A sensational wine that is Leflaive 96 Pucelles. My third bottle of a very good case and it’s consistently brilliant. It works well on pnp but it doesn’t tire quickly. Immediately wafting from the glass with beurre Blanc, sesame, white truffle, sunflowers, salted popcorn. The umami element is just so intense here and there is still enough acidity and stone fruit to keep it balanced. Left in a Zalto Burg glass for an hour you get smoke and coffee bean and salted caramel. Gosh this is great! I personally lean to Combettes 96 Leflaive slightly (for the added energy and precision) but both are two sides of an immensely shining coin and I wouldn’t call anyone a fool for disagreeing and picking Pucelles (for it’s more rich personality). Great now and I would be drinking those as I have been as I wonder what you stand to gain… just perfect right now and as good as aged white Burgundy premier cru gets. 96 is likely an underrating.
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Stunning wine, but unfortunately suffered slightly from TCA. Not enough to detract totally from the wine beneath, but present. Still mildly reductive in the most elegant way, characteristic of the finest Leflaive from this era.
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Good to try this original release again. Leflaive sesame sensation along with citrus, hazelnut and toast on the nose. Palate was nutty and vibrant with perfect harmony between acidity and fruit. Leflaive does not get much better than a pristine 96.
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not blind A tremendous aged 96 Pucelles from a great cellar. Still fresh with a vivid acidity. Roasted nuts, lemon peel, saline, precise and long finish. 96
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Reconditioned ex-Domaine bottle. The second bottle of this batch again showed all the class of Leflaive and the 1996 vintage. While the wine still seems to have decades of life left, it is so good to drink now. Completely integrated, sharp, fresh, yet round and silky. The nose would even deserve a 98 pts rating but the palate didn’t had the depth and precision to go beyond the strong 96 pts overall.
TN: Expressive from the first sniff to the medium length finish, this displays lots of citrus, ripe apples, lots and lots of matchstick and flint, with time some faint toffee notes and all that wrapped around and intense minerality core marked by a strong salinity. Medium complex and not as perfectly delineated as the best Burgs out there. Very harmonious and round, not much weight but still a lot of intensity and with a good, clear freshness.
Decanting: While the last bottle needed time and air to blossom, this was good from the go. Still, it continue to improve, so I would give it 1-2 hours in the decanter.
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Another exotic example of Leflaive Pucelles, this and '99 took top spots for me today. Ginger and spice, such density. 1er in name only, this is top Grand Cru quality.
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Served blind, another stellar showing that stumped everyone. Such density here, the texture is impressive -- guessed Coche Dury based that mouthfeel. A viscous wine with a glycerin finish. This is one of the great superstar white Burgundy of the 90's, and especially impressive for a 1er.
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1939 Cheval Blanc Dinner....despite a typhoon. (L'Envol Restaurant, St. Regis Hotel, Wan Chai, Hong Kong): Reconditioned recent cellar release. Very light silver-green colour... very bright and jeweled. Nose is OH WOW!!!...warm seductive oak, totally drawing you in down Alice's rabbit hole, soft suede leather, so light but powerful. Palate is crisp, very fresh and young acidity, sharp and precise minerality, then an almost immediate thunderstorm crash of heady reverberance inside the head. Wow... close to silence creating. Gosh...this is heavenly. One of my top 3 white wines drank so far in 2020. 95+
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Tasted blind but quite quickly got to Leflaive Pucelles 1996, one of the most outstanding and distinctive Leflaive I have ever tasted. Tasted the 1996 Pucelles over the years and it is incredibly consistent and delicious. The reduction and buttery popcorn aromas remind me of d’Auvenay, truly seductive on the nose with Premier cru intensity on the palate. Still incredibly fresh and will age for another decade at least! Leflaive Puligny Montrachet 1er cru Pucelles 1996? (92/100)
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Small & intimate Covid-era dinner (Chez moi): Fourth of my stash of this acclaimed 1er Cru. First try at about age 7 was sensational. Of the subsequent 2, one was flawed if not overt pre-moxed. The other just failed to deliver on its potential. This time, we hit spectacular. Opened 5 hours prior to service. The deep golden color and early taste were troubling. In time, it hit its stride in a Grassl Cru. The aromatics were mesmerizing. Just a whiff of oxidation, more than balanced by all of those mature wine flavors that I find foolish to try to describe. This was not about any specific notes, it was a complete symphony that was stirring and evocative - full of energy, intrigue and soul. Bravo!
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Ex-chateau release. Very reductive on the nose. Palate showed generous intensity, round yellow fruit and white flowers. Should have decanted the bottle before serving. Too much sulphur on the nose.
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This ex-Chateau bottle (2019) is easily one of the best whites I‘ve ever had. At first marked by sulphur reduction this blossomed into a an almost perfect expression of white Burgundy. Still more on the young-ish side (the others who had it blind guessed it to be at least 10 years younger), this offers incredibly complexity, freshness and creaminess with the absolute highlight being the 100 points nose full of Coche flint. Just wow.
TN: A killer nose full of matchstick, flint, toast, yellow fruit, nutty notes - pure, intense, expressive, precise. Just perfect, a perfect nose I couldn‘t stop smelling. Not much less exciting on the palate full of apple, citrus, yellow fruit, minerals with a perfect texture full of creaminess with a perfect freshness and a good length. 100 points for the nose, 96/97 points for the palate.
Decanting: Although almost 25 years old, this needs time to open up from pristine bottles like this. 2 hours of air is the minimum.
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Decanted for a short while and kept in decanter. Ex-chateau bottle released only recently after a self-conducted quality check, hence in impeccable condition. Starts off with chemical, sulfuric notes, underneath ripe stone fruit popping up as well as some nutty aging notes. A massive, absolutely mind-blowing palate with viscosity, amazingly fresh acidity and density. Fruit here more citric and salty mineral flavours dominant. The nose shakes off the chemical touch over time with more popcorn emerging and a clearer fruit profile. There is nothing here not to love and one of the best white wines I've ever had. There is easily 10-20 years of life left, if not more.
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The White Wine of the Night goes to 1996 Leflaive Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles, an eternal wine that is evolving at a glacial pace. In blind, everyone guessed 10 years younger, though the Puligny purity was expressive and the transparent buttery reduction both lead us to Leflaive. Tasted blind - Buttery popcorn, sexy and reductive with great intensity and brightness. Fresh tree fruits and buttery texture. Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru? 2010? (92/100)
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1996 Burgundy Retrospective - The First Session (Clarity - Vienna, Virginia): Perfectly mature energetic nose displaying ripe yet precise yellow citrus fruit, light caramel, a hint of matchstick, sesame, spice spices and limestone mineral. Beautifully integrated palate, finely layered concentrated sweet yellow fruit, exceptional precision and focus, bright acidity, strong mineral and a long sweet yellow fruit driven finish with matchstick and sesame at the end. Almost identical expression as the bottle from 2016.
