of maturity indicative of a good balance between sugar and acidity in both the Chardonnay and the Pinot Noir, as well as in the Gamay and Aligoté.
Well-matured grapes have produced - on the evidence of early tastings - deeply-coloured red wines with a garnet tint, and with really well-structured tannins. Depending on degree of maturity, the wines evoke sustained aromas of red and black fruits. Thanks to yield control and careful harvesting, they present a wide diversity of expression.
The white wines are intense and heady, richly fragrant in their blend of fruit and mineral components. They are rounded, long in the mouth, balanced and harmonious.
Both reds and whites of the 2002 vintage fully express their respective terroirs and promise fine ageing potential.
As Hubert Camus, President of the Interprofession and himself a wine-grower at Gevrey-Chambertin, puts it: "In 2002, Burgundy's growers and négociants have every prospect of obtaining remarkable wines."
Growing conditions during the year were characterised by low rainfall. Maturation took place in warm and sunny weather punctuated by occasional rainstorms. These weather conditions aided concentration in the grapes and kept them healthy. The harvest period enjoyed an ideal combination of sunshine and cool temperatures.