2006 Volnay Clos des Chenes
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Tasting notes
Ripe blackberry tinged with ginger and mace gets a 2006 Volnay Clos des Chenes off to a satisfying start, but there is not the refinement of tannin to accompany the fruit and spice here that accrues to the best wines in this year's Bouchard collection. I would relish the wine's virtues over the next 3-4 years and serve in contexts where a bit of rusticity presents no problem. Director Philippe Prost emphasized the importance of flexible and surgical picking (with a crew numbering upwards of 300) and getting his crop to Bouchard's battery of presses within two hours via a fleet of mini-vans. He insists that relatively little triage was necessary on the domaine vineyards (as opposed to those under contract) and the estate wines are certainly predictably stronger as a group. (I have generally mentioned in the notes that follow which wines are from Bouchard's domaine and which from contract fruit, but have explicitly noted this as part of a wine's description, only if there are two versions of the same appellation within the present portfolio.) The fruit was crushed very gently and the wines racked only once – at 10-14 months, than usual – explains Prost, in order to guard against exposed or drying tannins, a policy which my tastings suggest was generally successful. Importer: Henriot, Inc, New York, NY; tel. (212) 605-6767
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
More reviews and scores
Healthy nose with lots of sweet fruit. Gentle and pure with a certain tenderness. Very supple but not vapid. Solid, long finish. Just a little weedy. (JR)
Good full red. Cool, medicinal aromas of cherry liqueur and graphite. High-toned and perfumed in the mouth, with plenty of richness and a suggestion of marc Suave and aromatic wine, with the liqueur-like quality carrying through to the finish. Not a particularly sweet style, but the tannins are not dry.
Plenty of coffee and spice on the nose then power and persistence on the palate. Firm and dry but not drying. Some perfumed red fruit on the mid palate but also minerally and fine. Perfumed length. (JH)
About the producer
Bouchard Père & Fils is one of Burgundy’s oldest and most established wine producers. Founded in 1731 by Michel Bouchard, it is the largest vineyard owner in the Côte d’Or with 130 hectares of vines.