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Mostly new friends gathering (Rye Brook): I was pleased to see the pale golden hue and smell freshness. Tight to start, it opened over time and initially it seemed a lovely, mature wine that I expected would continue to evolve and build...it did not. After a couple of hours, the acid began to protrude and it remained in this disjointed state the rest of the evening. Some pleasing moments and elements but overall disappointing.
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Bruno Giacosa Tribute Dinner (Casa Tartufo, Singapore): Always lovely, this seems to just seems to grow and grow with time. Today, the nose exploded out of the glass with deep wafts of flinty mineral, smoky spice, and toasted almond nuts - all swirling around a core of creamy white fruit. The palate was still tingling with nervous energy, with bright 1996 acidity and a real spine of flinty, slakey minerality piercing through a rich core of ripe yellow fruit, and then just a touch of creamy butter on the sides, all tailing away into a long, bittersweet, almond-skin finish. A stunning wine, fleshy and delicious, yet packed with power and wonderfully structured, with a real sinewy feel to it. Superb, and still opening up.
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Really impressed with this. From the get-go this was highly nuanced with nuts, lees, tangy acidity, streaks of lemon and citrus, smokey and some matchstick. Great complexity and balance. Held up all night. A great bottle of Pucelles for sure.
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Had this been blind I would have confidently called cru Coche-Dury. This was easily the best bottle of Pucelles I've ever had with a massive nose of yellow tropical fruit, huge reduction, pleasant sulphur and matchstick, smoke, and an awesome toasted nuttiness. Fresh but with good maturity and developed nuance. On the palate this was round with plenty of yellow fruit, but with sufficient acid and tension. Not flabby. I've been consistently underwhelmed with Pucelles the last couple of times I've opened one, finding them thin and weak, but this '96 was such an impressive showing that I am going to keep trying with these. Probably a ton of variance out there and collecting these is probably a minefield, but this was a terrific success.
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Felt a bit flabby at first and lacking focus. With some air and time really came into focus. Had a nice balance and richness to it. Apples for sure. IMHO opinion I would drink up.
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A pleasure to be able to try this courtesy of PB nose - smoke, burnt sugar mouth - very fresh for being 20+ years old. wax, toasted peach, smoky. good but not grand
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Excess: This just rocks. No sign of premox here; it's still incredibly light in the glass and very fresh, with a core of tart lemon and pear fruit augmented with an array of more mature white truffle, butter, vanilla cream, and chalky notes. It's incredibly light on its feet with powerful acidity beneath, finishing very long. Superb.
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One of the best old Leflaives I've had in a long time. Surprisingly reductive nose, touch of gunflint, zero sign of premature oxidation. Very composed, well balanced and terrific concentration. Lean and angular, almost Corton-like, but generous. Long finish.
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Mostly Bordeaux dinner with Bob (Magdalena restaurant at the Ivy Hotel, Baltimore): Pierre mentions a lot of Sulphur/match stick which he finds slightly off putting. The matchstick actually makes me to think this is the 96 Coche Dury meursault caillerets which is served together. Incredibly fresh, ripe yellow fruit, lemon curd, light custard, sesame and strong presence of mineral a la flint. Very precise and energetic palate. Strong presence of mineral provides lovely tension and balance. Excellent showing.
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Blind. Yum nose, elegant, medium color, long impressive finish, deep and rich, some petrol on nose, some sulfur. Correctly guessed Leflaive, but I thought it was Grand Cru. Very, very impressive showing - as good as it gets for 1er, puts many lesser producers GC's to shame.
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Dinner with Ravenau, Leflaive, Muller, Fourrier, Pichler, Montrose, Fourrier, de Fargues and more (Black Salt, Washington DC): The wine is a dark shade of yellow and beginning to show its age. The flavors are starting to turn a bit secondary with some nuttiness to compliment citrus fruit and minerals. There is also still good delineation of the flavor components and freshness. I would say this one is at peak or perhaps on a long gentle decline. The Pucelles is my favorite wine with the Leflaive lineup and this bottle enforced that assertion.
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Domaine Leflaive with James Handford MW (Handford Wines, London): After a disappointing 98 this 1996 provided the redemption for aged Leflaives. Honey, nutty, light yeasty feel onthe nose.Secondary notes, not a lot though as we would have expected. Still very much alive and vibrant, good acidity still and depth. Interesting wine and very enjoyable. 93-94
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Bought this bottle around 1999 or 2000. Been saving it for 15 years. Stupid me. There's some PremOx in there. Color a little darker than I'd like. None of the matchstick or acid/creme brûlée mix that you're looking for. If I'd been served this as a house white, I would not have sent it back and would have been fine with it. But this is not a 'house white'. Ah well...
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Perhaps this bottle is slightly off with the faintest smell of cork taint. Color still extremely light with citrusy nose. Palate a bit unyielding and perhaps the wine overall disjointed with the bright acidity sticking out, finish is faint.
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Drank in London Incredible rich nose with lots of yellow fruit, stones and floral undertones. Smooth rich mouth coating palate with a long length. Wonderful stuff.
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2001 Vosne-Romanée Grand Cru Dinner (Imperial Treasure Teochew, Takashimaya): Hands down the best Leflaive Pucelles I have had through numerous vintages, this was showing incredibly well on the night. The nose just exploded out of the glass with wonderfully intense aromas of gunflint and stony mineral swirling around a core of ripe white fruit, pineapples and kumquats, with a base of earthy, chalky accents running underneath. Woah. If anything, the palate even better. Here, beautiful, bright 1996 acidity framed a deeply intense mouthful of delicious yellow-fruited flavours, with subtly honeyed tones of peach and melon and little flowery notes leading into a superb finish that just gripped the the backpalate with savoury, stony seashell and flint notes. This had everything – power, depth and elegance, all beautifully integrated in a wonderfully drinkable package. Drinking at absolute peak now, it was easily the standard of a great Grand Cru white. Wow.
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From magnum from domaine. High petrol on the initial nose gives way to lemon rind and floral notes. Great acidity paired well with sea urchin and caviar.
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Vosne-Romanee Grand Crus for Michael and Peter's Birthdays (Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck, Paragon): This was a beautiful, classic Leflaive Pucelles - possibly the best of the many vintages I have had the privilege of drinking. It had beautiful nose, with classic notes of cream and white fruit and sweeter peach aromas laced with a wonderful minerality and whiffs of typical gunflint. Lovely stuff. The palate was every bit as good – perfectly integrated and really complete, it was at once muscular and powerful, with a full mouthful of fleshy white fruit and more peachy flavours infused with a nice spiciness, yet also blessed with pitch perfect balance, showing fresh and lively from attack all the way into a long, powerful finish that gently lined the backpalate with a beautiful, gunflinty minerality. Not the most cut or defined, there was a certain cloudiness to its flavours, but this was lovely, classic stuff, drinking at absolute peak.
