Domaines Leflaive : Puligny-Montrachet 1er cru "Les Pucelles" 2023

Characteristics and Tasting Notes of the Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru "Les Pucelles" 2023 Domaine Leflaive

Tasting

Nose

The nose opens on ripe peach and orange blossom, layered with toasted nut tones brought by barrel aging, and finished with a subtle iodine-like, saline nuance that lends freshness to the aromatic profile.

Palate

Full-bodied and ample, the palate shows a fleshy, layered texture with a seamless, enveloping mouthfeel. Bright acidity runs through the wine, balancing its richness and giving it tension and lift.

Food and wine pairings

This Puligny-Montrachet pairs beautifully with seared scallops prepared with a light herb-and-garlic touch. Its combination of richness and freshness also makes it a fine match for delicate fish dishes served with butter or cream-based sauces, as well as for white meats or poultry prepared with cream and mushrooms.

Serving and cellaring

The Puligny-Montrachet 1er cru "Les Pucelles" 2023 is best served at a temperature of around 12 to 14 °C. A brief decanting or aeration in the glass can help open its aromatic layers, particularly when enjoyed young. No official cellaring guidance has been published by the estate for this specific vintage.

Other characteristics

This is a still, dry white wine made from 100 % chardonnay. No official figures regarding residual sugar or pH have been published by the estate for this vintage.

A Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru from Domaine Leflaive, Shaped by Old Vines and Biodynamic Farming

The Estate

Domaine Leflaive was founded in 1905, when Joseph Leflaive acquired vineyard land in Puligny-Montrachet, in the heart of Burgundy's Côte de Beaune. Today the estate is led by Brice de La Morandière, continuing a family legacy built on precision and respect for terroir. Since 1997, the vineyards have been farmed biodynamically, a pioneering choice at the time in the region. Domaine Leflaive is recognized for its white chardonnay wines, producing four grand cru and four premier cru appellations in Puligny-Montrachet, among which Les Pucelles holds a historic place.

The Vineyard

The Puligny-Montrachet 1er cru "Les Pucelles" comes from three distinct plots within the climat: Clos du Meix, la Grande and la Petite, together totaling 3.06 hectares on clay-limestone soils. The vines were planted between the 1950s and the 1980s, with some parcels in la Grande dating back to the early 1960s. The vineyard is farmed biodynamically, with plowing carried out by horse rather than machine, limiting soil compaction and preserving the vines' root systems.

The Vintage

The 2023 growing season in the Côte de Beaune was marked by temperatures well above seasonal norms and a significant water deficit during the growing period, along with notable disease pressure. Ripening proved uneven across plots, requiring close monitoring and a rigorous selection of the fruit at harvest.

Winemaking and aging

For the Puligny-Montrachet 1er cru "Les Pucelles" 2023, the grapes were harvested entirely by hand, with sorting in the vineyard and a ripeness assessment carried out plot by plot. The juice underwent a long, gentle pneumatic pressing followed by a 24-hour settling period before being transferred to oak barrels, of which 22 % were new, sourced mainly from Allier oak with a smaller proportion from the Vosges. The wine was aged for twelve months in barrel, followed by six months in tank prior to bottling, with only minimal fining and filtration applied.

Grape Varieties

This wine is made from 100 % chardonnay.