Lucien Lemoine

The History of Lucien Le Moine

The Lucien Le Moine adventure begins far from Burgundy, in Mounir Saouma's native Lebanon. In 1989, at the age of 22, he left his country in the midst of turmoil and joined a Cistercian monastery near Jerusalem, where he lived for seven years. It was there, in contact with monks who had come from the monastery of Septfonds in the Allier (having arrived in Jerusalem in 1890 with their books and their vines), that he discovered his passion for wine. He learned the ancient techniques described in Cistercian manuscripts: gentle pressing, ageing in barrels without racking, bottling by gravity at the full moon. This extraordinary training would forever nourish his winemaking philosophy.

Mounir then settled in Beaune, where he completed his training with oenology studies in Montpellier and several years at a Burgundian négociant. Aided by Bernard Noblet from the domaine de la Romanée-Conti, he took charge of several estates (notably the Château de Chassagne) and began crafting his own wines. In 1999, he founded with his wife Rotem Brakin their négociant-éleveur house, which they named Lucien Le Moine, in fond reference to the nickname the monks gave him (Lucien) and to his own (the monk). The beginnings were modest: 33 pieces across 19 crus in 1999. Today, the house vinifies 38 crus for approximately 70 to 100 barrels annually, and its name appears on the greatest wine lists on the planet.

The Terroirs and Vines of Lucien Le Moine

Lucien Le Moine is a négociant-éleveur, meaning the house does not own its own vines in Burgundy, but selects each year the grapes or musts from a network of more than 80 carefully hand-picked partner growers. Mounir Saouma fully embraces this particularity, which he claims as a strength: in his view, "buying grapes is vulgar, one cannot have the same knowledge of the land as the producers, so we trust our growers." The house focuses exclusively on the finest climats of the Côte d'Or, from the Premiers Crus of Beaune, Volnay, Pommard, Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet in the Côte de Beaune, to the prestigious Grand Crus of Chambolle-Musigny, Vosne-Romanée, Vougeot, Gevrey-Chambertin and Corton.

The selection of partners is based on a simple principle: finding the best producer for each cru and negotiating a single barrel with them. This "haute couture" approach guarantees maximum quality in each cuvée, while deliberately limiting volumes, with a maximum of three barrels per cru. Outside Burgundy, the Saouma couple has also extended their expertise to the Rhône with Clos Saouma in Châteauneuf-du-Pape (acquired in 2009), where they own approximately 12 hectares in addition to 12 hectares in Côtes du Rhône-Villages, vinified under the Rotem & Mounir Saouma label.

The Vinifications of Lucien Le Moine

The white wines are purchased directly after pressing and then ferment and are aged in the house's cellar, on Ruelle Morlot in Beaune. The red wines are purchased after maceration, already in barrels, and it is the ageing that takes place at Lucien Le Moine. This specialization in ageing is the key to the house's signature. Mounir Saouma has his own custom barrels made to measure, with his own staves, in partnership with cooper Stéphane Chassin, choosing a very fine grain and adapting the wood to each cru. All barrels are new, but the wood never leaves a heavy mark on the wines thanks to this artisanal precision.

Ageing takes place on thick lees and without racking: Mounir favours 5 to 7 litres of lees per barrel, where the average is 1 or 2 litres, in keeping with the principle that "purity is not achieved by intervening too much." The wines are neither fined nor filtered. Bottling is done by gravity, using nitrogen to avoid any oxidation, and according to the lunar calendar (at the full moon, when the lees settle naturally). The result: wines of crystalline purity, intense, deep, endowed with a precise aromatic signature and exceptional ageing potential, with no heavy oak imprint despite the use of new barrels.

The Cuvées of Lucien Le Moine

Bourgogne Blanc: A regional entry-level cuvée, crafted from grapes sourced from the Côte de Beaune. A fresh, complex Chardonnay marked by notes of pear, lemon and white flowers, endowed with superb minerality. A precious gateway into the world of Lucien Le Moine.

Bourgogne Rouge: A regional Pinot Noir selected from the finest villages of the Côte d'Or, sometimes crafted from Fixin and Marsannay. A deep and complex wine, marked by black cherry, damp earth and careful barrel ageing.