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Wines with Larry, Huw and Paul in Martinborough: Popped and poured. Deep gold colour. An attractive bouquet of blanched almonds, cooking spices, lemon and some white florals. On the palate, this was clearly a mature white Burgundy from the mid-1990s. It seemed more evolved than the Carillon with which it was tasted. Round with Meursault-like richness on the palate. The wine was not premoxed but clearly was showing more oxidation than the Carillon, with the profile moving in a nutty, almost lactic direction. Rauno said that he kicked himself for not decanting the Leflaive because, toward the end of our pours, the wine really began to blossom in the glass. My initial impression was that I preferred the Carillon but that impression changed towards the end of my samples. The flavour profile became more multi-dimensional opening up into peaches and cream, honey roasted peanuts, with an almost crème brulee dimension (but of course not with that degree of sweetness). Mineral flavours also began to emerge. This wine is ready to drink now but should be given some air before tasting.
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Delicious bottle. Crushed tthe bottles I've had over the last year. This one was fresh with a great nose and better on the palate. Nice citrus and acidity.
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This wine had a medium yellow center and clear rims. The medium+ intensity nose offered up citrus, sulfur, and some soil. The off smells did not dissipate despite extended aeration.
In the mouth, this wine showed some richness, light acidity and a moderate finish.
This didn't exactly seem premoxed but it certainly didn't seem to have the quality I would expect from Leflaive either. I will require more data points before I comment further. Was this an off bottle?
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Superb bottle. I have had this wine several times in the last 3 months and this one really stood out. Great nose, motor-oil like viscosity and incredible length.
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I have had many bottles of this, terrific stuff but definitely at its peak and have experience some bottle variation. Motor-Oil like in the the mouth, terrific minerality with hints of beeswax and glycerin. The wine still has great length and acidity.
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Ahhh. Much better. So, at a white truffle dinner, a friend brought a bottle of '96 Leflaive 'Chevalier Montrachet' that turned out to be partially oxidized. We drank it but we were sad. No problems here. Great bottle of aged white Burg, the reason we age this stuff. Color showed a little darkening, but nothing like the Chevvy Mont. Open the bottle and you can smell the wine across the table. Initially, intensity level was ok, but after some air, really started to pack a punch. No mistaking the flavor profile for anything else than a great white burg, and really happy with the intensity of flavors. If you own these, I'd drink 'em over the next 5 years, hate for them to turn...
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Drank with WTT, OT and Sam 678 dinner, great nose, had a terrific beeswax and glycerin. The acidity was still very much alive, unlike a previous bottle which suggested this wine was past its prime. Had awesome viscosity and verve coupled with Ramonet-like linearity. Glad I some left!
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Very nice wine!! This is one where my score is totally different than BH. This wine is in the pocket now, and was drinking much better than the 04 Leflaive BBM served alongside. Some typical smoke, matchstick aromas, melded together with honeysuckle and citrus. Beautiful texture and mouthfeel The finish went on and on...This wine was WOTN for me.
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This is an old-school white Burgundy that smells a bit of cat-piss and sulphur upfront. On the palate, it is firmly structured with strong acidity and tension. The fruit is still there lurking underneath the structure with notes of lemons and spice and the finish is finely complex with grippy mineral flavors. An amazing wine that really has not peaked yet.
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Leflaive vertikal: (Blind) Klar, svakt gyllen strågul. Mild, steinete nese med sitrus og noe vaniljesukker. Konsentrert, glatt og viskøs frukt med god intensitet i utgangen. Frisk. Smør og mineraler i finish. Faller litt sammen i glasset.
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It's Monday...Time for Another Burgundy Dinner (Sepia - Chicago IL): Fresh orchard fruit aromas with plenty of new oak still showing through. Apple and pear flavors with good spice. Palate also still had rather prominent new as well as rather assertive acidity. This was much better with food than on its own given the acidity.
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Very mature, but no oxidation. Great depth, but probably best drunk on its own, as it overmatches food (in large doses). Still very minerally/flinty on nose.
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Dinner with Carey at Country Club Grillroom: I pulled the cork about 1 hour before dinner and then poured into decanter at the restaurant and consumed over 3 hours. Flowery and musky on the nose. Lovely bright yellow color which bore no sign of its age. Great balance between acidity and minerality and the leflaive class was definitely present. Just lacked that depth and weight to be truly outstanding. A 96 white burg so young and fresh! I need to control myself and let this batch of 96 Leflaives sleep.
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Light yellow in color, nice open nose with citrus fruit and white flowers. Still very fresh with medium plus palate, fresh acidity yet also a bit rounded, nice mineral finish at the end, fantastic for its level.
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Fresh as a daisy. Light yellow color with a hint of green. Served a bit too cold at first and really needed 30 mins of air to start showing its stuff and kept building over 2 hours. Really classy and leflaive through and through.
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Bubbles and Burgs (David&Ali's, Rockville, MD): nose: real great class and depth with well balanced and regal tones of tart citrus', bits of smoke, green apples, pears and a touch of lemon peels and mineral tones. Great layering on the nose and though it starts off a bit smokey, it pulls back into real good and aged tones
taste: medium/full body with medium+ acidity as well as deep tones of pears, green apples, bits of mineral and stone tones, tart citrus', and hints of smoke. Very well layered with a real suave feel on the palate that really shows off the wine
overall: In retrospect this could've used some decent air time before drinking, but even with Leflaive, it's hard to fully predict what will happen to a 96 white burg. This had a lighter gold color to it and the acidity was showing itself off right now. In the world of no premox, I would say that this could still use another few years to really show off what it can do, but its up to people as to whether to roll the dice or not
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Friday Night Dinner @ David and Ali's: I loved the nose on this bottle. Good doses of smoke, seashells, toffee, dominated the nose. A real treat. I thought the palate was a bit flabby as it lacked much in the way of acidty. Regardless, the body of this wine was big a burly with nice amounts of lemon peel, and watermelon rind adding to flavors of charcoal and toast. Really beautiful wine.
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Friday Night Dinner (Chez Dave & Ali): Opens up tight and musty, clearly needing some air. With more time, it begins to settle in glass, blowing off a heavy smokiness and develops an interesting pitch of spice and hazelnut that only mature white burgundy really provides. There is some lovely hints of bacon and toast, which is a real interesting combo for a white burg. The palate lacked a bit of structure and felt a touch hollow without an acidic spine, but the nose was the real treat. With more air, the wine developed this really interesting note of sesame seed. Not quite there but it shows its familial breed.
