Visit to Domaine des Comte Lafon with Stephane Thibodaux

I have been gradually adding to CellarTracker notes on our June 2014 Burgundy visits. These are my final notes to post and were reconstructed from notes written at the time by Mark and me.

After Geantet-Pansiot, we took a leisurely drive down to Meursault to visit Comte Lafon, where we were generously hosted by Stephane Thibodaux.

Our introduction to Comte Lafon was by way of Paul Mason of Martinborough Vineyards who did a vintage at Comte Lafon back in 2007.

We started with 2013 reds in barrel that were mostly through malolactic fermentation.

• 2013 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Monthélie 1er Cru Les Duresses

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Monthélie 1er Cru

  (3/20/2015)

  The wine in malo. Aromatic on the nose with lifted fruit, largely red berries. Delicate on the palate with refined tannins, well balanced. Good acidity. From a vineyard 1 ha in area. This parcel is the last one to be picked. The vines did dry out after the hail in 2013, but the fruit ‘did not look good’ after vintage (said Stephane), yielding less than 20 hectolitres per hectare (for the reds they aim for 25-50 hl per ha).

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• 2013 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

  (3/20/2015)

  The malo was finished for this wine, our sample was from a new barrel. On the nose sauvage, aromatic spice, pepper and sous bois. Aromatically complex and layered showing a wine of real power. On the palate, fresh and precise with great fruit weight. Real fineness. A very good Clos des Chênes. From vines located at the beginning of the slope, with minimal topsoil and a limestone and clay base. Stephane said that they were racking these wines less and less. This wine spent 18 months on lees.

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• 2013 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Champans

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

  (3/20/2015)

  A more powerful wine than the Clos des Chênes. On bouquet, quite closed and reticent, earthy with noticeably darker fruit. On the palate, very tannic and powerful, broad shouldered and acidic. Totally shut down. A baby, this wine has excellent fruit and structure and would reward serious cellaring time (10 to 15 years said Stephane, I’d be looking at 15+). Deeper soil in this climat, vines 92 years old.

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• 2013 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

  (3/20/2015)

  Malo was not yet not completed on this barrel sample. A nose of very primary, big scaled black fruit. Stephane described this wine as being a 'classic vintage', and it was hard to disagree. In the mouth, there are lot of tannins, albeit very refined ones, but the wine is resting on its structure. Broad shouldered with serious architecture but elegant and cultured. Flavour markers of liquorice and dark spices and largely dark fruit. The Domaine has 3.8 ha of vines, and usually declassifies some fruit from young vines, but did not do so in 2012 and 2013, due to low volumes. The youngest vines were planted in 2001 and the average vine age is 47 years. Stephane likes to blend at least some younger vines fruit into this wine for balance. The vineyard is in the middle of Santenots block, considered a favoured spot by Stephane, and therefore that fact is identified on the label. Very good. This wine needs serious cellar time (15-20+ years). Stephane said that this wine 'ages very well', which he knows from drinking older vintages (referring specifically to the 1976, 1964 and 1929).

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• 2011 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

  (3/20/2015)

  (Bottle sample). Colour deep red. Refined red fruits and warm earth on the nose. On the palate, this is a less tannic, lighter and more forward wine than the 2013, but it is still a big, serious wine. It is well balanced, with savoury and red fruit flavours with sweeter tannins. Reasonably rich and elegant. Stephane likes the wine, and the 2011 red vintage generally, and drew a parallel between this wine and the 2007 from this vineyard. I'd say cellar for 8-10+ more years.

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Moving onto the whites, firstly the Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon from the Macon, in bottle.

• 2012 Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon Mâcon-Milly-Lamartine

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Mâcon-Milly-Lamartine

  (3/20/2015)

  Fresh citrus, white peach and apple on the nose, fresh and refreshing. A pure, simple and attractive wine on the palate. Comte Lafon purchased 7ha of land in the Macon in 1999, 7 ha more in 2003 and now leases another 9 ha. This is made as a simple wine, with minimal winemaker intervention and no wood.

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• 2012 Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon Mâcon-Uchizy

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Mâcon-Uchizy

  (3/20/2015)

  Nutty, with stone fruit, and honeyed on the bouquet. On palate, more flavour than fruit, fresh and clean with more power and complexity than the previous wine. A big step up. Stephane confided that there may be some Muscadet vines in with the Chardonnay here – if so, it adds some richness.

