Just after the First World War, Olivier’s grandfather, Joseph Leflaive was faced with the failure of his steel factory in Saint-Etienne. His investments in Burgundy were all he had left and he decided to enlarge his wine estate. It became a family-run operation covering some 35 hectares. His son, Joseph Régis, was in insurance and along with his brother Vincent, decided to take over the reins in 1953. The estate soon began producing top-flight wines, mainly due to the arrival of air conditioning in Puligny in the 1970s. This was a major step for winemakers in this village which sits two meters above the water table and as such, had no underground cellars. The philosophy of Olivier Leflaive is to produce simply great wines. There are no secrets to this – everything starts in the vines with good grapes. Olivier, Franck and their team are lucky to have strong relationships with some of the best winegrowers on the Côte, people who grow their vines with care and attention. The work of the team reflects the company’s family spirit. A solid core of people have been part of this adventure for many years, which ensures a rigorous approach and constant quest for improvement. Olivier Leflaive’s vocation is not just about making good wine. It is also about bringing a human face to the world of wine and breathing fresh life into it.
Wine of powerful and generous character. The nose has notes of lemon but also notes of butter and vanilla. The palate is fairly tensed and sharp. The wine is fat with maturity and fills the mouth with flavors. It needs time to be tasted in its peak. It may deserve to be placed in carafe two hours before.
A noble wine with exceptional purity and aromatic finesse, flowers of the vine, preserved citrus, grilled almond. The palate is elegant. A wine with a promising future.
Wine of great finesse, its bouquet is complex: mineral fragrances, pear, spices. The attack is fresh and mineral on the palate, structured with a fine length in the mouth. A wine of great class to savour within a few years.
