2016 Lucien Le Moine Meursault Perrières

Lucien le Moine is a rarity in Burgundy. It is a garagiste producer of Grand Cru and Premier Cru Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with a cult reputation for highly individualistic wines. Its founders and owners are the husband and wife team of Mounir Saouma and Rotem Brakir, who started the label only in 2000. Saouma became fascinated with Burgundy while working in a Trappist Monastery in Jerusalem, and later studied oenology in Montpellier, France. His wife Rotem comes from a cheese-making family and she studied agriculture and oenology in Dijon. The couple owns or leases no vineyards of their own but they purchase small batches of juice or very young cuvee from outstanding Grand Cru and Premier Cru vineyards in the Cote d’Or. The couple does all the work themselves and produce, at most, 30,000 bottles a year. Robert M. Parker Jr. has written that “the richness and complexity of (their wines) are stunning.”

Les Perrieres is 34-acre Premier Cru vineyard in Meursault, in Burgundy’s Cote de Beaune. The vineyard includes several sub parcels. They are the 2.4-acre monopole Clos des Perrieres, which belongs to Domaine Albert Grivault, and Les Perrieres Dessous. Because Les Perrieres is in southern Meursault next to Puligny, the Les Perrieres Meursaults are considered to have more minerality than other Meursaults. Burgundy writer Clive Coates has noted that “Perrieres is perhaps the most elegant and persistent of the premier crus. At its best, it is positively brilliant…” Since Meursault lacks a Grand Cru, Meursault’s reputation for excellence is based on the Premier Crus, particularly the whites.

This white variety originated in Burgundy, but is now grown around the world. Its flexibility to thrive in many regions translates to wide flavor profile in the market. Chardonnay is commonly used in making Champagne and sparkling wines.