Tasted in Puligny-Montrachet with Jacques Carillon, 10 October 2017.

Domaine Jacques Carillon
1 Impasse Drouhin
21190, Puligny-Montrachet
Tel: +33 3 80 21 01 30
www.jacques-carillon.com

Jehan Carillon was a vigneron in Puligny in 1520, it is from this line that the current domaine of Jacques Carillon comes.

After completing his studies in Beaune, Jacques Carillon joined his father Louis, and brother François, at the family domaine – Domaine Louis Carillon et fils which had been incorporated under that name in 1981. It was Louis Carillon who began the domaine’s transition from selling their wine in bulk to estate-bottling. The estate was always rather an understated affair, but the wines could sing as beautifully as those from the most renowned domaines of Puligny-Montrachet.

In 2010, brothers Jacques and François decided to go their own way, choosing to share the domaine of their father. Jacques, together with his wife Sylvia, founded this domaine with 5.25 hectares of vines, that with the exception of some rows of Chassagne-Montrachet, St.Aubin and Mercurey are in Puligny-Montrachet.

Notes here from a tasting of both Jacques and François’ 2014s, last year.

Jacques on 2017:
“2017 is not bad! We had a good harvest in the villages and red – the white 1ers lost a little due to coulure and millerandes – maybe we had 25% less because of that, but not more. I’m happy with that. We started harvesting after the big rain – I preferred to harvest in 18 degrees vs 35°!”

Jacques on 2016:
“In 2016 we really had some luck that the day of the frost there was a bank of cloud across the 1er crus that protected them from the rays of the sun. But in the villages areas we had no cloud and saw 60-70% losses. We harvested in Sept in very nice weather.”

The wines…

A strong set of wines, ones that largely major on drinkability.

Bottling after 18 months normally.

Three discreet Pulignys waited in tank – will they be blended into one or two cuvées? – maybe a vieilles-vignes? Let’s see. They are the result of the harvest in 7 lieu dits, the vines more on the Meursault side of Puligny.

2016 Puligny-Montrachet Cuvée #1
There are three villages cuvées, all with separate elevage, here the first: The parcels are picked more by maturity than location. The wines are racked from barrel into tank before the harvest.
Wide and fresh with a certain innate density, slowly adding some pretty yellow citrus highlights. In the mouth this is fresh, energetic and with just a touch of mineral austerity today.

2016 Puligny-Montrachet Cuvée #2
A little more aromatic depth of yellow citrus. A touch more gas and also energy – bright and mouth-watering flavour. Actually, lovely intense finishing flavour – very yum, just a shade less austere than the first.

2016 Puligny-Montrachet Cuvée #3
Hmm vibrant, mineral, faintly reduced nose. Supple, melting flavour, growing as you head into the finish. Faintly saline. Super. Eventually a more scented weight of fresh yellow citrus here.

2016 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Les Macherelles
Malo finished at the end of August
A other vibrant nose, a little mix of mineral and herbal. More gas here, slowly there’s a width on concentrated mineral flavour. Nice length too…

2016 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Champs Canet
More scented weight of yellow citrus here. Supple again, just a hint more flesh and lovely developing flavour – open and already delicious. Little waves of finishing flavour with fine precision. Lovely wine.

2016 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Referts
The nose has the merest suggestion of sulfur – something’s trying to make me cough anyway – otherwise a wide and fine panorama of the house signature yellow fruit. Hmm, this has another level of minerality but meltingly sweet minerality at the edges of your palate. A long line of a wine. All the edges are burred and chamfered – nothing hard or sharp. Just enjoyment!

2016 Bienvenues Bâtard-Montrachet
Lost a little less than 60% to the frost.
A larger aromatic but without overt weight – this is very inviting stuff! Super texture, growing, growing intensity. This is a mineral wine, and of-course to wait for, but there is no overt austerity here. Small waves of finishing flavour. Long, long, long…. just a beauty…