I had the pleasure to whiz around the Marie in Volnay during the Grands Jours de Bourgogne and before too much of a crush of visitors. Unfortunately I had only 45 minutes, but returned with 17 notes and a few discussions with their producers. These are predominantly 2006’s and there are no bad wines among them…

2006 Bouchard P&F, Volnay 1er Les Fremiets Clos de la Rougeot
Medium colour. Wide aromatics with focused red fruit and faint oak. Mouth-filling with lots of well-managed tannin and super acidity. A long creamy finish with plenty of oak flavour.

2006 Bouchard P&F, Volnay 1er Taillepieds
The nose goes a little deeper than the Fremiets with darker shaded fruit. There are still plenty of tannins, a little astringent but also a little finer. More flavourful and with a little more dimension of higher-toned fruit on the palate.

2006 Bouchard P&F, Volnay 1er Clos des Chênes
Medium colour. The smooth nose hints at coffee. Lovely fruit easily covers the tannin and does a fine job masking the oak. Lovely penetration of the palate by this fruit-driven and super wine.

2006 de Montille, Volnay 1er Mitans
Medium colour. Red fruit dominates the nose – jam tarts. Good texture and plenty of tannin that’s balanced by the cream-edged fruit. The acidity helps to push the finish quite long- Very nice.

2006 de Montille, Volnay 1er Les Taillepieds
Just a shade darker than the Mitans and with high-toned aromatics. The tannin has a little more grain and the fruit is quite linear until it reaches the finish where it finally amplifies and widens.

2002 de Montille, Volnay 1er Carelle Sous La Chappelle
Medium-pale colour. Herbs, minerals and certainly more earthy aromas. Very fine tannins and staining flavours – also some minerality here. Very, very nice…

2006 Pousse d’Or, Volnay 1er Caillerets
Medium colour with some purple reflections. High-toned aromatics are the main theme. Well-mamanaged tannins and a dark, slightly reductive element. The fruit in the mid-palate is lovely before fading into a medium length.

2006 Pousse d’Or, Volnay 1er Clos de la Bousse d’Or
Medium, medium-plus colour. Wide aromas of with fine red fruits. Fine tannins with super acidity that leaks flavour into the finish which has a hint of cream – very nice.

2006 Pousse d’Or, Volnay 1er Clos d’Audignac
The aromas a quite mineral, but mixed with dark (but not black) cherry. Good, mouth-filling concentration and super acidity. High-toned and very focused fruit in the finish – super!

2006 Pousse d’Or, Volnay 1er Clos des 60 Ouvrées
Medium-plus colour. The nose is a mix of oak and dark fruit elements. There’s plenty of tannin but it’s set against beautiful dark fruit and mouthwatering acidity. Again super.

2006 Joseph Voillot, Volnay
Medium colour – in bottle for 1 month and the colour has shrunk apologises Jean-Pierre Charlot! A lovely red-fruit nose that is delicate and focused. High-toned fruit in the mouth and plenty of acidity. Long-flowing finish is very nice. Simple, well-made and with a super nose.

2006 Joseph Voillot, Volnay 1er Fremiets
Medium colour – same story! – the aromas are more mineral and floral. Riper and fuller. Medium concentration, the acidity pushes the mid-palate along nicely into a quite long, fruit-driven finish. Lovely.

2006 Joseph Voillot, Volnay 1er Champans
This has been bottled a little longer and is a little deeper in colour. A wide, floral and interesting nose. In the mouth there’s a little more understated power, more tannic but balanced and showing another dimension of flavour in the mid-palate. Also lovely.

2006 Comtes Lafon, Volnay
The only 2006 that’s currently in bottle. Medium colour. The nose is subtle and floral. Round in the mouth with well-covered tannin and shows a nice burst on the mid-palate.

2005 Comtes Lafon, Volnay
A deeper medium, medium-plus colour. The nose is also deeper, showing more oak and a hint of reduction. Lovely coverage of the tannins and plenty of oak on the palate too, but the finish is pure and fruit-driven. Good wine.

2005 Comtes Lafon, Volnay 1er Champans
Medium-plus colour. Dark fruits, a little oak and floral tones – violets on the nose. Meatier tannins and good dry extract too though the tannins aren’t quite covered. The length is very impressive, dark and interesting.

2005 Comtes Lafon, Volnay 1er Santenots-du-Milieu
Medium-plus colour. Dark aromatics that are a little wilder-fruited than the Champans and again with a higher-toned floral background. Mineral concentration – and plenty of it! Lots of grainy tannin and a river of length. Very impressive wine.