Francois Legros Vougeot Premier Cru Les Cras 2019

“The insider’s choice chez Legros is the 2019 Vougeot 1er Cru Les Cras, a beautiful wine that soars from the glass with scents of raspberries and plums mingled with orange oil, peonies, exotic spices, violets and licorice. Medium to full-bodied, ample and perfumed, with melting tannins and lively acids, it’s elegant and seamless, concluding with a perfumed finish. This is well worth seeking out. Drink: 2021-2039. 93 points

Domaine François Legros comprises fully 57 parcels, up to 50 kilometers apart—a considerable logistical challenge! Yet Legros has cultivated the soils for the last 15 years and works along largely organic lines, excepting only some synthetic anti-mildew treatments in years with elevated disease pressure. Much of the domaine’s Pinot Noir is pruned in cordon, and yields are controlled. Winemaking is simple: a brief cold soak, when punch-downs are employed, followed by three to four weeks’ maceration, with tanks heated to 31 degrees centigrade at the end. After pressing, the young wines are drawn off into barrels from Chassis, Cavin and François Frères, each barrel seeing four liters of lees. The most serious reds see two winters in barrel, with bottling in March. The style here is very classical and charming: no smoke or mirrors, just classic, well-made Burgundy. The insider’s choice is the lovely Vougeot 1er Cru Les Cras, a cuvée well worth seeking out, but everything here comes recommended.”

William Kelley, Wine Advocate (09/21)