Jasper Morris Inside Burgundy (90)

Pale lemon colour. A lean and crisp style of Puligny in 2021. Rather lovely on the palate, some citrus some riper fruit, more floral than the Meursault, with a clean poised and balanced finish. Drink from 2025-2028. Tasted: November 2022

Vinous (91)

Pale, bright straw-yellow. Aromas of yellow peach, toast and spices. Rich, fine-grained and a bit youthfully bound-up, showing good energy and a phenolic firmness in the early going. Ripe stone fruit flavors are leavened by saline minerality. Most impressive today on the savory, firm, persistent back end. This lively wine has harmonized nicely since I first tried it from barrel a year ago but needs at least a few years of cellaring.

Emanating from highly-revered Burgundy producer Joseph Colin, the Puligny-Montrachet Le Trezin 2022 exemplifies the craftsmanship residing at this prestigious estate. The wine within emanates from Puligny-Montrachet, a revered region in Burgundy known for producing exquisite Chardonnay. Drawn from decades-old vines of the Le Trezin vineyard, this wine embarks upon a meticulous journey from vine to barrel, using traditional wine-making methods inclusive of spontaneous fermentation and lees ageing in French oak barrels, carefully managed to impart just a hint of oak.

The elegance of the Joseph Colin Puligny-Montrachet Le Trezin 2022 is pure, undiluted magic in a bottle, revealing subtle notes of ripe orchard fruits, citrus, and floral undertones harmoniously balanced by minerality. This is a wine that truly speaks of its place of origin, promising an unparalleled tasting experience that is distinctly Joseph Colin. Drink now or cellar for up to a decade to let its complexities unfurl.

Vinous (90-92)

The 2019 Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles 1er Cru, which was taken from barrel, sees around 20–25% new oak. It is well defined on the nose, featuring apple blossom, chalk dust and light oyster shell aromas. The palate is well balanced with a tang of marmalade on the entry. This conveys fine energy. Subtle tangy curry leaf notes toward the finish liven things up. 

The Joseph Pascal Puligny-Montrachet 2022 is a superior embodiment of expertise from its renowned producer, Joseph Pascal. Regarded as a luminary in the world of Burgundy wines, Joseph Pascal's vineyards lie in the revered Puligny-Montrachet region of eastern France. This vintage is a genuine expression of its exceptional terroir, revealing the aromatic complexity for which these Chardonnay grapes are famous.

Produced using time-honoured winemaking techniques, the Joseph Pascal Puligny-Montrachet 2022 is fermented in French oak barrels before undergoing malolactic fermentation to mellow its acidity, enhancing its characteristic elegance and roundness. This thoughtful process yields delicate stone fruit and citrus flavours that dance harmoniously with subtle hints of toast and brioche.

Exquisitely balanced with a fabulous mineral streak, this wine showcases the artful craftsmanship of its revered producer. A pinnacle of its genre, the Joseph Pascal Puligny-Montrachet 2022 represents a captivating experience for any discerning wine enthusiast.

The Larue Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Sous Puits 2021 is a spectacular embodiment of Burgundy's world-renowned winemaking finesse. Nestled in the esteemed appellation of Puligny-Montrachet, Domaine Larue, a family-run winery since the 18th century, meticulously nurtures their vines, perched on clay and limestone soils. The 2021 Sous Puits is a sublime expression of their mastery, elegantly restrained yet bursting with layers of complexity.

Produced from 100% Chardonnay grapes, this wine invites with aromatic nuances of ripe orchard fruits, kissed by subtle hints of toasted brioche. On the palate, expect a harmonious balance between fresh acidity and well-integrated oak underpinning, revealing a wine of impressive longevity. Demonstrating Larue's artisanal practices, this beauty is fermented and matured in French oak barrels for additional depth and richness.

The Larue Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Sous Puits 2021 truly exemplifies the finest threads of French viticulture, weaving a remarkable tapestry of exquisite elegance and profound flavour.

Vinous (89-91)

(tasted from cuve Pale, green-tinged yellow. Reduced, meaty aromas of lime, flowers, vanilla, spices, flint and truffle. Round and broad but with good firm acid spine. This, too, is a bit diffuse today and in need of more verve. Finishes with very good breadth and length. The wine's acids have not yet harmonized with the fruit.

