Leflaive Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles 2020 (750ML)

96-97 JM / 96 VM / 95 JM / 95 WS / 94 WA / 93-96 BH

Fine pale lemon and lime. What a beautifully gracious nose, this is sheer class. All in white fruit with an engaging ripeness, more detail than Combettes, perhaps more weight than Folatières. Quite muscular for Pucelles. An explosion of fruit on the palate, almost too much to take in but there is nothing vulgar here, just the quintessence of Pucelles. Very long indeed, this is really just a babe in arms.—Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy

The 2020 Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles 1er Cru has a slight mustiness on the nose at first, clarifying to a degree with aeration. Light peppermint scents emerge and perhaps slightly detract from its terroir. There's more yellow fruit here. The palate is well-balanced with a tangy opening, fresh and vibrant. This is a livewire Les Pucelles in the best sense, with plenty of sapidity towards the finish. This is a well-crafted Les Pucelles that is surfeit with energy. Tasted blind at the annual Burgfest tasting. -- Neal Martin

Just a little bit of coconut on the nose, but plenty of fruit behind the oak. The acidity is quite pronounced and the oak dominates the finish for now, but there is no sense of the fruit drying out, so this may just be painfully young. With time this could become sensational. Drink from 2027-2036. Tasted: May 2024.--Jasper Morris, Inside Burgundy

A smooth white, bordering on creamy but with bright acidity, featuring lemon cake, apple tart, mineral, vanilla and clove flavors. Features a fillip of bitterness, like grapefruit peel, on the spicy finish. Youthful and exuberant. Best from 2025 through 2032. 985 cases made, 197 cases imported.—Bruce Sanderson, Wine Spectator

The 2020 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles unwinds in the glass with aromas of pear, peach and green apple mingled with white flowers, freshly baked bread and baking spices. Medium to full-bodied, ample and satiny, with a layered, charming mid-palate and a precise finish, it's a charming, seamless wine in the making.—William Kelley, The Wine Advocate

A notably ripe but still reasonably classic Pucelles nose of honeysuckle, citrus and white orchard fruit aromas, in particular pear, leads to rich, forward and wonderfully opulent medium-bodied flavors that brim with dry extract that coats the palate on the refined and impressively long finish. As it always is, this is a classy wine of finesse but with a generous side to it in 2009. Outstanding.—Allen Meadows, Burghound