2014 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru

The 2014 Bƒtard Montrachet Grand Cru has a more powerful bouquet than the Bienvenue-Bƒtard-Montrachet, very energetic with fresh pear, white peach and citrus fruit. The palate is nicely balanced but does not quite offer the detail and precision of the Bienvenue at the moment. It's a grand cru that will hopefully up its game by the time of bottling, because on this showing, it is surpassed by the 2014 Bienvenue.

Author: Neal Martin

This intense white exhibits lemon, apple and honeydew melon flavors over a backbone of crackling acidity. Linear and persistent, this has an extra dimension, resonating on the long aftertaste of spice and mineral.

Author: Bruce Sanderson

This is also surprisingly expressive at this early stage with a broad-ranging nose that features notes of apple, pear, white flowers, wood spice and a hint of something mildly exotic. The big-bodied yet refined flavors possess a wonderfully textured mouth feel thanks primarily to the abundance of palate coating dry extract that does a beautiful job of buffering the notably firm but not aggressive acid backbone on the hugely long finish where a hint of wood appears. This is slightly finer than usual with a really lovely sense of overall balance and harmony.

Author: Allen Meadows