Profile: Domaine Bruno Colin

Update 10.12.2018(9.12.2018)billn

Tasted in Chassagne-Montrachet, 09 November 2018 with Bruno’s co-worker, Antoine Laisney.

Domaine Bruno Colin
3 Impasse des Crêts
21190 Chassagne-Montrachet
Tel: +33 3 80 24 75 61
www.domaine-bruno-colin.com

Domaine Bruno Colin is run by the younger son of Michel Colin-Deleger who retired in 2003. Sons Philippe and Bruno split the holdings of their father’s domaine, and it is Bruno who now works from his father’s old premises in middle of Chassagne-Montrachet, close to the village’s church and restaurant. Aided by his wife Stéphanie, Bruno runs a domaine of 8 hectares but the number of cuvées are more than double that. Unsurprisingly the largest appellation that the domaine commercialises is that of Chassagne-Montrachet, but many others are represented here – red and white.

I was attracted to find out more about this domaine after admiring, for a couple of weeks, the work of a man building a nice new wall at the bottom of a plot that neighboured the Montrachet of Laguiche – the plot is in Puligny-Montrachet 1er cru Les Demoiselles – the wall-builder told me that the domaine was that of Bruno Colin. The wall is now finished, and I believe that the vineyard will be replanted in the Spring…

On 2018:
Lovely quality and good volume too. We started harvesting on exactly the same date as in 2017. It’s in a little richer style, it looks very interesting.

On 2017:
A little less volume than in 2018. These are direct wines with a good minerality, tasty wines that are already drinking, will be good for earlier drinking and particularly the restaurant trade.

The wines…

It was my first visit to this estate so some things are very easy to say directly:

  1. The wines of both colours are absolutely delicious – the reds a particularly great surprise from unfashionable appellations
  2. The whites have plenty of oak – though it’s most obviously visible on some of the earlier wines – there is a lot of similarity of style in the wines of this domaine but it’s a great style with fabulous length – the individual personalities really shining through only from the Blanchots. All of this is probably down to the oak at this early stage, and this will dissipate and the wines will become ‘individuals’ with time in the bottle. I’d like the wines to be little more incisive and just a little less oaked – certainly the ‘smaller’ wines, but they certainly don’t lack deliciousness and all have really impressive length of finish – I’d be happy to drink any of them!

An address that’s very much worthy of your time – the reds are a real, positive, surprise here.

The first five all bottled, and all the premier crus will probably get a January bottling. The bottles are waxed – except the aligoté and the two Bourgognes – all are cork sealed.

2017 Bourgogne Aligoté
Vines in the commune of Chassagne.
A pretty width and also a cushioning to the nose. Volume, flavour that grows, slightly structural but with fresh and attractive flavours – I’d wait just a little for this, but it’s very tasty. Hmm, a lovely finishing of flavour too.

2017 Bourgogne Chardonnay
Also vines in the commune of Chassagne
A little harder nose – more structure – but still inviting. Round, well textured, hmm, this melts very attractively over the palate. A little mineral, a little saline and with super points of pure interest – really excellent!

2017 St.Aubin 1er Les Charmois
A little deeper nose suggesting a slightly toasty reduction. Round, mineral, very mineral, yet cushioned too – there’s an undertow of melting, mouth-watering flavour, but the precision seems a little blurred – perhaps by oak – it’s a spiced/fumé style than vanilla… Great length again though – very impressive.

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet
8 different parcels, from 10-60 year-old vines
A fresher, more fruit-forward nose – fine purity here. Plenty of open volume, some oak below but not really interfering, indeed additive. A note of aniseed in the finish… Very attractive wine…

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Les Chaumées
A deep nose, first a slightly firework reductive then more and more fruit in an agrume style. Supple, wide, obvious oak but a sucrosity that makes the wine completely delicious. Long and vibrant – beautiful finishing.

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Les Vergers
Also a little oak, but swirling liberates nice floral notes too. A relatively oaked palate, but open and delicious too – there is fine clarity and a base of flavour that has a fine blend of sucrosity and minerality.

