2015 Domaine de Montille, Volnay Premier Cru, Taille Pieds

The 2015 Volnay 1er Cru les Taillepieds, 100% whole cluster with around 30% new oak, offers impressive precision and focus on the nose, lively cranberry, wild strawberry and pomegranate scents combine effortlessly with subtle notes of wet slate. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine tannin, beautifully balanced with a crescendo of red fruit, mixed with mineral and spice towards the compelling finish. This is an outstanding Taillepieds that will require 4-5 years in bottle, but will repay the patient.

(100% vendange entier ; 35% new oak; the soil here is gravel on top of limestone): Good medium red. A bit darker and less floral on the nose than the Mitans and Champans, offering scents of black cherry and dusty brown spices complicated by a menthol note. A bit more angular and tough than the Mitans, showing less easy sweetness but a very concentrated tiny-berry character. Finishes with substantial serious tannins and a subtle note of salty, slatey minerality. This one will be a long-distance runner. Winemaker Brian Sieve noted that there was a lot of skin and stem material for the quantity of juice in these grapes.

100% whole bunch, 35% new oak. Sturdy nose with lots of concentration. Sweet with very ripe berry fruit. Big and beefy. Not the sophistication of the Mitan but it should deliver. Gravelly vineyard delivers graininess rather than chalkiness. (JR)