Vincent Lécheneaut greeted us this year and tasted us through a magnificently successful range, the product of an early harvest beginning on 7th September. The Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits was a revelation, this particular wine perhaps benefitting from that extra potential for richness that the vintage could offer. The Lécheneaut Morey, Chambolle, Gevrey and Nuits villages wines are once again a masterclass in the identities of these four villages of the Côte de Nuits, while the Vieilles Vignes, Chouillet was stunning with its scented red fruit purity and finessed tannins. The three premiers crus are outstanding examples, with each terroir so well defined.
2018 Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits, Domaine Lécheneaut
£195 per 12 bottle case in bond
Floral cherry notes on the nose. The palate is fresh and vibrant with a gentle grip and the scented raspberry and loganberry fruit carrying through with good weight and balance. Excellent entry level red. Drink 2020-2023
2018 Morey-St Denis, Domaine Lécheneaut
£195 per 6 bottle case in bond
Fresh, ripe blue fruit nose with a subtle touch of spice. The palate has a pleasing fruit richness underscored by fine, ripe tannins and a tight, focused, mineral length. The fruit clarity shimmers and the persistence of clean, white stone minerality is remarkable. Perhaps not so surprising when you consider the location of the vines, most of which are next to the grand cru of Clos des Lambrays. Drink 2022-2028
2018 Chambolle-Musigny, Domaine Lécheneaut
£220 per 6 bottle case in bond
Ripe, pure red fruit nose. The palate is supple and flowing, showing all the elegant red fruit of the nose. The health of the fruit sings out and the finish is marked by a scented quality. Drink 2022-2028
2018 Gevrey-Chambertin, Domaine Lécheneaut
£195 per 6 bottle case in bond
While quite closed at this stage, the quality of the fruit here is exemplary, with the palate more expansive than the nose and showing excellent concentration of small dark berry fruit. The tannins are fine and this Gevrey is long with dark, fresh fruit and controlled power, a consequence of the fifty-year-old vines from which this wine is produced. Drink 2022-2028
2018 Nuits-St Georges, Domaine Lécheneaut
£360 per 12 bottle case in bond
The value offered by this village Nuits-St Georges continues to amaze us. The attention the Lécheneauts heap on their vineyards shows through clearly in this wine. They harness a purity and vibrancy of fruit that is remarkable. Most significantly, they achieve a level of tannin quality that brings structure and harmony in equal measure. There is pure, ripe, sweet cherry fruit balanced by the grippy minerality of Nuits but without any of the rusticity that defined Nuits in the past. This is serious yet accessible, structured yet harmonious. Exemplary. Drink 2022-2028
2018 Nuits-St Georges, Au Chouillet, Vieilles Vignes, Domaine Lécheneaut
£210 per 6 bottle case in bond
A beautiful scented red fruit quality on the nose gives way to a palate of clean ripe fruit and fine tannins. There is a textural finesse here and this is one of the finest examples of Au Chouillet that we have yet tasted from Philippe and Vincent Lecheneaut. Drink 2022-2028
2018 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Domaine Lécheneaut
£345 per 6 bottle case in bond
A pure, clean, scented red fruit nose leads to a palate of subtly expressed, but deeply concentrated and textured, fresh red fruit. This is finely layered and silkily textured with tannins of great finesse and gentle mineral presence. The finish is focused and full of energy with chalky-mineral length. Drink 2022-2030
2018 Nuits-St Georges 1er Cru, Les Damodes Domaine Lécheneaut
£330 per 6 bottle case in bond
Deep, voluptuous and velvety. The fruit here is incredibly ripe but remains fresh. This captures all the Vosne side aspects that make Damodes so appealing. Textural and fruit-rich with ripe, fruit-encased tannins giving structure and length. Drink 2023-2033
2018 Nuits-St Georges 1er Cru, Les Pruliers Domaine Lécheneaut
£330 per 6 bottle case in bond
Deep fruit core and piercing mineral focus. The fruit here is again almost glossily ripe, capturing the opulence of the vintage, but it is the vineyard character rather than the vintage style that defines this excellent Pruliers. There is such a marked mineral persistence that cuts through the fruit richness. This is a huge success for the Lécheneaut brothers (again) this year. Drink 2023-2033
2018 Clos de la Roche, Domaine Lécheneaut
£900 per 6 bottle case in bond
A single 350 litre barrel is the sum total of the production in 2018. The wine inside shows beautiful pure dark cherry and blackberry fruit together with a touch of spice. The mid-palate is layered and flows with silky texture. There is a great intensity of fruit supported by a firm backbone