Gilles Lafouge in the new cellar

Delicious, Affordable Burgundies from Gilles Lafouge in Auxey-Duresses!

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While value is relative in the ever more expensive world of Burgundy, perhaps no grower offers as much value as Gilles Lafouge. The wines are precise, honest and satisfying at prices that allow for (nearly) everyday drinking as well as cellaring beautifully. John Gilman's excellent View From the Cellar concurs:    

Not surprisingly, for folks who have been following the wines from Domaine Lafouge over the last decade or so, Gilles Lafouge has made utterly superb wines in the 2020 vintage. He started picking his chardonnay parcels on August 23rd and finished the last of his pinot noir parcels within the week. All of the domaine’s white wines come in between thirteen and 13.5 percent octane in this vintage and are absolutely precise, minerally-infused and very pure wines that strongly recall the wines from Domaine Roulot in their snap, lime-scented fruit tones and beautifully pure expressions of their underlying terroir. Not surprisingly, Monsieur Lafouge considers 2020 an absolutely exceptional vintage for white wines from his domaine, which he notes “have the fine acidity and minerality of 2014, but even better depth than that vintage.” Like so many estates in the Côte de Beaune, he observed that “yields for the white wines were very correct in 2020, but red wines were down on average about thirty percent in this vintage.” He felt that it was very important to keep the texture of the tannins as refined as possible in 2020, so he did no pigeages (punch-downs) at all for his red wines in this vintage and was content to simply pump over the juice for extraction, as he did not want to extract any coarseness in his tannins. His red wines are very black fruity in the style of the vintage, but also quite classically proportioned and beautifully reflective of their underlying terroir."       Domaine Lafouge is definitely "under the radar" but is producing beautiful Burgundies that are superb values!

There is excellent vineyard work here, in the process to becoming organic, with very short pruning and no green harvest. Hand-harvesting and wild-yeast fermentations of course, about 10 to 25% new oak, minimal batonnage for the whites and natural clarifications. A particular standout and superb value is the "village" Auxey-Duresses Rouge - it shows pretty aromatics with lovely ripeness and balance on the palate - it's delicious now and will drink nicely over the next ten to fifteen years.

(Tasting notes are fom Mr. Gilman's "View from the Cellar" - any serious wine-lover should consider subscribing!)

The wines are in our warehouse, please allow 5 days before pick-up/shipping

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Lafouge 2020 Bourgogne Aligoté

 "The 2020 Bourgogne Aligoté from Domaine Lafouge is half barrel-fermented and half fermented in stainless steel and the combination works beautifully in 2020, as the wine offers up scents of green apple, lime, stony minerality and a pretty topnote of white flowers. On the palate the wine is crisp, full-bodied and racy, with a good core, fine focus and grip and a long, zesty finish. These vines are sixty years of age, so this is one of the top Aligoté bottlings one will come across in the Côte de Beaune."  John Gilman "View from the Cellar"

  • Out of Stock
  • white
  • 0 in stock
  • $23.99

Lafouge 2020 Auxey-Duresses Les Boutonniers

"Les Boutonniers" is contiguous with Meursault "Meix Chavaux" on shallow soils of clay, high in iron, over the limestone bedrock, usually giving a somewhat lean and very "mineral" white Burgundy. "The 2020 les Boutonniers is one of the ripest white wine in the cellars this year, coming in at a svelte 13.2 percent octane! The wine is beautiful, offering up a complex nose of tart pear, apple, lime blossoms, chalky soil tones, beeswax and just a hint of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is bright, full-bodied and tensile in personality, with a fine core of fruit, excellent mineral drive and a long, zesty finish. I would be inclined to give this lovely wine a couple of years in the cellar and let some of its secondary layers unfurl. Fine juice." John Gilman "View from the Cellar"

  • Out of Stock
  • white
  • 0 in stock
  • $43.99

Lafouge 2020 Auxey-Duresses Les Hautés Blanc

The Lafouge Auxey-Duresses "Les Hautés" is from a north-facing parcel fairly high on the slope next to Meursault "Les Vireuils."

"The 2020 Auxey-Duresses Blanc “les Hautés” from Monsieur Lafouge is another beautifully racy and minerally example of the vintage. The bouquet jumps from the glass in a blaze of green apple, fresh lime, dried flowers, beeswax, limestone minerality and a whisper of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is precise, full-bodied and snappy, with a lovely core, excellent soil inflection and grip, bouncy acids and a very long, focused and very promising finish. Again, just a bit of patience will be handsome dividends with this excellent young wine."  John Gilman "View from the Cellar"

  • Out of Stock
  • white
  • 0 in stock
  • $44.99

Lafouge 2020 Auxey-Duresses Rouge

The Lafouge Auxey-Duresses Rouge is always one of our best values in old-fashioned terroir-expressive red Burgundies. Here is John Gilman's "View from the Cellar" on the 2020 vintage:  "The nose is quite black fruity this year, wafting from the glass in a mix of black cherries, dark berries, bonfire, espresso, dark soil tones and a hint of cedar. On the palate the wine is deep, focused and full, with a lovely core of fruit, ripe tannins and fine length and grip on the well-balanced finish. This will need some bottle age to blossom, but will be a lovely drink once it is ready." (One case maximum, please)

  • Out of Stock
  • red
  • 0 in stock
  • $39.99

Lafouge 2020 Auxey-Duresses 1er Cru La Chapelle

La Chapelle is a "climat" within Les Breterins and Reugne, on the steep slope of la Montagne de Bourdon, facing south/southeast. The vines are well-placed in mid-slope and are mostly sixty years-old, giving the most "generous" of the three Lafouge premier crus. The soils here are partially "marnes blanches"which seems to contribute to the more supple and elegant style of wines from this site. EL

"The fine premier cru of la Chapelle did not suffer from the same draconian yields as the Climat du Valle this year and the wine has utterly classical proportions as a result. The beautiful bouquet wafts from the glass in a refined mix of black cherries, sweet dark berries, gamebird, a touch of cocoa powder, lovely soil tones, currant leaf, bonfire and cedar. On the palate the wine is pure, precise and full-bodied, with a fine core, excellent soil undertow, already impressive complexity and a long, poised and seamlessly tannic finish that closes with excellent mineral drive and lift. Great juice."  John Gilman "View from the Cellar"

  • Out of Stock
  • red
  • 0 in stock
  • $48.99

Lafouge 2020 Auxey-Duresses 1er Cru Les Duresses

Les Duresses, according to Jasper Morris, is the best placed vineyard in Auxey-Duresses, on a steep south-east facing slope that continues into Monthelie. This wine is always well-structured, a bit less forward than Lafouge's La Chapelle and it ages beautifully.

"The 2020 les Duresses rouge was also absolutely singing at the time of my visit to Domaine Lafouge. The nose is pure and classy, offering up a fine constellation of cassis, sweet dark berries, bitter chocolate, a superb base of soil tones, bonfire, cedar and a nice touch of coffee bean in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, focused and complex, with a superb core of fruit, lovely soil signature, ripe, buried tannins and impeccable balance on the long, focused and complex finish. Another stellar bottle in the making" John Gilman "View from the Cellar"

  • Out of Stock
  • red
  • 0 in stock
  • $47.99