This magnum of the 2008 Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru is an original release, and it is a little more developed than the "reconditioned" 750-milliliter bottle I reviewed last year. Offering up aromas of mandarin orange, marmalade, honeycomb, fresh pastry, white flowers and vanilla pod, it's medium to full-bodied, ample and penetrating, with lively acids and a long, exotic finish. While this is drinking well, it's a little open-knit for a 12-year-old Chevalier-Montrachet, especially in magnum, and—as with most Leflaive white Burgundies from this era of endemic premature oxidation—I wouldn't bet on it making old bones. In that respect, it was interesting to see what a difference the domaine's reconditioning had made to the last example of this wine that I encountered.

Rather full yellow with a gold tinge. Slightly exotic apricot and yellow peach scents on first sniff, with notes of wet stone, lemon zest, mandarin and baked bread quickly coming up. Fat, thick and honeyed on entry, but quickly firmed in the mid-palate by an edge of acidity, with strong iodiney minerality emerging on the back half. This tactile, chewy wine is still a bit disjointed, with its exotic creamy fruit and saline mineral notes still fighting each other, but its long, rocky, precise finish and vibrant acidity suggest that it will repay more time in bottle. Still, this wine shows more personality and nuance today than the 2009, which comes across as more classic and dry. Interestingly, both this wine and the '07 have occasionally been flagged by drinkers as showing premature oxidation notes but both of my bottles became fresher in the glass, which is certainly not a characteristic of wines in decline. Incidentally, this wine was bottled with 7.5 grams per liter of acidity (expressed as tartaric), the highest of any vintage in this vertical tasting. (13% alcohol; 3.1 pH; Brice de la Morandière described '08 as "an oidium vintage saved by the north wind before the harvest," which started on September 22)

Like the Bâtard, here the nose is quite restrained but exceptionally elegant and pure with white flower, green apple, pear and wet stone where the latter element continues onto the rich, full and highly energetic flavors that tighten up considerably on the detailed, minerally and bone dry finish that displays distinct citrus mineral nuances. This is long, tight and linear with huge amounts of dry extract that renders the very firm acid spine almost invisible at present though the finish is clearly shaped by it. This should be a genuine stunner in time but ample patience required.