Thanks to producers like Héritiers du Comte Lafon, we find respite in the fact that world-class wines don’t have to be attached to the most prestigious appellations. Dominique Lafon has been making wines on his family’s estate in Meursault since the age of 26, and when he decided to start his project in the Mâcon, people figured he would strive to make a “baby Meursault,” or a “mini Montrachet.” Instead, Lafon was bent on making wines that represent the expression of Mâcon, and has proven the region capable of producing high-caliber wines despite it being outside Burgundy’s fabled Côte d’Or.
Lafon farms 36 acres in some of the best hillside parcels in Mâcon, and, in pure Lafon style, has converted each vineyard to biodynamic farming. Dominique preserves the fruity style of the region by aging wines in large, neutral wood barrels and bottling slightly early. We are lucky enough to offer this Chardonnay from the high-altitude, outlying limestone hills of Milly-Lamartine, a village close to the region’s namesake town of Mâcon. The 2015 Héritiers du Comte Lafon Mâcon Milly-Lamartine is the latest incarnation of a wine that has become a value staple for us—we purchase all we can year in and year out, as there are very few wines of any type that offer this kind of breed at this price.
Without any previous winemakers in the family, Dominique Lafon had to learn everything from scratch, often to the amusement of neighboring vintners. Now, Lafon is a world-renowned vigneron, praised not only for his rich, focused Chardonnays from Meursault and Montrachet, but for his integral part in shifting farming practices throughout the Cote d’Or. At a young age, he championed a group of innovative winemakers to employ organic and biodynamic viticulture in Burgundy, convincing even the most traditional houses to stop using chemicals and pesticides. His careful practices in the vineyard have led to a more subtle, hands-off approach in the cellar as well, and the resulting wines are those of focus and precision.
Lafon was the first person in the Côte d’Or to purchase land in the Mâcon, a region that was once known more for bulk wine production. He employs the same practices in this southerly region as he does with his wines from Meursault and Montrachet. Grapes are picked by hand and wines are fermented and aged in large, neutral oak barrels to preserve fruit and minerality. The Mâconnais gets a higher amount of sunshine in the south, and berries are gifted with a ripeness less common in the northern reaches of Burgundy. As a result, they’re fruitier in character. Milly-Lamartine is a village in the western part of the Mâcon, and is home base for Lafon’s operation there. The east-facing vines sit at 300 meters, and the region maintains fairly cool temperatures for freshness and acidity.
The 2015 Héritiers Comte Lafon Mâcon Milly-Lamartine is a classic example of Lafon’s wines, backed by the forward, well-rounded 2015 vintage. In the glass it’s a bright straw-gold with green reflections at the rim, while the nose is engaging, floral and fresh, with notes of ripe yellow apple, white peach, white grapefruit, and lots of oyster-shell minerality. On the palate it is citrusy, fresh, and, like the Lafon Meursaults, perfectly pure and clean. It is broad and lushly textured, while maintaining a crystalline, mineral focus and a saline finish. Lay it down for a couple years to further integrate the fruit and broaden the texture further, or, if drinking now (highly recommended), give it a healthy decant and take in the vibrancy of young fruit. As always, I’m going to tell you to drink it at a warmer temp than “refrigerator” temperature, to coax out maximum aromatics. This should be a summer go-to all season long, and the attached scallop and summer squash recipe complements the richness of the vintage, while highlighting the fresh fruit component as well. Cheers!
