Top Volnay Producers and Vineyards 1971-2006

Custom House Tavern - Chicago IL
Tasted Monday, January 11, 2010 by Burgundy Al with 2,334 views

Introduction

The Lieu-dit Cru, my Chicago based Burgundy tasting group got together to taste the top wines from the top Volnay producers across a wide cross-section of vintages. When I think of the greatest Volnay producers, I think of d'Angerville, Lafarge and Lafon. I have found I typically prefer Lafarge's Clos des Chenes of all their cuvees, while the call was easier for d'Angerville (Clos des Ducs) and Lafon (Santenots du Milieu). All red flights were served single blind, so you knew the wines in front of you, just not which wine was in which glass.

Flight 1 - Champagne (1 Note)

  • 1996 Deutz Champagne Cuvée William Deutz 92 Points

    France, Champagne

    Another 1996 drinking very nicely now. Aromas and flavors of apple, pears and some toasted walnuts. Good energy. More in the "bread/yeast" style of Champagne, which I don't like quite as much as the "citrus/lean" style, but very good in in its style.

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Flight 2 - Blind Whites (2 Notes)

One person brings two bottles of white Burgundy with a relationship or two between them (vintage, vineyard, producer). We then try to identify the wines based on what we see, smell, taste, and typically just proceed to embarrass ourselves guessing.

Flight 3 - Older Volnay Flight (4 Notes)

  • 1971 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 95 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Tasted single blind with Volnay 1971-1990. Nose completely forest floor with great spice and perfume elements. Sensational secondary and tertiary character, lots of texture and spice. Floral elements held up throughout. Impressive acidity and tannic structure still holding this together nicely. This is why we drink these wines.

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  • 1990 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos du Château des Ducs 90 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with Volnay 1er 1971-1990. Very ripe fruit on nose with some spice in background. Red and black cherry on palate with some emerging sous bois elements. Also a bit on the ripe side, only moderate length and finish. This was included in the lineup because none of us had older Lafarge Clos des Chenes in our respective cellars.

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  • 1986 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with Volnay 1er 1971-1990. Lots of primary fruit and very good spice with some emerging forest floor. Palate was a bit more mature, with some very good spice and fruit remaining, but a little flabby, almost showing some hints of muddiness. Drink up.

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  • 1990 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 88 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with Volnay 1er 1971-1990. Ripe black cherry on nose, still showing oak as well as other spice. Quite ripe fruit flavors come through with only modest spice, not really classically Volnay to me. Others liked this better than I did tonight.

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Flight 4 - (Mostly) 1996 Volnay Flight (4 Notes)

  • 1996 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 89 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Tasted single blind with Volnay mostly from 1996. Pale red fruit, just modest floral and spice elements on nose. Flavors showed mostly red cherry with some toasted almonds. Lots of acidity and tannins, I didn't think this wine seemed perfectly balanced today, perhaps in another 5+ years, but I'm not completely confident it will.

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  • 1998 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Tasted single blind with Volnay, all others from 1996. Red and black fruit on nose with good spice, slight floral elements. Very accessible red fruit on palate with better spice. Charming and easy to enjoy today, but not a long-term wine to cellar. A trace astringent on finish.

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  • 1996 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with Volnay 1er mostly from 1996. Good red fruit on nose, mostly strawberry and raspberry. Still very fresh for its age. Good spice accompanies same fruit on palate, with lots of acidity and minerality. Drinking well now with real upside potential.

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  • 1996 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with 1er Volnay mostly from 1996. Ripe red fruit and good spice on nose, still showing some oak. Same red fruit with better spice on palate, just a trace of sweetness, which was actually rather nice. Less acid and tannins than others in flight, I'd probably be drinking this up in the next few years.

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Flight 5 - 2002 Volnay Flight (5 Notes)

  • 2002 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with other 2002 Volnay 1er. Raspberry and strawberry on nose with good floral elements. Same fruit profile on palate with lots of structure slightly hiding fruit today. This needs much more time, despite a few hours in decanter tonight. Interesting spice and roasted almonds on finish.

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  • 2002 Coche-Dury Volnay 1er Cru 94 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with Volnay 2002 1er. Lots of spice and red fruit on nose with floral hints. Red cherry and strawberry on palate, completely primary, with flavors that seemed to expand and expand towards the middle and finish. I added this as a mystery wine for the flight and it really showed great. A tough wine to find.

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  • 2002 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind in flight of Volnay 2002 1er. Big fruit on nose with good spice. Red and black cherry flavors, with particularly good spice. Good tannins, really sharp acidity, this needs a few more years to better integrate. Dense fruit and great spice on finish.

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  • 2002 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos du Château des Ducs 90 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with 2002 Volnay 1er. Red fruit on nose, very good spice, some emerging earthy notes. Red fruit also on palate, a good deal hidden behind tannins and acidity. Good spice comes through on moderate finish.

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  • 2002 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with 2002 Volnay 1er. Ripe black cherry with great spice, some obvious oak, then floral hints in deep background. Dense and spicy fruit from start to finish on palate, accompanied by really classic spice. Lots of structure, more than what's apparent because the fruit is still so upfront and concentrated. Really nice tonight, this should evolve into a wine far more elegant and charming than the older vintages of Lafon Santenots-du-Milieu we had tonight (1986, 1990, 1996).

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Flight 6 - 2006 Volnay Flight (3 Notes)

  • 2006 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with other 2006 Volnay 1er. Lots of black cherry and roses on the nose. Ripe red and black cherry flavors on palate, with good spice and structure. Showed well tonight, but also has a long life going forward.

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  • 2006 Domaine Leroy Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 94 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with other 2006 Volnay 1er. Easy to pick out the Leroy, with the amazing perfume jumping out of the glass. Red and black cherry with good spice, showing more ripe fruit than any other wine tonight. Great textures. Good spice and fruit on finish, but then also showing a trace of heat.

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  • 2006 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes 89 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Single blind with 2006 Volnay 1er. Red fruit and nice perfume on nose. Fruit came across as rather lean for vintage, particularly in contrast to its flight-mates from Leroy and d'Angerville. Lots of acidity on finish. Not a personal favorite tonight.

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