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Potent nose of cat pee and sulphur with lemon and mineral notes. Possesses the concentration and sheer material of a Grand Cru with incredible power and intensity. Still quite young and in need of a few more years but this is a succulent, mineral-driven wine that is one of the best Pucelles Leflaive has ever made. Loaded with gripping acidity and crisp fruit flavors of lime and apple.
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volle gele kleur, mooie ingetogen neus die later meer open komt, gele appel, perzik, rijpe peer, mooie zuivere neus met mineraliteit. Smaak is geconcentreerd met rijpe tonen en soepelheid, zuiver en schoon , alles heel subtiel, complex en heel mooi drinkbaar. Wijn is helemaal in orde. Heel fijn glas
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Consumed at lunch with lump crabmeat sauteed in butter and wine.
Cooled to about 57 degrees, decanted for 30 minutes. Color slightly advanced, had me initially worried. But...There was no need to fear, Underdog is here. Great flavors of custard, butter and bacon fat, framed by lemon zest. Subtle, beautiful bottle of wine, the polar opposite of a big, oaky Calif chard. Good length. Givent the color, I'd give thought to drinking these at a slightly faster rate, maybe finishing them over the next 3-5 years...
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gele kleur. in eerste instantie wat weinig neus, later meer openheid met vooral mineraliteit met klein geel fruit. smaak is prachtige balans met zuivere zuren en mooie rijpe tonen. elegantie ten top, iets van finesse maakt dit tot een prachtig glas
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Served before a big dinner at Craft Just a great showing for this wine. Combination of crisp apples, a little butter, and something else. 6 guys, we coudn't figure out the 'something else'. My friend Bob had his nose deep in the glass. He smiled, looked up and said 'Bacon'! He's right! A little smokiness. He could have said 'saddle leather', or 'smokiness' or almost anything in that camp. But 'Bacon' is more fun! great length, the best bottle I've had so far of this.....
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Diep gele kleur. In de neus mooie licht geel fruitige tonen, appel abrikoos. Ook licht wat noten en mooie hout impressie. Veel mineraliteit. Erg zuiver in de smaak , mineraliteit, licht filmend en mooi mondvullend. Nog pittige zuren. bij zalm
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Burg OL in Antwerp (t'Fornuis, Antwerp): Very tight at first and significant oak on the nose as well as important acidity in the mouth. Also clear minerality but little fruit at this stage. It got much better with time, opening up and gaining some complexity. Pairing superbly with the raw oysters dish.
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My last bottle and opened many years too soon it seems. Pale yellow healthy color. I decanted it for 2 hours, but even after that plus a couple of hours in the glass it didn't budge. The nose was dominated by intense chalk. Very tight, very young, hard to tell exactly where this is going. The palate demonsrtrated firm fresh acidity and some minerality, but the fruit is hidden. Based on condition and reputation, I would hope for a much better showing down the road, but I would not aggressively seek out more based on this showing. My score may prove much too harsh if this wine blossoms.
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4/13/2024 - BenBlu Likes this wine: 96 Points
A sensational wine that is Leflaive 96 Pucelles. My third bottle of a very good case and it’s consistently brilliant. It works well on pnp but it doesn’t tire quickly. Immediately wafting from the glass with beurre Blanc, sesame, white truffle, sunflowers, salted popcorn. The umami element is just so intense here and there is still enough acidity and stone fruit to keep it balanced. Left in a Zalto Burg glass for an hour you get smoke and coffee bean and salted caramel. Gosh this is great! I personally lean to Combettes 96 Leflaive slightly (for the added energy and precision) but both are two sides of an immensely shining coin and I wouldn’t call anyone a fool for disagreeing and picking Pucelles (for it’s more rich personality). Great now and I would be drinking those as I have been as I wonder what you stand to gain… just perfect right now and as good as aged white Burgundy premier cru gets. 96 is likely an underrating.
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2/2/2024 - LW31 Likes this wine:
Great bottle of this. At peak. Classic Pucelles. Fabulous energy.
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9/22/2023 - hprphf Likes this wine: 94 Points
No 00957, from a UK cellar. Sesame, popcorn, composed, so young, great tension, best of old Leflaive in its prime youth. 94+
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4/14/2023 - nmmnori Likes this wine: 94 Points
Stunning wine, but unfortunately suffered slightly from TCA. Not enough to detract totally from the wine beneath, but present. Still mildly reductive in the most elegant way, characteristic of the finest Leflaive from this era.
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4/13/2023 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 94 Points
Good to try this original release again. Leflaive sesame sensation along with citrus, hazelnut and toast on the nose. Palate was nutty and vibrant with perfect harmony between acidity and fruit. Leflaive does not get much better than a pristine 96.
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3/25/2023 - LTTC Likes this wine: 93 Points
Gala Dinner 2023: (A) Late release. Small glass
Nice balance and complexity. 93+
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1/29/2023 - fcxj wrote: 94 Points
Library release that's been very consistent with clean citrus notes and youthful vigor. Aging very slowly... (RE 13176)
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1/22/2023 - aquacongas wrote: 96 Points
not blind
A tremendous aged 96 Pucelles from a great cellar. Still fresh with a vivid acidity. Roasted nuts, lemon peel, saline, precise and long finish. 96
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1/8/2023 - Cailles wrote: 96 Points
Reconditioned ex-Domaine bottle. The second bottle of this batch again showed all the class of Leflaive and the 1996 vintage. While the wine still seems to have decades of life left, it is so good to drink now. Completely integrated, sharp, fresh, yet round and silky. The nose would even deserve a 98 pts rating but the palate didn’t had the depth and precision to go beyond the strong 96 pts overall.
TN: Expressive from the first sniff to the medium length finish, this displays lots of citrus, ripe apples, lots and lots of matchstick and flint, with time some faint toffee notes and all that wrapped around and intense minerality core marked by a strong salinity. Medium complex and not as perfectly delineated as the best Burgs out there. Very harmonious and round, not much weight but still a lot of intensity and with a good, clear freshness.
Decanting: While the last bottle needed time and air to blossom, this was good from the go. Still, it continue to improve, so I would give it 1-2 hours in the decanter.
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5/29/2022 - kr522 wrote: 95 Points
This bottle in perfect shape, the wine is fresh, lifted, and complex. Citrus, minerals, and saline
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5/27/2022 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
Another exotic example of Leflaive Pucelles, this and '99 took top spots for me today. Ginger and spice, such density. 1er in name only, this is top Grand Cru quality.
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3/29/2022 - fcxj wrote: 94 Points
Classic citrus curd aromatics. Really fresh, placid and broad palate. Great example of Leflaive success with 1996. (RE 13171)
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12/21/2021 - kr522 wrote: flawed
corked, not ox’ed. the fruit is clearly in great shape underneath that nasty smell/taste, which makes it all the more annoying
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12/7/2021 - fcxj wrote: flawed
Oxidized, which is rare for this vintage...