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• 2012 Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon Mâcon-Bussières

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Mâcon-Bussières

  (3/20/2015)

  On bouquet, nutty, chalky and rich with some stonefruit. On the palate, very pure and chalky with minerals and precision. The richness of the fruit is there but it sneaks up on you. Good structure and power, flavours of citrus, pears and other orchard fruit and minerals. No elevage. From a small parcel near Milly-Lamartine.

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• 2012 Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon Mâcon-Milly-Lamartine Clos du Four

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Mâcon-Milly-Lamartine

  (3/20/2015)

  Not a big, but an elegant, restrained wine. On the nose, wet stone, minerals, malic aromas and citrus. In the mouth, pure fruit and nutty, the flavours showing minerality and chalk. Lovely texture and mouthfeel. Good fruit weight and length. A serious wine. A special plot within Milly-Lamartine, said Stephane.

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• 2012 Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon Viré-Clessé

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Viré-Clessé

  (3/20/2015)

  A nose of a Puligny and a body of a Meursault, a very classy wine, as the name suggests. A pungent bouquet of meadow flowers, yellow orchard fruits, minerals with a puff of chalk. The best nose of the Mâcon wines. On the palate, gorgeous acidity and gravelly minerals combined with real power and Chassagne-like richness. Nonetheless it is cultured, balanced and elegant. The Domaine took control of this plot in 2009. It produces 65 hl per ha, 4ha of this plot was declassified. Under the previous owner, Stephane explained, it was cropped at 90 hl per ha, but the Domaine would not want to crop it at any less than 65 or it would become over-concentrated. They succeeded here, I thought.

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• 2012 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

  (3/21/2015)

  On the nose, stone fruit and touches of tropical fruit, rich and plush. On the palate, nutty and powerful. A classic Meursault, rich and dense in the mid palate, pure and fresh. In proportion and balance. Bottled only a few weeks ago, a blend of several parcels.

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• 2012 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault Clos de la Barre

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

  (3/21/2015)

  An attractive bouquet, with some mealiness, vanilla, citric lemon/lime, florals and smokiness. In the mouth, very pure and clean, rich and elegant. Very fine with no rough edges. Lovely and caressing on the palate. Good concentration and power. Minerality on the back end. From a big parcel of vines, planted in several years: 1950, 1975, 1999 and 2004. On the sites there is soil of 60-70 cm on top and then solid limestone. The climat produces fifty barrels per year and is close to a Monopole for the Domaine. According to Stephane, 'this is a mythical vineyard for the family'. He explained that, when replanting the vineyard, there was room for an additional row, however, this was not done in recognition of the width of the Monsieur Lafon’s carriage.

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• 2012 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Charmes

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru

  (3/21/2015)

  This was a stunning wine. A sensational rich Meursault bouquet. Very fine and elegant on the palate. Nutty power cranked up by sparkling acidity. Serious fruit weight. Very long. According to Stephane, the site has three ages of vines (20, 45 and 75 years). He also said that Charmes is a large AOC and 'where your vines are located is very important'. The Comte Lafon vines are at the top of the climat and one of the best areas, according to Stephane.

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• 2011 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault Clos de la Barre

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

  (3/21/2015)

  Meursault-typical fresh stone fruit on the nose. Not as mealy as the 2012, more citrus, apple and pear. On palate, good power, but seems more acid than the 2012 (actually the pH was the same, it’s just that the fruit is leaner here). Beautiful sparkling acidity. Well balanced, elegant and mineral. Rich, fresh with more matière than the Charmes. A very serious, good wine. I preferred the 2011 to the 2012, due to its acid cut and better precision.

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• 2011 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Porusots

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru

  (3/21/2015)

  A lifted, expressive bouquet, white flower blossoms, aniseed, blanched almonds and some bread dough. On palate, slightly rounder and richer than the Clos de la Barre. Big fruit weight and concentration. Nutty, mealy with some stonefruit flavours and mineral complexity. Again, there was more acid apparent with this wine than typically for the ‘12s. This wine was from a parcel the Domaine purchased in 2011. (Stephane noted that in 2011 there was bad flowering and in 2012 and 2013 extensive millerandage on this site). Sensational!

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• 2010 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

  (3/21/2015)

  According to Stephane, this wine is 'what Comte Lafon dream of'. An aromatic explosion. A complex bouquet of white flowers, peaches, pear, with a touch of cinnamon. Lovely mouthfeel. Perfect, classic acid balance. Serious mid palate fruit weight and power. Sappy, persistent finish. A classic Meursault, absolute class.

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