A brief trip to California, to do some consulting on the Sonoma Coast, is what brought Mounir into Jack Falstaff, one of the PlumpJack restaurants where I occasionally work the floor as sommelier. Mounir Saouma, founder of the Beaune-based "micro- negociant" firm Lucien Lemoine, came in to have dinner with his importer, George Derbalian of Atherton Imports. With him, came several 2002 and 2003 white and red Burgundies "raised" by Mounir and his Israeli girlfriend Rotem. There were some stunning wines.

Mounir was born in Lebanon, and in his early years took the opportunity to leave Lebanon to work with his uncle in a Cistercian monastery in Israel . It was here that he learned to make wine. It was here, as well, that he met his girlfriend and partner in the firm, Rotem. Mounir was bit by the bug, and moved to Burgundy to study oenology at Montpellier. Rotem was soon to follow.

After working for a large negociant firm, Mounir decided to start his own negociant firm, but at a much smaller, more focused level - there are not more than 75 cases of any one wine sold under the Lucien Lemoine label - "Lemoine" signifying his nickname "the monk" fondly given to him by French vignerons.

The entire production is purchased as wine from undisclosed sources(said to be top domaines), except for the whites which are purchased as must. It is the job of Mounir and Rotem to act as the eleveurs for over twenty different wines, mostly from premier and grand cru vineyards. They purchase their own barrels to mature the wines on their lees for extended periods of time, with lots of lees stirring. The methods are artisanal, and nothing but oxygen is used to stabilize the wines. There are only trace amounts of SO2. As Mounir put it best, he likes to be able to drink an entire bottle of his wine without any side effects. The wines are always bottled unfined and unfiltered. Due to high levels of Carbon Dioxide, the younger wines should be decanted before serving.

The wines are intense, powerful and beautifully structured. Mounir is a warm and generous man, willing to share his knowledge and passion with all. I found it difficult to "critique" these wines in the company of Mounir and George, but there were some "stand-outs" like the 2002 Bonnes-Mares with a core of sweetness & concentration and the tight-knit Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru "Chenevottes" displaying gorgeous mineral and herbal aromas- soon to be a great wine. All of the wines are great, and are certainly capturing the attention of Burgundy lover's and critics worldwide.