2009 Bonnes Mares

The 2009 Bonnes Mares is a tightly-coiled, inward wine, which is not surprising since Leroux’s fruit comes from the terres blanches sector of the vineyard. Today the Bonnes Mares is cool and intensely mineral yet it possesses dazzling balance. All this needs is time for the layers of fruit to start filling out. It is hugely impressive. Tasted from barrel. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2029. Benjamin Leroux is one of Burgundy’s most promising young winemakers. Leroux is best known for the wines he makes at Comte Armand, one of the reference-point properties in the Cote de Beaune. Since 2007 Leroux has made wines under his own label using a micro-negociant model that has become increasingly popular in Burgundy. Leroux sources fruit from some of Burgundy’s top sites and bottles an eye-popping 27 different wines, most in 2-3 barrel lots. I also tasted a number of 2009 whites in addition to these 2009 reds. Readers will find those notes on www.erobertparker.com. The whites are aged in 300-liter barrels. Leroux goes for a tight, mineral-driven style, with no stirring of the lees. Leroux’s passion, ambition and sheer talent have already resulted in a number of stunning, beautiful wines, but my sense is that the best is yet to come. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet, imported by Veritas Imports, Beverly Hills, CA; tel. (310) 205-3803, C’Est Vin, District of Columbia; tel. (703) 243-3559, Scott Paul Wines, Oregon; tel. (503) 852-7300, Wines Unlimited, Louisiana; tel. (504) 897-0191