2010 Chevalier Montrachet

The 2010 Chevalier-Montrachet is totally seamless from start to finish. Layers of intense fruit wrap around the palate as this expressive, nuanced wine opens up in the glass. There is terrific dimension and depth to the aromas and flavors in this vivid Chevalier. Anticipated maturity: 2013+. Olivier Leflaive's domaine lineup will be getting a big boost in the next few years with the addition of parcels in Sous le Dos d-Ane, Pucelles, Folatieres, Chevalier-Montrachet, and Batard-Montrachet that previously were part of the Domaine Leflaive holdings. In addition, Olivier Leflaive continues with a negociant operation, whose wines are reviewed separately to avoid confusion. Overall, I find the Domaine Olivier Leflaive bottlings more interesting than the Maison wines. All of these 2010s are fairly open and accessible. The best wines may hold for some time, but I don't think cellaring will result in meaningfully more complexity. Importer: Frederick Wildman and Sons Ltd, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700

Less immediate than the Bâtard but even greater concentration. This has everything: minerality, bright zesty fruit, creamy texture with restrained oak expression and fabulous length and depth and purity. (JH)