Wine Advocate (91)

The 2013 Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon, which was bottled in June, has a well defined bouquet with flint and light smoky scents with just a hint of quince coming through with aeration. The palate is nicely poised with good weight on the entry, a touch of light honey and mandarin, poised if not persistent on the finish. I would afford this a couple of years in the cellar.

Wine Advocate (91-93)

The 2017 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon is excellent, and a clear step up over the Puligny Village, something that can't be taken for granted. Offering up aromas of lemon, beeswax, white flowers and blanched almonds, the wine is medium to full-bodied, satiny and nicely concentrated, with tangy acids, chewy extract and a long, precise finish. It's promisingly tight-knit and should develop further before it's bottled.

Vinous (90-92)

The 2018 Puligny-Montrachet Clavoillon 1er Cru, Leflaive’s largest vineyard at 4.8 hectares, has a very perfumed bouquet with mirabelle, crushed pebble and a touch of sherbet blossoming from the nose. The well-balanced palate offers a touch of spice on the entry, good acidity, moderate depth and a suggestion of ginger toward the sappy finish.

Vinous (93)

The 2019 Puligny-Montrachet Clavoillon 1er Cru has an austere nose that demands coaxing from the glass; struck flint and sea spray scents, cool, calm and collected. The palate is taut on the entry, then fans out with glee, notes of dessicated orange peel, white peach and tangerine, a lovely bitterness that counterbalances the concentration on the finish. Exccellent. Closure: Diam 30

Vinous (93)

The 2019 Puligny-Montrachet Clavoillon 1er Cru has an austere nose that demands coaxing from the glass; struck flint and sea spray scents, cool, calm and collected. The palate is taut on the entry, then fans out with glee, notes of dessicated orange peel, white peach and tangerine, a lovely bitterness that counterbalances the concentration on the finish. Exccellent. Closure: Diam 30

Vinous (93)

The 2020 Puligny-Montrachet Clavoillon 1er Cru has a delineated and tightly coiled nose with crushed stone-infused green apple, rather fresh considering the growing season, with hints of grass clipping. The palate is cohesive on the entry with a bitter lemon note that lends this Puligny tension; it's fresh and saline with a cohesive and persistent finish. Very classy and has immense promise.

Burghound (92-94)

(Sweet Spot Outstanding) Here the reduction is sufficient to overshadow the fruit. There is even better volume to the sleek and delicious middleweight flavors that are less mineral-driven but more powerful and slightly more persistent and bone-dry finish that is also exceptionally well-balanced. This is excellent and I would go so far as to observe that it's the best vintage for the Clavoillon in a long time. It is typically considered to be less interesting than the other 1ers (and not without reason) in the Leflaive portfolio and while it doesn't surpass them in 2021, it is most impressive nonetheless.

Burghound (92-94)

(Sweet Spot Outstanding) Here the reduction is sufficient to overshadow the fruit. There is even better volume to the sleek and delicious middleweight flavors that are less mineral-driven but more powerful and slightly more persistent and bone-dry finish that is also exceptionally well-balanced. This is excellent and I would go so far as to observe that it's the best vintage for the Clavoillon in a long time. It is typically considered to be less interesting than the other 1ers (and not without reason) in the Leflaive portfolio and while it doesn't surpass them in 2021, it is most impressive nonetheless.

Vinous (94)

The 2018 Puligny-Montrachet Les Combettes 1er Cru has as well-defined and mineral-driven bouquet, discrete but nicely focused. The palate is well balanced with a saline, lime and citrus entry, fine weight. Maybe not as complex as its peers yet full of energy. Pure class. Tasted blind at the Burgfest 2018 white tasting.

Vinous (96)

The 2019 Puligny-Montrachet Les Combettes 1er Cru is a step up in terms of mineralité and terroir expression from the preceeding Folatières. There is more precision, greater expression of place. The palate sports a very small reduction on the entry, then it segues into a very concentrated mid-palate that seems to fill the mouth. Great depth and spiciness towards the finish, this is an outstanding Combettes from Leflaive. Closure: Diam 30

Wine Advocate (96)

The 2020 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes once again dares to challenge—and to my palate, surpass—Leflaive's Pucelles. Exhibiting aromas of peach, pear, nutmeg, pastry cream and white flowers, it's medium to full-bodied, deep and multidimensional, with racy acids, chalky structuring extract and a long, resonant finish. This old-vine parcel was reprieved from planned replanting several years ago, and today's farming choices mean that it's going strong.