Meursault Premier Cru Genevrières: One of the iconic Premiers Crus of Meursault. A taut, saline Chardonnay with a precise mineral texture, aged according to the house's haute couture method to reveal the full nobility of the climat.

Meursault Premier Cru Charmes: An opulent and deep Premier Cru from Meursault, where the Lucien Le Moine signature brings precision and tension to a naturally rich climat. A wine of great complexity, built for ageing.

Meursault Premier Cru Perrières: The pinnacle of Meursault whites, whose mineral and vertical expression finds in Mounir Saouma an ideal interpreter. A Chardonnay of crystalline purity with infinite length.

Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru: The house vinifies several Premiers Crus from Puligny depending on the vintage, including Les Pucelles, Les Combettes and Les Folatières. Floral, finely chiselled Chardonnays with an airy mineral texture, the signature of this noble appellation.

Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru: A selection of Premiers Crus from Chassagne (Morgeot, Caillerets) depending on the vintage. Complete Chardonnays combining richness, white fruit, citrus and saline minerality.

Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru: An iconic white Grand Cru from the Corton hill. A powerful and mineral wine of impressive depth, with a chalky sap and monumental length, built for very long cellaring.

Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru: A Grand Cru from Chassagne and Puligny, a wine of volume and presence, deeply floral and muscular, signed with the characteristic ageing precision of the house.

Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru: A rare and confidential Grand Cru, more intimate than the Bâtard. A Chardonnay of great finesse, combining tension, florality and complexity, a perfect example of the haute couture philosophy.

Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru: The neighbour and equal of Montrachet, a Grand Cru of exceptional rectitude and nobility. A mineral, deep wine of infinite length, one of the greatest whites in the world.

Montrachet Grand Cru: The absolute pinnacle of Burgundy whites, an absolute myth vinified by Lucien Le Moine. A wine of monumental intensity, depth and length, an architectural monument combining power, chalky sap and infinite refinement.

Volnay Premier Cru Les Caillerets: One of the greatest climats of Volnay, considered a near Grand Cru. A Pinot Noir of distinguished elegance, with crystalline aromatic purity, built for long ageing.

Beaune Premier Cru Clos des Mouches: An iconic Premier Cru from Beaune, one of the greatest climats of the appellation. A deep, silky, elegant Pinot Noir with a fine texture and a distinguished finish.

Pommard Premier Cru Les Grands Epenots: An iconic Premier Cru from Pommard, combining power, depth and a noble tannic structure. The Lucien Le Moine ageing brings rare aromatic precision, magnifying the sunny character of the appellation.

Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru Les Amoureuses: A legendary Premier Cru from Chambolle, considered by many to be a near Grand Cru, the direct neighbour of Musigny. An airy, silky, fragrant Pinot Noir, one of the most sought-after cuvées of the house.

Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru Les Suchots: An iconic Premier Cru from Vosne-Romanée, neighbour to Romanée-Saint-Vivant. A deep and exceptional Pinot Noir with a noble sap and remarkable aromatic complexity, the signature of this prestigious appellation.

Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru: A Grand Cru from Gevrey with a fleshy sap and brilliant fruit. A wine combining Burgundian power and delicacy, built for long ageing in the house style.

Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru: A particularly noble Grand Cru from Gevrey, neighbour to Chambertin. A Pinot Noir with a distinguished tannic structure and fruit of great purity, sublimated by haute couture ageing.

Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru: A historic Grand Cru from the Côte de Nuits. A deep, dense wine with a rich sap and distinguished tannins, the complete expression of this Burgundian monument.

Échezeaux Grand Cru: A Grand Cru from Vosne-Romanée of aristocratic finesse. A fragrant, complex wine with an elegant texture and remarkable length.

Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru: A Grand Cru straddling Chambolle-Musigny and Morey-Saint-Denis, praised by critics for its liquorice character. A wine of power and elegance, blending the delicacy of Chambolle and the depth of Morey, with a near-infinite ageing potential.

Romanée-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru: A legendary Grand Cru from Vosne-Romanée, the direct neighbour of Romanée-Conti. A Pinot Noir of infinite finesse, depth and length, among the rarest and most precious cuvées vinified by Lucien Le Moine.