The Lafon 2006 Puligny-Montrachet Champ Gains comes from a stand of tiny-berried, partly-diseased, middle-aged vines that he now manages for a friend. There are only three and a half barrels (one new), although he believes full production should be five or six. Iris and fresh lime in the nose lead to a sleek, polished, very subtly creamy palate with a vivid sense of bright citrus and tiny-berried phenolic grip. Juicy and refreshing, positively starched with chalky, saline, savory minerality, yet also subtly, persistently creamy, this finishes with impressive energy, positively shimmering with minerality and crystal clear fruit. While there is no relevant track record, this strikes me as a wine worthy of 7-10 years cellaring. The equally savory if less elegant 2005 exhibits oceanic depth, including a tidal finish - a profound and age-worthy gem.
Like his neighbor Jean-Marc Roulot, Benoit Ente in Puligny, and a few others, Dominique Lafon obtained authorization to begin picking several days ahead of the official ban de vendange. He set his crew to work over the weekend, and was finished already on the 20th of September. The Perrieres, picked first, reached 13.8% alcohol, but all of the other wines weighed in at lower levels. Lafon insisted – and his wines testified – that the Chardonnay grapes were botrytis free, and he characterized the lees as excellent in quality and practiced “l(fā)ess settling than I did in the past.” That restraint – along with bright acids and pronounced minerality – makes for a richness that often expresses itself other than in creaminess. As these wines evolved, Lafon became increasingly enthusiastic about them, and I found them much more expressive on the eve of bottling than they had been in late 2007. Incidentally, the sickly vines in Lafon’s Desiree vineyard that have given so much bottled pleasure over the years gave their last in the beautifully refined, bittersweet, and for the vintage unusually delicate and creamy 2005. “It tastes as though the vines knew they were going to be pulled out,” was Lafon’s valediction.
A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet (various importers), fax 011-33-3-80-24-29-70; A Daniel Johnnes Selection imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Syosset, NY, tel. (516) 677 9300; Classic Wine Imports, Norwood, MA, tel. (781) 352 1100; Beaune Imports, Berkeley, CA, tel. (510) 559 1040
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