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Domaine Leflaive

2012 Domaine Leflaive, Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru

France Chardonnay Burgundy Batard-Montrachet Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru 750ML

Wine Advocate

92-94

Vinous

96

Burghound

92-95

CellarTracker

93
/
2012 Domaine Leflaive Batard-Montrachet
Domaine Leflaive

2012 Domaine Leflaive, Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru

France Chardonnay Burgundy Batard-Montrachet Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru 750ML

Wine Advocate

92-94

Vinous

96

Burghound

92-95

CellarTracker

93
/
0 In Stock

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The great Domaine Leflaive is as important an estate as exists in Burgundy. Shepherded for its glory years by Anne-Claude Leflaive, the domaine was the beacon of everything possible as we entered a new era in wine; she was the guiding hand beyond conversion to biodynamic viticulture throughout Burgundy, sought as a mentor for countless luminaries of today's wine scene. Moving out of the Parker-ized wines of the 80s and 90s, and returning the region as a greater whole toward sensible, sustainable viticulture, producing wines of class & elegance, that is a legend that will stand the test of time.

Domaine Leflaive

Brice de la Morandiere has guided his family's estate since Anne-Claude's passing, and has humbly continued to demand excellence throughout every aspect of production. This has included the slow but steady expansion into regions outside of the home plots surrounding the great Mont Rachet - into Macon and further outward towards Chablis, Savigny, Gevrey and more. 

The "Domaines" Leflaive label denotes the Macon wines, moving forward; "Esprit" will encompass the other negoce wines, while the Puligny, Chassagne, Meursault and traditional Leflaive-owned Grand Crus will remain under the Domaine Label. 

The Domaine owns 24 hectares in Burgundy, including 4.8 ha of Grand Crus, entirely Chardonnay. Winemaking is slow and intentional, if hands-off, largely. Fermentations occur naturally in small barrels, where it will age for one year prior to transferring to stainless for blending and additional aging before bottling.

Meet the Producer

Domaine Leflaive

The great Domaine Leflaive is as important an estate as exists in Burgundy. Shepherded for its glory years by Anne-Claude Leflaive, the domaine was the beacon of everything possible as we entered a new era in wine; she was the guiding hand beyond conversion to biodynamic viticulture throughout Burgundy, sought as a mentor for countless luminaries of today's wine scene. Moving out of the Parker-ized wines of the 80s and 90s, and returning the region as a greater whole toward sensible, sustainable viticulture, producing wines of class & elegance, that is a legend that will stand the test of time.

Brice de la Morandiere has guided his family's estate since Anne-Claude's passing, and has humbly continued to demand excellence throughout every aspect of production. This has included the slow but steady expansion into regions outside of the home plots surrounding the great Mont Rachet - into Macon and further outward towards Chablis, Savigny, Gevrey and more. 

The "Domaines" Leflaive label denotes the Macon wines, moving forward; "Esprit" will encompass the other negoce wines, while the Puligny, Chassagne, Meursault and traditional Leflaive-owned Grand Crus will remain under the Domaine Label. 

The Domaine owns 24 hectares in Burgundy, including 4.8 ha of Grand Crus, entirely Chardonnay. Winemaking is slow and intentional, if hands-off, largely. Fermentations occur naturally in small barrels, where it will age for one year prior to transferring to stainless for blending and additional aging before bottling.

