tasting / laying down / 2021 Burgundy


Volnay While Pommard struggled, Volnay found its groove. This is a vintage in which to stand back and appreciate the elegance of Volnay. Like Chambolle, where not too much is asked, it will deliver a pure and refined version of itself. But 2021 will not appeal to those


looking for the sumptuous red-fruit, satin-cloaked Volnays of 2018 and 2019, or the concentration of 2020. These are trim, delicate, lacy-textured, and perfumed Volnays.


The village wines are pretty, lightly rounded from vines below the village, and certainly slimmer and more refined than of late. There are light and airy examples from higher-sited lieux-dits La Cave and Ez Blanches. Premier Cru Taillepieds is straight


and edgy. At Domaine d’Angerville, where destemming and remontage are used, Taillepieds is austere, while most show more charm than is typical—despite, or maybe because of, a high proportion of whole-bunch and the use of pigeage at De Montille.


The premiers crus below the road, Champans and Chevret, have a gentler profile, with juicy summer fruits, slim and trim, fresh and perfumed. I encourage you to try Domaine de la Pousse d’Or wines in amphora and to appreciate the clean face of the terroir. Caillerets seems quite fragile. The tiny crop here has yielded very aromatic wine, but perhaps just a little too tender. On the warmly oriented slope of Clos des Chênes, the white marl brings more density with sapidity to the general profile of Volnay 2021, though they vary in style. Lafon has produced a delicate and fine-boned version. The muscular character of Santenots is more evident in 2021, accentuating the difference between Santenots and the collective spirit of the village. It stands further apart in this vintage.


While most producers I visited have made small cuvées of most, if not all, of their premiers crus, Frédéric Lafarge blended his five premiers crus into one ten-barrel cuvée. He felt that small volumes would not represent the terroir—arguably a wise choice, since it was probably the best Volnay I tasted in 2021, but I appreciated tasting so many different climats this vintage. The quality in Volnay is not, however, as consistent or as high as it is in


176 | THE WORLD OF FINE WINE | ISSUE 79 | 2023


Chambolle. Some premiers crus are just too lean, lacking the substance for premier cru. So, watch out.


Meursault Meursault is on fire this year. There are some fabulous Bourgognes, from just below Meursault, with buckets of soft minerals. Village wines from the lower parts of the village are surprisingly concentrated, with an opulence that belies the cool summer. There was greater volume of fruit, but it ripened, and the richness is apparent. Sometimes I’m a bit sniffy about these village parcels, but they show well this year. Village parcels on the slope, affected by the frost, produced minuscule yields. Tillets shivers and tingles with sherbet freshness, and Clous and Vireuils race on a taut mineral line, definitely on the high-wired, sharper side. But Narvaux, also upslope but on a thin layer of clay over rock, leans into its muscle. This vintage divides and accentuates the personalities of the deuxièmes crus and follows suit with premiers crus, pushing them toward a lighter, airy delicacy or in the direction of a compact, coiled, and vital style. Poruzots is earthy, savory, and punchy.


Gouttes d’Or has exuberant, forward fruit, and Perrières is honed and channeled. It’s possible for Genevrières and Charmes to show such delicacy, lightness, and finesse in 2021; the most entrancing version of themselves. Charles Boillot, Ben Leroux, and Dominique Lafon show how it’s done.


Auxey-Duresses, Monthelie, and St-Romain


These “lesser” villages basked in the sunny profile bestowed by warm, easy-to-make vintages, but in this more challenging season it pays to know your producer. Stay on the north side of Monthelie


for reds. On the hillside that continues from Volnay, the reds have blueberry fruit and crunch, but some are insipid and lean. Bouchard Père & Fils is reliable here. Jean-Philippe Fichet has a good white. It was difficult to ripen Monthelie Premier Cru Les Duresses convincingly. Terres de Velles, who make spot-on Monthelie and Auxey, managed, while most didn’t. Just to note that Les Duresses, in Auxey- Duresses, has a warmer, more east-facing exposure. It ripens more easily, and I have had some very attractive examples this vintage.


Auxey-Duresses has mixed results, the whites more attractive and consistent than the reds. Given the prevalence of machine- harvesting in the village, the results were better than expected. Most of the whites I tasted are savory, citrus, and pithy; light wines for earlier drinking. Fewer than expected are grassy, acidic, or showing the effects of botrytis. It was possible to make good reds only by strict sorting, which clearly many did not do. I had some rather unpleasant reds, where acidity highlighted the astringent tannin, but there are exceptions. Gilles Lafourge made charming reds, and in 2021 his is the most consistent of the local domaines. Henri Latour is also reliable. I particularly liked La Chapelle from both producers. St-Romain whites are light-bodied, softer and more aromatic than in 2020, but nicely crisp and lively. They are no longer that affordable, however, and it’s better to go to Auxey-Duresses for good value.


Puligny-Montrachet It is a vintage for detailed and refined Puligny. In general, they are slimly textured and precise. They definitely gravitate to their mineral side. Sometimes, though, I find I miss the sunshine on the mid-palate. Village-level wines vary—from a pared-back, trim style, with flowers and salt, to meager and unjoyous, with overly dry salinity. They lack the charm of Meursault village wines, particularly the succulence of the lower-sited lieux-dits. The substance offered by the premiers crus is welcome. The style in Puligny is more savory than fruity. Referts seems most at ease, relatively full-bodied and chunky; it has some allure, and even some heft from the clay, while Clavoillon has a more sumptuous roundness. Both had welcome sucrosity, as does Les Pucelles, which has silky, sorbet fluidity. This was not the case everywhere.


Folatières can be imprecise and sketchy, but Oliver Leflaive and Chartron hit the mark. At the top of the slope, Blagny (Puligny and Meursault) is fairly light and airy, with a light frosting of acidity; some are stronger but with balletic strength. There will be minuscule availability in the Blagny area. Snaffle them up, if you can. Champ Gain is lively, with more stuffing but less style. Cailleret is grippy and compact; a cold


mineral layering without the sweetness and warmth of fruit between those layers.


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