Hubert Lamy Saint Aubin 1er Les Frionnes 2022

Hubert Lamy Saint Aubin 1er Les Frionnes 2022

Olivier Lamy and his vines appear to have handled the 2022 growing season admirably, despite the hydric deficit and warm conditions. This is an estate whose wines have generally demanded a bit of patience out of the gates, yet the 2022s are especially charming, exhibiting a youthful expressiveness and sense effortless this year that makes them especially appealing. Bottling under Diam 30, with concomitantly somewhat lower levels of free sulfites, surely has something to do with it. But it's probably also simply the result of over two decades' work coming together in a seamless synthesis. Whether it's cutting-edge viticulture, including plantings at over 20,000 vines per hectare and unhedged canopies; extended maturation on the lees, which now amounts to 24 months in total, 23 of those in largely neutral wood; obsessive attention to closures and bottling practices; or a host of other small details that, cumulatively, make the difference between the best and the rest, Lamy has spared nothing to get to where he is today. - William Kelley

Lamy has 2.4 hectares in the 1er Cru Les Frionnes, with vines planted in 1935, 1960 and 1985. It’s a southeast-facing site with old, decomposed limestone/clay soils and the topsoil covered in fragmented limestone. The vines are adjacent to the Derrière chez Edouard site, but this is a slightly warmer terroir, so it’s picked earlier. Frionnes gives pulpy fruit yet vibrant, saline freshness and a compact, rocky close. As Olivier Lamy says, it’s a terroir that has “one foot in Chablis, one foot in the Cote de Beaune”.

“A fresher, more airy nose – no reduction here. That, now classic, leading wave of acidulated fruit (here). Properly intense in this finish – that’s a really great finish. My new favourite.” Bill Nanson, Burgundy Report

“The 2022 Saint-Aubin Les Frionnes 1er Cru comes from Kimmeridgian soils. This feels focused and mineral-driven on the nose, similar to the Les Murgers des Dents de Chien. There are fleeting touches of oyster shell and fruits de mer blossoming in the glass. The palate is very well balanced, fresh and taut, with a killer line of acidity. The initial roundness dovetails into a stricter and more linear finish. This is superb.” 93 points, Neal Martin, Vinous

“The 2022 Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Les Frionnes is saline and mineral, unfurling in the glass with notes of white flowers, oyster shells and citrus oil. Medium-bodied, satiny and racy, with a pure core of fruit and a penetrating, mineral finish. It's derived from plantings at between 11,000-14,000 vines per hectare in Kimmeridgian limestone.” 93 points, William Kelley, The Wine Advocate