Important Update From the Founder
Read message >
Volnay with Jasper Morris MW
67 Pall Mall
Tasted February 24, 2020 by NickA with 211 views
Introduction
A tasting of 12 1er cru Volnays from better (and mostly warmer) recent vintages.
Wines 1-7 are monopoles.
Flight 1 (2 notes)
Red
2015 Domaine François Buffet Volnay 1er Cru Clos de la Rougeotte
90 points
Monopole also once claimed by H Boillot. Gorgeous deep red colour, glistening and translucent. Lots of red fruit and a touch of new oak on the nose. Crunchy and high in acidity, especially for a 2015, showing early picking and use of whole-bunch. Elegant and accessible with a long, juicy, cranberry finish.
Red
2015 Domaine Clos de la Chapelle Volnay 1er Cru Clos de la Chapelle
89 points
Very 2015, with its deep colour and sweet fruit. A touch of Brett gives complexity rather than being off-putting. Tangy and spicy, with notes of Chinese tea.
Flight 2 (2 notes)
Red
2014 La Pousse d'Or Volnay 1er Cru Clos de la Bousse d'Or
91 points
Gorgeous deep ruby. Some game and subtle smoke on the nose. An enjoyably grippy chew on the palate, with tannins more present than most other wines tonight, and a lovely crisp red-fruited finish.
Red
2009 Domaine Y. Clerget Volnay 1er Cru Clos du Verseuil
89 points
Some browning visible on this one. Very sweet fruit (2009), but it does have compensating acidity. Not that long or elegant. Almost fully mature.
Flight 3 (2 notes)
Red
2009 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos du Château des Ducs
92 points
Classy stuff. Starting to look pretty mature. A lovely complex nose, with an indefinable melange of red fruits. Elegant, balanced and quite savoury, its freshness belies the warm vintage. Very long finish. All coming together nicely; this site matures earlier than the Clos des Chenes.
1 person found this helpful
Comment
Red
2009 Benjamin Leroux Volnay 1er Cru Clos de la Cave des Ducs
90 points
This site is a little further up the hill, and thus the wine has sufficient freshness and acidity to compensate for the warm and sunny 2009 vintage style. There's a fair amount of Brett on this, but the fruit is deep and vital enough to make this complementary rather than offensive. Some richness coming through on the finish.
1 person found this helpful
Comment
Flight 4 (2 notes)
Red
2009 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs
92 points
A gorgeous tomatoey colour. Really deep, long and grippy. Big flavours and a lovely line to it. Remains poised and precise despite the vintage.
1 person found this helpful
Comment
Red
2012 Domaine Henri Boillot Volnay 1er Cru Les Chevrets
91 points
Really big and juicy - very Burgundy rather than very Volnay. Still with a touch of tannin, plenty of presence and power, and matured in 100% new oak, this would be a good wine to have with red meat.
Flight 5 (2 notes)
Red
2010 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu
93 points
This site is more clay than (as for most of Volnay) chalk, so tends to be less ethereal than its peers. That said, although the wine is undeniably deep, it's crisp and delineated and perfectly pretty too. Lovely acid and tannin structure from 2010 means this would be a great food wine.
Jasper Morris comments that this is ready, but will continue to improve, and that 2010s are likely to be ahead of 2009s for the first 25 or so years of their life, following which the additional stuffing of the '09s should see them overtaking.
Jasper Morris comments that this is ready, but will continue to improve, and that 2010s are likely to be ahead of 2009s for the first 25 or so years of their life, following which the additional stuffing of the '09s should see them overtaking.
1 person found this helpful
Comment
Red
2009 Bouchard Père et Fils Volnay 1er Cru Caillerets Ancienne Cuvée Carnot
91 points
Caillerets is arguably Volnay's best vineyard. Really deep, with sweeping fruit and a big mouthfeel. Savoury and spicy, and not very subtle.
Flight 6 (2 notes)
Red
2009 Domaine de Montille Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds
92 points
Clear whole-bunch influence: this is punchy, zesty, prickly and peppery (compared with the other wines tasted tonight - it's still not Syrah). Any herbaceousness is avoided because it's an '09. Deep and dense on the nose and on the palate, where there's a lovely chew to the obvious (but not drying) tannins. Again, seems ready but will improve.
Red
2004 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes
90 points
Quite browned. Perhaps it's because this followed a long run of '09s, but this '04 feels pretty lean. There's good depth of fruit (this is Lafarge, after all), but the overall impression is a bit austere.
Closing
My WOTN:
1 - Lafon Santenots
2 - Lafarge Clos du Chateau
3 - d'Angerville Clos des Ducs
Jasper WOTN:
1 - Lafarge Clos du Chateau
2 - Lafon Santenots
3 - de Montille Taillepieds
Group WOTN:
1 - Lafon Santenots
2 - d'Angerville Clos des Ducs
3 - Lafarge Clos du Chateau
4 - Leroux Clos de la Cave
5 - de Montille Taillepieds