Allen Meadows - Score: 95 (2017 Apr.)

I held my breath when this was opened given the number of premoxed 2004s I've encountered from Leflaive but happily my concern was unwarranted as the highly complex and elegant nose of citrus, wet stone and white floral aromas was not only quite fresh but even relatively youthful. Confirming the impression conveyed by the nose was the excellent vibrancy of the beautifully well-detailed and vibrant medium-bodied flavors that exude an almost aggressive minerality onto the penetratingly persistent and impeccably well-balanced finish. This is strikingly good and if perhaps not one of the all-time great Leflaive vintages for their Chevalier, this more than holds its own. Note that for my taste this is still on the way up and while it would be no crime to open a magnum now, it should reward a few more years of cellarling and then drink for another 10 to 15 years after that.

Vinous - Score: 96+ (2019 Sep.)

Bright, light yellow. Very rich, explosive aromas of exotic pineapple and honey lifted by pungent calcaire. Extremely rich and concentrated but classically dry and fine-grained, without an ounce of excess weight. A powerful expression of crushed-stone minerality, with its grapefruit and lemon cut accentuating the impression of inner-mouth tension and energy. Finishes extremely long, with a fine dusting of tannins and the strong lemony acidity drawing out the fruit. The pH here is a very low 3.0, according to managing director Brice de la Morandière. Just after the bottling, I described this wine's pineapple and crushed-stone aromas as Riesling-like--at least compared to the estate's Batard-Montrachet. A very strong vintage for this wine, and a spectacular start to the tasting. This Chevalier-Montrachet should be long-lived. (13.05% natural alcohol; the harvest at Domaine Leflaive began on September 14; overall production was reduced by half in 2012, owing to a long, difficult flowering with extensive coulure and millerandage_; at the time, then-winemaker Eric Remy noted that "rot was the only problem that we didn't have in 2012")