Domaine Larue 2024 Saint-Aubin 1er Cru "Sous Roche Dumay", Burgundy

While Burgundy may have a reputation for being forever unchanged and locked into traditional ways, the standout domaines are constantly and quietly adapting and evolving, all the while respecting tradition and the past. When done properly, the quest is to never follow a trend, but rather to best express the land from which a wine came, which is and always will be the one element of Burgundy you just can’t recreate anywhere else. A prime example of this process is at Domaine Larue, where some quiet shifts and adjustments have led to a profound flourishing of the wines. To name just a few, the aging of all the wines has been extended by several months, with more lees in the barrel, for a more unctuous palate. This shift is particularly noticeable in the 2024 blancs, where that extra bit of oomph balances perfectly with the bright acidity of the vintage. Sulfur levels are down across the board, remarkably apparent in the reds, which don’t see a drop until the spring following harvest, with explosive fruit aromatics that really make these wines shine in their youth.
      Even the terroir Larue works has seen an evolution during these last few years. The village of Saint-Aubin is nestled below some of the steepest and highest vines in the Côte de Beaune, with some of the poorest soils the Côte has to offer. These factors played against Saint-Aubin for many generations: its grapes struggled to ripen, and its wines had a leaner, greener touch, which explains why the village never attained household-name status like its lower-altitude neighbors. In our warmer modern era, those burdens of the past now provide a terroir with an incredible resistance to heat, drought, and disease, with ideal ripening. The pristine grapes that arrive at harvest time allow Larue to take a step back in the cellar, and also explain a notch up in complexity and greatness you may have noticed these last few vintages.