2006 | Domaine des Comtes Lafon | Meursault-Charmes Premier Cru

This is quite a bit riper though there is no overt exoticism present with aromas of peach, spiced pear and apricot that merge into exceptionally rich and relatively big flavors blessed with ample amounts of palate coating dry extract that completely buffer the firm spine of ripe acidity and intense finishing minerality.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: Coming largely from 70-, 40- and 15-year old vines, and treated to around half new barrels, Lafon’s 2006 Meursault Charmes is both more open-knit and more overtly chalky and creamy than its stable mates, but displays notable polish and subtlety. Its nose of diverse citrus and pit fruits is tinged with notes of toast and vanilla. The finish here really “Charms”, enveloping and fanning out expansively, with no let up in sweetness of fruit or suggestions of crushed stone. “Honestly,” Lafon remarks, “when you taste wine from the 70 year old vines before racking, it’s just so lean and so mineral that on its own it’s almost undrinkable, too tough” and benefits from “a portion of young vines which is always much more up-front.” Expect this to be worth following for at least 8-10 years. The spicy, subtly bitter 2005 is polished and well-concentrated, but betrays extraneous hints of barrel and heat, and was outclassed by its siblings on both occasions when I tasted it.

• Allen Meadows: This is quite a bit riper though there is no overt exoticism present with aromas of peach, spiced pear and apricot that merge into exceptionally rich and relatively big flavors blessed with ample amounts of palate coating dry extract that completely buffer the firm spine of ripe acidity and intense finishing minerality. This is balanced and driving with a linear finish that slowly fans out as it lingers.

Producer Information

Domaine des Comtes Lafon is a wine producer in Burgundy making some of the most lauded (and highly priced) white wines from Chardonnay in the region. It is located in Meursault in the Côte de Beaune subregion, but has vineyards in three other villages: Chassagne-Montrachet, Volnay and Monthélie. Comtes Lafon's house and cellar were built in 1869 by the Boch family, but its reputation as a winery was most heavily influenced by Jules Lafon, who married Marie Boch in 1894. Lafon bought many of the significant premier cru plots in Meursault and Volnay, and in 1919, parcels in the grand cru Le Montrachet vineyard. Domaine des Comtes Lafon saw an extended period of sharecropping after Jules Lafon's death and the future of the estate became uncertain. It was Jules' grandson René Lafon who took an interest in the winery and fought to stop the division of the vineyards – a move that secured the future of the domaine. Despite René's intervention, many of the lease agreements with the sharecroppers remained in place for decades. Comtes Lafon was making highly regarded whites in many vintages but without consistency. It wasn't until René's son, Dominique, facilitated the end of the sharecropping agreements in the late 1980s and early '90s that Domaine des Comtes Lafon was able to reach its full potential. In 1995, it adopted organic practices and since 1998 has been entirely biodynamic. Comte Lafon's stand-out wine is its single grand cru Montrachet, which has consistently been listed as one of the most expensive wines in the world. The domaine also has a range of premier cru white and red wines and while the whites have always been highly regarded, its red wines have gained new recognition for their quality in more recent vintages. In 1999 Comtes Lafon expanded into the Mâcon in southern Burgundy with a second label: Les Héritiers du Comtes Lafon.

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