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8/3/2021 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 93 Points
Deep and pungent with good acidity remaining. Quite fresh.
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7/28/2021 - fcxj wrote: 92 Points
Good bottle. Modest reduction, retains depth and vigor.
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6/6/2021 - LW31 wrote:
Good depth and fruit but nose is completely reduced, even over many hrs open. Remarkable density and texture to this wine though.
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10/30/2020 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
Served blind, another stellar showing that stumped everyone. Such density here, the texture is impressive -- guessed Coche Dury based that mouthfeel. A viscous wine with a glycerin finish. This is one of the great superstar white Burgundy of the 90's, and especially impressive for a 1er.
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10/13/2020 - Goldstone Likes this wine: 95 Points
1939 Cheval Blanc Dinner....despite a typhoon. (L'Envol Restaurant, St. Regis Hotel, Wan Chai, Hong Kong): Reconditioned recent cellar release. Very light silver-green colour... very bright and jeweled. Nose is OH WOW!!!...warm seductive oak, totally drawing you in down Alice's rabbit hole, soft suede leather, so light but powerful. Palate is crisp, very fresh and young acidity, sharp and precise minerality, then an almost immediate thunderstorm crash of heady reverberance inside the head. Wow... close to silence creating. Gosh...this is heavenly. One of my top 3 white wines drank so far in 2020. 95+
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8/24/2020 - Jammy Wine wrote: 92 Points
Tasted blind but quite quickly got to Leflaive Pucelles 1996, one of the most outstanding and distinctive Leflaive I have ever tasted. Tasted the 1996 Pucelles over the years and it is incredibly consistent and delicious. The reduction and buttery popcorn aromas remind me of d’Auvenay, truly seductive on the nose with Premier cru intensity on the palate. Still incredibly fresh and will age for another decade at least! Leflaive Puligny Montrachet 1er cru Pucelles 1996? (92/100)
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8/15/2020 - VDLT Wine Likes this wine:
Small & intimate Covid-era dinner (Chez moi): Fourth of my stash of this acclaimed 1er Cru. First try at about age 7 was sensational. Of the subsequent 2, one was flawed if not overt pre-moxed. The other just failed to deliver on its potential. This time, we hit spectacular. Opened 5 hours prior to service. The deep golden color and early taste were troubling. In time, it hit its stride in a Grassl Cru. The aromatics were mesmerizing. Just a whiff of oxidation, more than balanced by all of those mature wine flavors that I find foolish to try to describe. This was not about any specific notes, it was a complete symphony that was stirring and evocative - full of energy, intrigue and soul. Bravo!
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4/30/2020 - Burgnick wrote:
Ex-chateau release. Very reductive on the nose. Palate showed generous intensity, round yellow fruit and white flowers. Should have decanted the bottle before serving. Too much sulphur on the nose.
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3/20/2020 - Cailles wrote: 98 Points
This ex-Chateau bottle (2019) is easily one of the best whites I‘ve ever had. At first marked by sulphur reduction this blossomed into a an almost perfect expression of white Burgundy. Still more on the young-ish side (the others who had it blind guessed it to be at least 10 years younger), this offers incredibly complexity, freshness and creaminess with the absolute highlight being the 100 points nose full of Coche flint. Just wow.
TN: A killer nose full of matchstick, flint, toast, yellow fruit, nutty notes - pure, intense, expressive, precise. Just perfect, a perfect nose I couldn‘t stop smelling. Not much less exciting on the palate full of apple, citrus, yellow fruit, minerals with a perfect texture full of creaminess with a perfect freshness and a good length. 100 points for the nose, 96/97 points for the palate.
Decanting: Although almost 25 years old, this needs time to open up from pristine bottles like this. 2 hours of air is the minimum.
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2/21/2020 - sirpat00 Likes this wine: 98 Points
Decanted for a short while and kept in decanter. Ex-chateau bottle released only recently after a self-conducted quality check, hence in impeccable condition. Starts off with chemical, sulfuric notes, underneath ripe stone fruit popping up as well as some nutty aging notes. A massive, absolutely mind-blowing palate with viscosity, amazingly fresh acidity and density. Fruit here more citric and salty mineral flavours dominant. The nose shakes off the chemical touch over time with more popcorn emerging and a clearer fruit profile. There is nothing here not to love and one of the best white wines I've ever had. There is easily 10-20 years of life left, if not more.
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1/22/2020 - Jammy Wine wrote: 92 Points
The White Wine of the Night goes to 1996 Leflaive Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles, an eternal wine that is evolving at a glacial pace. In blind, everyone guessed 10 years younger, though the Puligny purity was expressive and the transparent buttery reduction both lead us to Leflaive. Tasted blind - Buttery popcorn, sexy and reductive with great intensity and brightness. Fresh tree fruits and buttery texture. Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru? 2010? (92/100)
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11/21/2019 - sdr wrote: 90 Points
Old White Burgundy at Wine Watch (Ft. Lauderdale, Florida): Some nice menthol notes are the best part. Slightly dull and too acidic. Lacks elegance. Good though. No trace of oxidation.
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8/8/2019 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 94 Points
Minerals, matchstick, peach and its signature sesame. So elegant and precise with seamless mineral-driven fruit and acidity. A superb pucelles.
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4/26/2019 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
1996 Burgundy Retrospective - The First Session (Clarity - Vienna, Virginia): Perfectly mature energetic nose displaying ripe yet precise yellow citrus fruit, light caramel, a hint of matchstick, sesame, spice spices and limestone mineral. Beautifully integrated palate, finely layered concentrated sweet yellow fruit, exceptional precision and focus, bright acidity, strong mineral and a long sweet yellow fruit driven finish with matchstick and sesame at the end. Almost identical expression as the bottle from 2016.
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11/9/2018 - fcxj wrote: 94 Points
Damn that is good. Whitish yellow. Matchstick aromas. Piercing, tense palate.
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7/28/2018 - VDLT Wine wrote:
Mostly new friends gathering (Rye Brook): I was pleased to see the pale golden hue and smell freshness. Tight to start, it opened over time and initially it seemed a lovely, mature wine that I expected would continue to evolve and build...it did not. After a couple of hours, the acid began to protrude and it remained in this disjointed state the rest of the evening. Some pleasing moments and elements but overall disappointing.