The Wine Advocate

Wine Advocate

92-94

The 2012 Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru has a laconic stony, mineral bouquet with sea spray scents surfacing with time. The palate is very well-balanced with crisp acidity although at the moment the Bienvenue shows a little more finesse and precision. After five minute, there is a touch of spice that becomes more accentuated with time. As usual for this vineyard, it is reticent at the moment, perturbed why someone would awake it from its prenatal slumber, but this will be fascinating to watch age. Anne-Claude Leflaive made a brief appearance during my tasting at the domaine since she was hastening off to Italy. I have been visiting here for as long as I can remember, first meeting former winemaker Pierre Morey in the 1990s. Back in those days, the tenets of biodynamism were evident, although back then I did not really understand them. Today, there is almost evangelism towards Steiner’s philosophy, not in a monomaniacal sense, rather a strong belief that Anne-Claude’s wines would be pale shadows without them. Parking outside their gates, it was good to be back after a three-year absence. Nothing much had changed. On this occasion it was Antoine Repetit de la Bigne who escorted me down to the stainless-steel vats where the final blends were resting prior to bottling, which is where I always taste. I wondered whether finally I would hear “Oui” when I ask whether I could taste their single barrel of Montrachet? I decided not to ask. That would be rude. Antoine told me that the harvest began on September 14 and everything was picked by September 21. Of course, I had to bring up the topic of hail damage. Antoine explained that here it was de facto the second hail storm on August 1 that inflicted the most damage, particularly on their parcels of village cru. In the end, Leflaive ended up losing approximately half their crop depending up the vineyard. “Fortunately it was just before veraison so the berries did not have a lot of juice in them,” Antoine informed me, clambering up the ladder to dip his pipette into another vat. “Curiously, even the big berries had little juice. It was important to apply the treatments quickly so that the vines do not become stressed and retard the vegetative cycle. We used nettle and velarian (a source of phosphorous) that were both very effective. Then when it came to sorting, the vibrating table de trie was crucial.” Many of the treatments had to be done on foot, much to the chagrin of the team plodding through the vines in their heavy muddy boots. Usually for the last three years it has been horses hooves in the vineyard. However, in 2012 it was found that two human legs were better than four equine ones. It is always an intellectual as well as satisfying sensory exercise tasting through Anne-Claude Leflaive’s wines. It always serves as a lesson in terroir expression: same grape, same approach. As so often I find, those not wishing to spend too much money ought to head directly from their village cru, their Puligny-Montrachet one of the finest you will find in Cote de Beaune. Beyond that, well each year springs up a different premier cru that catches you off guard. Myself, I was taken with stunning Les Pucelles due to its precocity and intensity that lifted it equal to the grand crus. Others might prefer something subtler. I do not think Anne-Claude wines are beyond criticism. Sometimes the aura that veils the estate and Anne-Claude herself, creates a shield so that they are impermeable to dissenting comments. Biodynamics itself has never precluded an intrinsically superior wine to one where a load of chemical was dumped onto the vineyard. The question is more: if given the choice, which would you prefer to put in your mouth? Antoine hands me a copy of his paperback entitled “What’s so Special About Biodynamic Wine.” I read the chapter on wine critics on the way home. I agree with him that we should strive to taste as much as possible at the domaine, but at the end of the day, a biodynamic wine should not be critiqued with preferential treatment. Whether Anne-Claude Leflaive’s Chevalier-Montrachet is biodynamic or not is irrelevant. I am more interested in its intrinsic qualities vis-a-vis their Les Pucelles or Bienvenue, vis-a-vis the Chevalier-Montrachet from Alain Chavy, Jean Chartron, Etienne Sauzet or Michel Niellon. And the Chevalier-Montrachet here is a sublime expression of the vineyard no doubt destined to age with grace and style. That is what matters. You may have noticed there is no Montrachet note here. The reason is not personal. Just that there is so little that it is being matured in a specially made small barrel, which renders the elevage extremely sensitive and fragile (see Frederic Barnier’s comments about his Criots-Batard-Montrachet.) I would not want to ruin what little there is for the sake of vanity.

Vinous

Vinous

96

(bottled in mid-May): Bright lemon-yellow. Deeper-pitched than the Pucelles, with nectarine and spice flavors complicated by leesy and smoky nuances. Big, rich and sweet, with peach and smoke flavors lifted by high notes of grapefruit and jasmine and enlivened by bracing acidity. Best today on the penetrating, rising finish, where the wine's grapefruit cut leaves the mouth refreshed. Great potential here, but in need of at least eight years of aging.

