As I mentioned in the Vintage Report, Vincent Lécheneaut told me how extremely happy he is with the domaine’s wines in the 2019 vintage. He commented how the warmer vintages are to be embraced, as they give the vigneron the opportunity and responsibility to determine the outcome, after so many decades of just having to pray for reasonable enough weather. Our relationship with Lécheneaut came about through recommendations over the brothers’ meticulous approach to viticulture, so it should come as no surprise that they welcome this new climatic world order and that the wines they have produced are nothing less than exemplary.
2019 Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits, Domaine Lécheneaut
£105 per 6 bottle case in bond
Fresh, clean, ripe pippy fruit. Vibrant summer fruit on the palate. Lovely purity and a gentle frame of tannins give a touch of structure. Drink 2022-2026
2019 Gevrey-Chambertin, Domaine Lécheneaut
£210 per 6 bottle case in bond
Gevrey was widely seen as successful in the vintage and the Lécheneaut’s village wine typically displays good concentration of small dark berry fruit, fine tannins and persistence of dark, fresh fruit and controlled power; a consequence of the fifty-year-old vines from which this wine is produced. Drink 2023-2029
2019 Morey-St Denis, Domaine Lécheneaut
£210 per 6 bottle case in bond
Ripe blue and blackberry fruit on the nose here. A scented floral note, a hint of liquorice and some deeper, riper fruit notes. The palate shows a subtle note of pepper and a silky tannin profile with the mineral presence currently encased by pure ripe fruit and the finish dominated by juicy fruit length. There is lovely harmony and balance here. Drink 2023-2029
2019 Chambolle-Musigny, Domaine Lécheneaut
£225 per 6 bottle case in bond
From six small plots totalling less than half a hectare, the Lécheneaut’s village Chambolle is characterised by pure, perfumed red fruit on the nose, with the palate showing in a graceful and flowing nature with all the elegant red fruit of the nose, ripe tannins and a finish marked by a scented quality and fine mineral length. Drink 2022-2029
2019 Nuits-St Georges, Domaine Lécheneaut
£180 per 6 bottle case in bond
Scented Morello cherry notes and a touch of spice on the nose. The palate shows a vibrant, ripe fruit profile but there is a cool sense of ripeness here allied to a perfectly balanced frame of fine tannins and subtle mineral energy. Drink 2022-2029
2019 Nuits-St Georges, Au Chouillet, Vieilles Vignes, Domaine Lécheneaut
£210 per 6 bottle case in bond
The nose here displays a beautiful depth of concentrated ripe cherry fruit with a touch of cinnamon spice. There is a lovely, cushioned texture to the mid-palate with a pure, clean fruit quality and a silkiness to the tannins. The finish shows a very fine, gently assertive mineral length. Excellent. Drink 2023-2030
2019 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru, Les Borniques, Domaine Lécheneaut
£345 per 6 bottle case in bond
From the 2019 vintage, the Chambolle 1er Cru will be labelled as Les Borniques, the tiny portion of Les Plantes no longer included. Not that the portion of Les Borniques is particularly vast – at 0.15 hectares it yields between 800 and 900 bottles only. The vines in Chambolle are some of the domaine’s oldest and the location of Les Borniques, adjoining as it does Le Musigny itself is worth highlighting. The hallmarks here are purity of fruit and silky texture, with chalky-mineral length and an underlying sense of energy. Drink 2024-2035
2019 Nuits-St Georges 1er Cru, Les Damodes, Domaine Lécheneaut
£330 per 6 bottle case in bond
The nose here is immediately opulent, plush and deeply layered, with soft dark ripe fruit. The palate shows a cushioned depth and juicy fruit, zesty with dried orange peel notes. The balance here between fresh ripe juicy fruit and the velvety tannin profile is so harmonious and holds great promise for future development. Drink 2025-2035
2019 Nuits-St Georges 1er Cru, Les Pruliers, Domaine Lécheneaut
£330 per 6 bottle case in bond
The fruit here is tightly wound but still displays healthy ripe cherry and berry notes of purity and precision. While the fruit intensity is currently very much to the fore, there is a clear mineral power, so typical of Pruliers, that asserts its credentials on a long, finely chiselled finish. Drink 2025-2035
2019 Clos de la Roche, Domaine Lécheneaut
£900 per 6 bottle case in bond
A mere 350 litres of Clos de la Roche is produced by the Lecheneauts, one and a half barrels in the 2019 vintage. Drink 2025-2040