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6/15/2018 - Paul S wrote: 94 Points
Bruno Giacosa Tribute Dinner (Casa Tartufo, Singapore): Always lovely, this seems to just seems to grow and grow with time. Today, the nose exploded out of the glass with deep wafts of flinty mineral, smoky spice, and toasted almond nuts - all swirling around a core of creamy white fruit. The palate was still tingling with nervous energy, with bright 1996 acidity and a real spine of flinty, slakey minerality piercing through a rich core of ripe yellow fruit, and then just a touch of creamy butter on the sides, all tailing away into a long, bittersweet, almond-skin finish. A stunning wine, fleshy and delicious, yet packed with power and wonderfully structured, with a real sinewy feel to it. Superb, and still opening up.
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6/11/2018 - LW31 Likes this wine:
Lovely aged Puligny. Great style and nutty depth. Best '96 I've had of this. Very good with richer fish dishes.
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4/21/2018 - Kemo Sabe Likes this wine: 94 Points
Really impressed with this. From the get-go this was highly nuanced with nuts, lees, tangy acidity, streaks of lemon and citrus, smokey and some matchstick. Great complexity and balance. Held up all night. A great bottle of Pucelles for sure.
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4/20/2018 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 94 Points
Had this been blind I would have confidently called cru Coche-Dury. This was easily the best bottle of Pucelles I've ever had with a massive nose of yellow tropical fruit, huge reduction, pleasant sulphur and matchstick, smoke, and an awesome toasted nuttiness. Fresh but with good maturity and developed nuance. On the palate this was round with plenty of yellow fruit, but with sufficient acid and tension. Not flabby. I've been consistently underwhelmed with Pucelles the last couple of times I've opened one, finding them thin and weak, but this '96 was such an impressive showing that I am going to keep trying with these. Probably a ton of variance out there and collecting these is probably a minefield, but this was a terrific success.
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10/11/2017 - fatboi Likes this wine: 92 Points
Felt a bit flabby at first and lacking focus. With some air and time really came into focus. Had a nice balance and richness to it. Apples for sure. IMHO opinion I would drink up.
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9/16/2017 - Burgundy Al wrote: 92 Points
Wines Tasted at HDH Auction; 9/15/2017-9/16/2017 (Tru Restaurant - Chicago IL): Lots of rich apple and pear aromas with balance of ripe fruit, sweet spa ice and floral charm. Incredibly fresh for its age, I thought it much younger. Only nit is that the new oak still slightly protrudes.
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3/18/2017 - soyhead wrote:
A pleasure to be able to try this courtesy of PB
nose - smoke, burnt sugar
mouth - very fresh for being 20+ years old. wax, toasted peach, smoky. good but not grand
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3/17/2017 - jhngo Likes this wine: 96 Points
Sulfur matchsticks fresh with acid
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1/28/2017 - salil wrote: 94 Points
Excess: This just rocks. No sign of premox here; it's still incredibly light in the glass and very fresh, with a core of tart lemon and pear fruit augmented with an array of more mature white truffle, butter, vanilla cream, and chalky notes. It's incredibly light on its feet with powerful acidity beneath, finishing very long. Superb.
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9/8/2016 - fcxj wrote: 94 Points
One of the best old Leflaives I've had in a long time. Surprisingly reductive nose, touch of gunflint, zero sign of premature oxidation. Very composed, well balanced and terrific concentration. Lean and angular, almost Corton-like, but generous. Long finish.
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8/12/2016 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
Mostly Bordeaux dinner with Bob (Magdalena restaurant at the Ivy Hotel, Baltimore): Pierre mentions a lot of Sulphur/match stick which he finds slightly off putting. The matchstick actually makes me to think this is the 96 Coche Dury meursault caillerets which is served together. Incredibly fresh, ripe yellow fruit, lemon curd, light custard, sesame and strong presence of mineral a la flint. Very precise and energetic palate. Strong presence of mineral provides lovely tension and balance. Excellent showing.
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4/29/2016 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
Blind. Yum nose, elegant, medium color, long impressive finish, deep and rich, some petrol on nose, some sulfur. Correctly guessed Leflaive, but I thought it was Grand Cru. Very, very impressive showing - as good as it gets for 1er, puts many lesser producers GC's to shame.
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2/25/2016 - EhrlichDY Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dinner with Ravenau, Leflaive, Muller, Fourrier, Pichler, Montrose, Fourrier, de Fargues and more (Black Salt, Washington DC): The wine is a dark shade of yellow and beginning to show its age. The flavors are starting to turn a bit secondary with some nuttiness to compliment citrus fruit and minerals. There is also still good delineation of the flavor components and freshness. I would say this one is at peak or perhaps on a long gentle decline. The Pucelles is my favorite wine with the Leflaive lineup and this bottle enforced that assertion.
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1/15/2016 - steinersing wrote: 94 Points
rich and at a perfect point of development. A bit less body perhaps than the Chevaliers, but very enjoyable
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9/21/2015 - Papies wrote: 94 Points
Domaine Leflaive with James Handford MW (Handford Wines, London): After a disappointing 98 this 1996 provided the redemption for aged Leflaives.
Honey, nutty, light yeasty feel onthe nose.Secondary notes, not a lot though as we would have expected. Still very much alive and vibrant, good acidity still and depth. Interesting wine and very enjoyable. 93-94
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8/30/2015 - Jeremy Holmes wrote: flawed
Oxidised
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7/2/2015 - PeterH wrote: flawed
Bought this bottle around 1999 or 2000. Been saving it for 15 years. Stupid me. There's some PremOx in there. Color a little darker than I'd like. None of the matchstick or acid/creme brûlée mix that you're looking for. If I'd been served this as a house white, I would not have sent it back and would have been fine with it. But this is not a 'house white'. Ah well...
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6/14/2015 - Pacalet wrote: 89 Points
Perhaps this bottle is slightly off with the faintest smell of cork taint. Color still extremely light with citrusy nose. Palate a bit unyielding and perhaps the wine overall disjointed with the bright acidity sticking out, finish is faint.
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5/23/2015 - RayOB wrote: 94 Points
Drank in London
Incredible rich nose with lots of yellow fruit, stones and floral undertones. Smooth rich mouth coating palate with a long length. Wonderful stuff.
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5/20/2015 - Paul S wrote: 95 Points
2001 Vosne-Romanée Grand Cru Dinner (Imperial Treasure Teochew, Takashimaya): Hands down the best Leflaive Pucelles I have had through numerous vintages, this was showing incredibly well on the night. The nose just exploded out of the glass with wonderfully intense aromas of gunflint and stony mineral swirling around a core of ripe white fruit, pineapples and kumquats, with a base of earthy, chalky accents running underneath. Woah. If anything, the palate even better. Here, beautiful, bright 1996 acidity framed a deeply intense mouthful of delicious yellow-fruited flavours, with subtly honeyed tones of peach and melon and little flowery notes leading into a superb finish that just gripped the the backpalate with savoury, stony seashell and flint notes. This had everything – power, depth and elegance, all beautifully integrated in a wonderfully drinkable package. Drinking at absolute peak now, it was easily the standard of a great Grand Cru white. Wow.