What the Critics are Saying

The Wine Advocate

Wine Advocate

92-94

The 2012 Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru has a laconic stony, mineral bouquet with sea spray scents surfacing with time. The palate is very well-balanced with crisp acidity although at the moment the Bienvenue shows a little more finesse and precision. After five minute, there is a touch of spice that becomes more accentuated with time. As usual for this vineyard, it is reticent at the moment, perturbed why someone would awake it from its prenatal slumber, but this will be fascinating to watch age. Anne-Claude Leflaive made a brief appearance during my tasting at the domaine since she was hastening off to Italy. I have been visiting here for as long as I can remember, first meeting former winemaker Pierre Morey in the 1990s. Back in those days, the tenets of biodynamism were evident, although back then I did not really understand them. Today, there is almost evangelism towards Steiner’s philosophy, not in a monomaniacal sense, rather a strong belief that Anne-Claude’s wines would be pale shadows without them. Parking outside their gates, it was good to be back after a three-year absence. Nothing much had changed. On this occasion it was Antoine Repetit de la Bigne who escorted me down to the stainless-steel vats where the final blends were resting prior to bottling, which is where I always taste. I wondered whether finally I would hear “Oui” when I ask whether I could taste their single barrel of Montrachet? I decided not to ask. That would be rude. Antoine told me that the harvest began on September 14 and everything was picked by September 21. Of course, I had to bring up the topic of hail damage. Antoine explained that here it was de facto the second hail storm on August 1 that inflicted the most damage, particularly on their parcels of village cru. In the end, Leflaive ended up losing approximately half their crop depending up the vineyard. “Fortunately it was just before veraison so the berries did not have a lot of juice in them,” Antoine informed me, clambering up the ladder to dip his pipette into another vat. “Curiously, even the big berries had little juice. It was important to apply the treatments quickly so that the vines do not become stressed and retard the vegetative cycle. We used nettle and velarian (a source of phosphorous) that were both very effective. Then when it came to sorting, the vibrating table de trie was crucial.” Many of the treatments had to be done on foot, much to the chagrin of the team plodding through the vines in their heavy muddy boots. Usually for the last three years it has been horses hooves in the vineyard. However, in 2012 it was found that two human legs were better than four equine ones. It is always an intellectual as well as satisfying sensory exercise tasting through Anne-Claude Leflaive’s wines. It always serves as a lesson in terroir expression: same grape, same approach. As so often I find, those not wishing to spend too much money ought to head directly from their village cru, their Puligny-Montrachet one of the finest you will find in Cote de Beaune. Beyond that, well each year springs up a different premier cru that catches you off guard. Myself, I was taken with stunning Les Pucelles due to its precocity and intensity that lifted it equal to the grand crus. Others might prefer something subtler. I do not think Anne-Claude wines are beyond criticism. Sometimes the aura that veils the estate and Anne-Claude herself, creates a shield so that they are impermeable to dissenting comments. Biodynamics itself has never precluded an intrinsically superior wine to one where a load of chemical was dumped onto the vineyard. The question is more: if given the choice, which would you prefer to put in your mouth? Antoine hands me a copy of his paperback entitled “What’s so Special About Biodynamic Wine.” I read the chapter on wine critics on the way home. I agree with him that we should strive to taste as much as possible at the domaine, but at the end of the day, a biodynamic wine should not be critiqued with preferential treatment. Whether Anne-Claude Leflaive’s Chevalier-Montrachet is biodynamic or not is irrelevant. I am more interested in its intrinsic qualities vis-a-vis their Les Pucelles or Bienvenue, vis-a-vis the Chevalier-Montrachet from Alain Chavy, Jean Chartron, Etienne Sauzet or Michel Niellon. And the Chevalier-Montrachet here is a sublime expression of the vineyard no doubt destined to age with grace and style. That is what matters. You may have noticed there is no Montrachet note here. The reason is not personal. Just that there is so little that it is being matured in a specially made small barrel, which renders the elevage extremely sensitive and fragile (see Frederic Barnier’s comments about his Criots-Batard-Montrachet.) I would not want to ruin what little there is for the sake of vanity.

Vinous

Vinous

96

(bottled in mid-May): Bright lemon-yellow. Deeper-pitched than the Pucelles, with nectarine and spice flavors complicated by leesy and smoky nuances. Big, rich and sweet, with peach and smoke flavors lifted by high notes of grapefruit and jasmine and enlivened by bracing acidity. Best today on the penetrating, rising finish, where the wine's grapefruit cut leaves the mouth refreshed. Great potential here, but in need of at least eight years of aging.