Benjamin Leroux Meursault 1er Cru Les Charmes-Dessus 2022

Following the 2017 harvest, Leroux managed something of a coup when he won a hard-fought tender to acquire this vineyard, among a parcel of others. The purchase included a small selection of village plots (including Clos du Village), but the real prizes were well-sited parcels in Volnay Santenots (Les Plures), Meursault-Blagny and this small piece of Premier Cru Charmes lying directly beneath Clos des Perrières. It’s a sliver of 1988-planted vines in the vineyard's upper (Dessus) portion—a section singled out since the 1830s as being the finest part of Les Charmes. This is because the slope is steeper and the soil lighter and stonier than in the lower Charmes-Dessous. This shines through in the wine, which has great class, a gorgeous, pillowy texture and a long, spicy close. Of the five barrels this year, one was new.