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2/27/2015 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 94 Points
From magnum from domaine. High petrol on the initial nose gives way to lemon rind and floral notes. Great acidity paired well with sea urchin and caviar.
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9/27/2014 - Mistress of Wine wrote: flawed
Corked
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9/3/2014 - Paul S wrote: 94 Points
Vosne-Romanee Grand Crus for Michael and Peter's Birthdays (Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck, Paragon): This was a beautiful, classic Leflaive Pucelles - possibly the best of the many vintages I have had the privilege of drinking. It had beautiful nose, with classic notes of cream and white fruit and sweeter peach aromas laced with a wonderful minerality and whiffs of typical gunflint. Lovely stuff. The palate was every bit as good – perfectly integrated and really complete, it was at once muscular and powerful, with a full mouthful of fleshy white fruit and more peachy flavours infused with a nice spiciness, yet also blessed with pitch perfect balance, showing fresh and lively from attack all the way into a long, powerful finish that gently lined the backpalate with a beautiful, gunflinty minerality. Not the most cut or defined, there was a certain cloudiness to its flavours, but this was lovely, classic stuff, drinking at absolute peak.
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9/1/2014 - HowardNZ Likes this wine:
Wines with Larry, Huw and Paul in Martinborough: Popped and poured. Deep gold colour. An attractive bouquet of blanched almonds, cooking spices, lemon and some white florals. On the palate, this was clearly a mature white Burgundy from the mid-1990s. It seemed more evolved than the Carillon with which it was tasted. Round with Meursault-like richness on the palate. The wine was not premoxed but clearly was showing more oxidation than the Carillon, with the profile moving in a nutty, almost lactic direction. Rauno said that he kicked himself for not decanting the Leflaive because, toward the end of our pours, the wine really began to blossom in the glass. My initial impression was that I preferred the Carillon but that impression changed towards the end of my samples. The flavour profile became more multi-dimensional opening up into peaches and cream, honey roasted peanuts, with an almost crème brulee dimension (but of course not with that degree of sweetness). Mineral flavours also began to emerge. This wine is ready to drink now but should be given some air before tasting.
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5/3/2014 - fatboi Likes this wine: 95 Points
Delicious bottle. Crushed tthe bottles I've had over the last year. This one was fresh with a great nose and better on the palate. Nice citrus and acidity.
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4/15/2014 - stofken wrote: 95 Points
Fabulous wine, still upside potential!
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3/15/2014 - fclarity wrote: 89 Points
This wine had a medium yellow center and clear rims. The medium+ intensity nose offered up citrus, sulfur, and some soil. The off smells did not dissipate despite extended aeration.
In the mouth, this wine showed some richness, light acidity and a moderate finish.
This didn't exactly seem premoxed but it certainly didn't seem to have the quality I would expect from Leflaive either. I will require more data points before I comment further. Was this an off bottle?
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1/6/2014 - esburgundy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Superb bottle. I have had this wine several times in the last 3 months and this one really stood out. Great nose, motor-oil like viscosity and incredible length.
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12/28/2013 - esburgundy Likes this wine: 93 Points
I have had many bottles of this, terrific stuff but definitely at its peak and have experience some bottle variation. Motor-Oil like in the the mouth, terrific minerality with hints of beeswax and glycerin. The wine still has great length and acidity.
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12/25/2013 - jhngo Likes this wine: 92 Points
More extracted heavy.
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11/21/2013 - PeterH Likes this wine: 94 Points
Ahhh. Much better. So, at a white truffle dinner, a friend brought a bottle of '96 Leflaive 'Chevalier Montrachet' that turned out to be partially oxidized. We drank it but we were sad. No problems here. Great bottle of aged white Burg, the reason we age this stuff. Color showed a little darkening, but nothing like the Chevvy Mont. Open the bottle and you can smell the wine across the table. Initially, intensity level was ok, but after some air, really started to pack a punch. No mistaking the flavor profile for anything else than a great white burg, and really happy with the intensity of flavors. If you own these, I'd drink 'em over the next 5 years, hate for them to turn...
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9/27/2013 - esburgundy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drank with WTT, OT and Sam 678 dinner, great nose, had a terrific beeswax and glycerin. The acidity was still very much alive, unlike a previous bottle which suggested this wine was past its prime. Had awesome viscosity and verve coupled with Ramonet-like linearity. Glad I some left!
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9/27/2013 - willthethrill Likes this wine: 93 Points
Incredibly balanced and clean and loooong. Soft is the word that comes to mind. "Unreachable" might be a less positive description. Thank you Evan!
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6/19/2013 - rnellans wrote: 95 Points
Very nice wine!! This is one where my score is totally different than BH. This wine is in the pocket now, and was drinking much better than the 04 Leflaive BBM served alongside. Some typical smoke, matchstick aromas, melded together with honeysuckle and citrus. Beautiful texture and mouthfeel The finish went on and on...This wine was WOTN for me.
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4/7/2013 - dream Likes this wine: 94 Points
This is an old-school white Burgundy that smells a bit of cat-piss and sulphur upfront. On the palate, it is firmly structured with strong acidity and tension. The fruit is still there lurking underneath the structure with notes of lemons and spice and the finish is finely complex with grippy mineral flavors. An amazing wine that really has not peaked yet.
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3/30/2013 - BradE wrote:
A nice bottle that drank well, if not providing the typical Leflaive wow factor.
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3/1/2013 - -E- wrote: 92 Points
Leflaive vertikal: (Blind) Klar, svakt gyllen strågul. Mild, steinete nese med sitrus og noe vaniljesukker. Konsentrert, glatt og viskøs frukt med god intensitet i utgangen. Frisk. Smør og mineraler i finish. Faller litt sammen i glasset.
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4/2/2012 - Burgundy Al wrote: 90 Points
It's Monday...Time for Another Burgundy Dinner (Sepia - Chicago IL): Fresh orchard fruit aromas with plenty of new oak still showing through. Apple and pear flavors with good spice. Palate also still had rather prominent new as well as rather assertive acidity. This was much better with food than on its own given the acidity.
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1/13/2012 - James Arthur wrote:
Very mature, but no oxidation. Great depth, but probably best drunk on its own, as it overmatches food (in large doses). Still very minerally/flinty on nose.
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10/9/2011 - BradE wrote:
A beautiful bottle that drank nicely. Just shy of great (and certainly not majestic), but I would drink with pleasure anytime.
