Lalou Bize-Leroy’s 2010 Savigny-les-Beaune Les Narbantons is drop-dead gorgeous. Savory herbs, licorice, tar, smoke and incense are some of the many notes that emerge from this huge, layered Burgundy. Elements of inner tension and raw power convey a visceral thrill that is hard to capture with words. This is a magnificent showing, not to mention a Burgundy that goes straight to the heart. Anticipated maturity: 2022-2040. Lalou Bize-Leroy is always among the first growers to bottle, as she was once again in 2010. Therefore, I have chosen to present final, in-bottle reviews of the 2010 reds along with the Domaine Leroy and D’Auvenay 2010 whites. All of the wines came in at or near the top of my barrel scores. Thinking back to the day I tasted the 2010s from barrel in a very empty-looking cellar, I am reminded, that, as elsewhere, the already minuscule quantities of these wines was made even smaller by the mercilessly short crop in 2010. Readers who can find the wines should not hesitate. In this vintage, the Leroy wines are deeply marked by terroir. Although I don’t share all of her views, tasting with Lalou Bize-Leroy is always a fascinating experience, as everything she does is informed by the deepest and most total conviction imaginable. There is no more ardent exponent of the most fundamental of all Burgundian values – the concept of terroir – than Lalou Bize-Leroy. Importer: Martine’s Wines. Novato, CA; tel. (415) 883-040