Wine Spectator senior editor and lead taster for Burgundy, Bruce Sanderson, writes of his recent trip to France where he visited boutique negociant Lucien Le Moine to check out the 2018 vintage. Sanderson notes that “Mounir Saouma of Lucien Le Moine often goes against the prevailing wisdom in Burgundy…While many 2018s are already bottled and some can already be found on local wine lists, the Lucien Le Moine cuvées are still resting in barrel, unracked and without any sulfur.” Sanderson details the unique winemaking processes that set Lucien Le Moine apart from most Burgundy producers, and after tasting through the 2018 vintage, reveals the wines have all the signs of classic-rated Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays in the making.
Read the full feature HERE.
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Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Pommard 1er Cru “Les Grands Epenots”
Pommard 1er Cru “Les Grands Epenots”
The 25 acre Les Grands Epenots vineyard is considered by some one of the very finest climats in Pommard. The fruit for Lucien Le Moine’s “Les Grands Epenots” comes from higher up in the vineyard leading to a classic and very fine expression. The vineyard is higher, it has better drainage, and there is more limestone, resulting in a wine that is both silkier and more easygoing than “Les Epenots.”
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru “Lavaut Saint-Jacques”
Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru “Lavaut Saint-Jacques”
Estournelles St Jacques sits just above Lavaut St Jacques, a five acre vineyard at the top of the slope. Mounir Saouma describes this wine by staying it is in character between Les Cazetiers, which is fine and subtle, and Lavaut St Jacques, which is more powerful and tannic. Estournelles St Jacques has a beautiful balance, and a lovely weight that also displays subtlety.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru “Les Cazetiers”
Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru “Les Cazetiers”
Les Cazetiers is a 21 acre vineyard that faces almost due east. Always one of Lucien Le Moine’s exciting wines, it combines fantastic definition and complexity. Mounir Saouma explains that the vines he uses are nearly 100 years old, and there is tremendous subtlety, spiciness and elegance. It is the essence of Gevrey without the body, all finesse.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Meursault 1er Cru “Charmes”
Meursault 1er Cru “Charmes”
Charmes is larger than both Perrieres and Genevrières put together, extending all the way down to the Meursault-Puligny road. The upper part of the vineyard produces extremely compelling Meursaults, with a soft flowery character that is less racy than Perrieres and less spicy than Genevrières, but just as intense.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru “Les Hauts Doix”
Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru “Les Hauts Doix”
Les Haut Doix is a small vineyard between Les Charmes and Les Amoureuses. It sits within Les Amoureuses before the road to Les Charmes, but the wines show more acidity and fresh fruit than Les Amoureuses. It is crisper, less spicy, with fruit that is less ripe in character than Les Amoureuses. There is less drainage in this vineyard, and the soil is more viscous.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru “Les Amoureuses”
Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru “Les Amoureuses”
This esteemed vineyard bordering Musigny and Clos de Vougeot regularly produces one of Lucien Le Moine’s most celebrated wines. Mounir says that the vineyard parcel from which his wine comes from has roots that go deep into the rocks, and the wine can be described as one with a lot of minerality, but with very little tannin or acidity, and notably a character of a very limited attack that draws out to an incredibly persistent finish.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru
Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru
The Mazis-Chambertin parcel used by Lucien Le Moine lies in poor clay soils, from the highest part of the vineyard where there is only 4 inches of soil. Mounir likes to say that the sun almost touches the roots. As a result, this wine has powerful, jammy, almost barbecue flavor and a lot of smokiness (some will attribute this to oak, but it is the natural character of the site). There is an animal side to the wine that at Lucien Le Moine is tempered by an extended aging which brings out notably a red currant character. In addition, with bottle age the fruit becomes more apparent.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru
Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru
A vineyard sitting between Mazis-Chambertin and Chambertin, Chambertin-Clos de Bèze is on the same limestone as Montrachet - you can almost think of it as a wine from Chassagne, a white wine with red color. It has almost an essence on the palate, it is supple, long, and without a lot of body or tannin. A sublime wine.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru
Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru
Mounir thinks of Bonnes-Mares as the ambassador of all the Côte d’Or – taste 15 wines from the Côte de Beaune and Côte de Nuits, and when you come to Bonnes-Mares it will have all the fruit, tannin, sweetness, and spice of the wines you just tasted. Because of its multi-dimensional power and beauty, Bonnes-Mares has become one of if not the signature wine from Lucien Le Moine.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru “Les Baudes”
Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru “Les Baudes”
Lying just under Bonnes-Mares, Les Baudes shows a more structured and powerful side of Chambolle-Musigny.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru “Cailleret”
Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru “Cailleret”
Chassagne-Montrachet Caillerets is defined by minerality. It is a very classy wine, with lots of dustiness. It’s the wine in Chassagne that you can’t totally pin down with an easy description, and that’s why some consider it a Grand Cru level. Minerality is the main point – little white stones, lots of limestone.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Puligny-Montrachet 1er “Champ Canet”
Puligny-Montrachet 1er “Champ Canet”
Mounir describes Champ Canet as a frustrated Puligny. It has a lot of vivacity, it is racy and salty, influenced strongly by Meursault. You can think of it almost as a Meursault Perrieres in Puligny.
Lucien Le Moine
Lucien Le Moine Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru
Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru
The gentleman, as Mounir calls Chevalier-Montrachet, a wine that always shows lovely definition and everything in place; classic grace.
Related Producers
Lucien Le Moine
Burgundy, France
In two decades of work, Lucien Le Moine has become one of the most talked about Burgundy producers, making some of the most sought after wines from the region. The approach is extreme – two people, together doing everything by hand, working with a dazzling array of Burgundy’s great terroirs.