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10/1/2011 - cortoncharlie wrote: 91 Points
Dinner with Carey at Country Club Grillroom: I pulled the cork about 1 hour before dinner and then poured into decanter at the restaurant and consumed over 3 hours. Flowery and musky on the nose. Lovely bright yellow color which bore no sign of its age. Great balance between acidity and minerality and the leflaive class was definitely present. Just lacked that depth and weight to be truly outstanding. A 96 white burg so young and fresh! I need to control myself and let this batch of 96 Leflaives sleep.
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9/9/2011 - Pacalet wrote: 93 Points
Light yellow in color, nice open nose with citrus fruit and white flowers. Still very fresh with medium plus palate, fresh acidity yet also a bit rounded, nice mineral finish at the end, fantastic for its level.
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6/16/2011 - cortoncharlie wrote: 92 Points
Fresh as a daisy. Light yellow color with a hint of green. Served a bit too cold at first and really needed 30 mins of air to start showing its stuff and kept building over 2 hours. Really classy and leflaive through and through.
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7/25/2010 - PeterH wrote: 94 Points
De-Licious
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6/25/2010 - KeithAkers wrote: 93 Points
Bubbles and Burgs (David&Ali's, Rockville, MD): nose: real great class and depth with well balanced and regal tones of tart citrus', bits of smoke, green apples, pears and a touch of lemon peels and mineral tones. Great layering on the nose and though it starts off a bit smokey, it pulls back into real good and aged tones
taste: medium/full body with medium+ acidity as well as deep tones of pears, green apples, bits of mineral and stone tones, tart citrus', and hints of smoke. Very well layered with a real suave feel on the palate that really shows off the wine
overall: In retrospect this could've used some decent air time before drinking, but even with Leflaive, it's hard to fully predict what will happen to a 96 white burg. This had a lighter gold color to it and the acidity was showing itself off right now. In the world of no premox, I would say that this could still use another few years to really show off what it can do, but its up to people as to whether to roll the dice or not
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6/25/2010 - tooch wrote: 92 Points
Friday Night Dinner @ David and Ali's: I loved the nose on this bottle. Good doses of smoke, seashells, toffee, dominated the nose. A real treat. I thought the palate was a bit flabby as it lacked much in the way of acidty. Regardless, the body of this wine was big a burly with nice amounts of lemon peel, and watermelon rind adding to flavors of charcoal and toast. Really beautiful wine.
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6/25/2010 - Faryan wrote: 92 Points
Friday Night Dinner (Chez Dave & Ali): Opens up tight and musty, clearly needing some air. With more time, it begins to settle in glass, blowing off a heavy smokiness and develops an interesting pitch of spice and hazelnut that only mature white burgundy really provides. There is some lovely hints of bacon and toast, which is a real interesting combo for a white burg. The palate lacked a bit of structure and felt a touch hollow without an acidic spine, but the nose was the real treat. With more air, the wine developed this really interesting note of sesame seed. Not quite there but it shows its familial breed.
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12/6/2009 - dream wrote: 95 Points
Potent nose of cat pee and sulphur with lemon and mineral notes. Possesses the concentration and sheer material of a Grand Cru with incredible power and intensity. Still quite young and in need of a few more years but this is a succulent, mineral-driven wine that is one of the best Pucelles Leflaive has ever made. Loaded with gripping acidity and crisp fruit flavors of lime and apple.
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10/16/2009 - PeterH wrote: 91 Points
Prob served it a little too cold. The intensity was there, but not as much fruit as I remember. A little out of balance from fruit to acid..
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3/6/2009 - Biglama wrote: 96 Points
volle gele kleur, mooie ingetogen neus die later meer open komt, gele appel, perzik, rijpe peer, mooie zuivere neus met mineraliteit. Smaak is geconcentreerd met rijpe tonen en soepelheid, zuiver en schoon , alles heel subtiel, complex en heel mooi drinkbaar. Wijn is helemaal in orde. Heel fijn glas
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7/30/2008 - PeterH wrote: 95 Points
Just great. Not a hint of PremOx.
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8/3/2007 - James Arthur wrote:
Heavy flint aroma, but a bit tired and prematurely old. Not too much depth. Disappointing.
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7/13/2007 - PeterH wrote: 94 Points
Consumed at lunch with lump crabmeat sauteed in butter and wine.
Cooled to about 57 degrees, decanted for 30 minutes. Color slightly advanced, had me initially worried. But...There was no need to fear, Underdog is here.
Great flavors of custard, butter and bacon fat, framed by lemon zest. Subtle, beautiful bottle of wine, the polar opposite of a big, oaky Calif chard. Good length. Givent the color, I'd give thought to drinking these at a slightly faster rate, maybe finishing them over the next 3-5 years...
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5/16/2007 - Biglama wrote: 92 Points
gele kleur. in eerste instantie wat weinig neus, later meer openheid met vooral mineraliteit met klein geel fruit. smaak is prachtige balans met zuivere zuren en mooie rijpe tonen. elegantie ten top, iets van finesse maakt dit tot een prachtig glas
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5/4/2007 - VDLT Wine wrote: flawed
Over the course of the evening this started to show signs but ultimately dominated by caramel flavors. Some class but not enough acidity.
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10/27/2006 - PeterH wrote: 94 Points
Served before a big dinner at Craft
Just a great showing for this wine. Combination of crisp apples, a little butter, and something else. 6 guys, we coudn't figure out the 'something else'. My friend Bob had his nose deep in the glass. He smiled, looked up and said 'Bacon'! He's right! A little smokiness. He could have said 'saddle leather', or 'smokiness' or almost anything in that camp. But 'Bacon' is more fun! great length, the best bottle I've had so far of this.....
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4/16/2006 - Biglama wrote: 90 Points
Diep gele kleur. In de neus mooie licht geel fruitige tonen, appel abrikoos. Ook licht wat noten en mooie hout impressie. Veel mineraliteit. Erg zuiver in de smaak , mineraliteit, licht filmend en mooi mondvullend. Nog pittige zuren. bij zalm
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1/24/2006 - Will wrote:
Burg OL in Antwerp (t'Fornuis, Antwerp): Very tight at first and significant oak on the nose as well as important acidity in the mouth. Also clear minerality but little fruit at this stage. It got much better with time, opening up and gaining some complexity. Pairing superbly with the raw oysters dish.
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8/6/2005 - sdr wrote: 88 Points
My last bottle and opened many years too soon it seems. Pale yellow healthy color. I decanted it for 2 hours, but even after that plus a couple of hours in the glass it didn't budge. The nose was dominated by intense chalk. Very tight, very young, hard to tell exactly where this is going. The palate demonsrtrated firm fresh acidity and some minerality, but the fruit is hidden. Based on condition and reputation, I would hope for a much better showing down the road, but I would not aggressively seek out more based on this showing. My score may prove much too harsh if this wine blossoms.
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8/1/2003 - VDLT Wine Likes this wine:
One of the best white burgs I've tasted. Understated but elegant. Very interesting
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