The best producers of white Burgundy, Comtes Lafon included, all have one thing in common: location, location, location. In a region where a mere foot separates a grand cru from lieu-dit or from a village vineyard, location is everything. Comtes Lafon’s generations-old and more recent expertly acquired holdings in Meursault all deliver an unrivaled, magical experience. It just doesn’t get any better. This particular wine represents some of the very best sites in Meursault and is the first vintage of a coveted bottling from the recently acquired lieu-dit vineyard of Clos de la Baronne along with lieux-dits En Luraules, Les Crotots and En la Barre, which boasts 40-year-old vines and the famous Clos de la Barre as a next-door neighbor. From these carefully tended and selected gentle slopes comes a beautiful creaminess and fine minerality unrivaled throughout the appellation. Further, the phenomenal 2011 white wine vintage, which continues to impress, delivers a wine that simply embodies everything a great Burgundy should.
The roots of the Domaine are as intriguing as the vine’s. The Lafon name actually originated in the Pyrenees of southwest France. Patriarch and future mayor of Meursault, Jules Lafon, hailed from there before he married Marie Boch whose wine merchant family had an estate in Meursault, which is actually home to the Domaine today. The Lafon-Boch union has continued to nurture the land and build the Domaine since. Although Jules and Marie’s disinterested sons, Pierre and Henri, allowed the holdings to transition to sharecroppers, Henri’s son, René, took the reins in 1956. René not only saved the Domaine, he implemented the then rare practice of Domaine bottling by 1961. When Dominique took over for his father in 1984, he transferred all the sharecropping agreements when they came up for renewal back into the hands of the family Domaine. With sole control over vineyard practices and quality, Dominique and Comtes Lafon were granted organic certification in 1995 then transitioned to include biodynamic viticulture by 1998. The result of Dominique’s tireless efforts and guidance is truly without rival and this wine is a faithful example of that.
The 2011 Domaine des Comtes Lafon exhibits a light golden hue that moves to green reflections on the rim. The incredibly complex nose tantalizes the senses with aromas of lemon meringue, fresh yellow apple and pineapple brioche layered with fresh acacia blooms, honeycomb, oyster shells and a hint of hazelnut puree over underlying notes of vanilla bean and baking spice. The lush, creamy palate boasts perfect freshness and structure that bolsters the immense concentration. The flavors constantly evolve to reveal layer after layer of fresh cut yellow apple, dried pineapple, orange blossoms as well as lime and lime zest, all of which is driven by fine crushed chalk and oyster shell minerality. Although the near endless finish delivers refreshing satisfaction, this is also a wine that seduces you into pondering its profundity long after the bottle is empty. This is just the beginning of a beautiful life for this wine, however, it was quite the crowd-stunner at a recent dinner party. If you plan to enjoy a bottle soon, wait a few weeks following shipment and don’t even think of drinking this wine without decanting for at least one hour. I prefer to serve this wine above cellar temperature at about 60-65 degrees to give the most complex characteristics a voice. If you do choose to wait until the wine starts its long peak around 2020 and beyond, your patience will be rewarded. The longer you wait, the nuttier and more aromatically complex this wine will be. I recommend safely aging for around five to ten more years. However, I must stress a major variable to how this wine shows down the road will all come down to storage conditions. Whenever you decided to open this bottle, take the time to enjoy it as Domaine des Comtes Lafon offers one of life’s rare treasures. In the spirit of morel mushroom season, prepare this scallop in brown butter sauce recipe with sautéed morels for an inspired pairing.