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Chenevottes
Hmm – nice, more fruit here, no overt oak this time. Open, ingraining, mineral but softly so, flavour that ingrains – simply delicious and the oak in this one is perfectly integrated…

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Maltrioe
Have red and white in this vineyard. Two vine ages here, 20 and 60
Hmm a nice energy to this nose – deep and very agrume-style fruit. Volume in the mouth – pure but cushioned, melting, incisive flavour – opening out ever-wider. Hmm – contemplative and absolutely delicious – a seriously great finish!

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Morgeot
Vines in Francemont between Clos Pitois and Tête du Clos
Hmm, lovely aromatic energy again – fresh and super. Round style again but with great clarity and an ingraining concentration. Wide and fabulous finishing once more – really persistent – the usp of this domaine’s wines in 2017…

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er La Boudriotte
A nice depth of aroma – more limited in width. Hmm, there is a directly visible (tasteable!) extra depth of flavour – 1er, 1er cru! – layered, relaxed flavour but like all of these, just so persistent a great finishing flavour. Holds long after swallowing…

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Blanchots de Dessus
Here is a different nose – more floral – and highly attractive too, eventually a little oak comes through too. More purity, more direct mineral freshness – yes a little oak in the mix, and that aspect grows too – so be patient – but this is a complex tour de force of a wine with the best overall balance yet – bravo!
2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er En Remilly
A wide, fresh, grapefruit agrume nose. Super mineral, oaked – of-course – the flavour starting at a low-level and becoming more and more overt – fine, fine, elegant flavour – almost too fine and elegant – I like the Blanchots more (not for its oak) but this is hyper good – Bravo!

2017 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Truffière
A parcel that just touches on the northern end of Folatières.
Hmm, fresh, sweeter agrume – airy and attractive. But there is guts here too – concentration at the core, and only very slowly does the wine, the flavour, unwind over the palate – this is really excellent – behind the last in total but has a beautifully engaging mid-palate – simply delicious – excellent!

2017 Bâtard-Montrachet
A contract every year, vines on the Chassagne side.
Narrow up top but a broad depth of aroma – super. A fresh attack that reminds a little of the Blanchots, depth, slowly melting, such a great complexity – certainly not a fat Bât, long and truly excellent.

2017 Chevalier-Montrachet
Domaine vines – two small parcels.
A nice freshness, not too wide or deep a nose. Incisive like the Bâtard and Blanchots, agrume fruit, edged with oak but perfectly edged, layers of vibrant flavour – wide and interesting. Of-course long and impressive!

Les rouges:

2017 Bourgogne Pinot Noir
All destemmed
Hmm – round, comforting, come-hither pinot fruit aroma. Round, a little ripple of tannin. Easy, comfortably textured, simply delicious – seems to be the hallmark of this domaine…

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet Vieilles-Vignes
4 different parcels assembled
A floral touch and a deeper, robust, darker fruit. Fresh, a halo of slightly grainy tannin but hardly any astringence – open, delicious pinot fruit – not overtly Chassagne today but overtly drinkable! Super wine to while an evening away with… Good length with just a touch more rigour – which I prefer – super indeed!

2017 Santenay Vieilles-Vignes
Made from 2 parcels of vines.
Hmm – a lovely purity of quite deep cherry fruit here. Open, more fresh than the Chassagne – ooh this is my new favourite – a super intensity, delicious fruit, mouth-water – bravo a great wine and (I assume) a great buy too!
2017 Maranges 1er Les Fussière
All is manual in the vines, but someone locally does most of the work – ‘because it’s an hour each way on the tractor!’
A much higher toned but vibrant fruit. Big, an effervescent personality – layers of fruit – ooh this would surprise a lot of people – gravitas mixed with absolutely pure red cherry fruit – bravo!
2017 Santenay 1er Les Gravières
Ooh – now that’s a really great nose – deeper fruit but with purity and energy – yes! Framed with a little tannin, but deeply, interestingly fine fruited – fresh layers of finishing flavour – another hit! Long…

2017 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Maltrioe
A deep and relatively tight nose dark fresh fruit can be glimpsed. Volume, a little herb to the fruit, a little ripple of tannin, I have to say great texture in the middle after the first (modest) wave of tannin. A wine that is just a little tight – certainly less open than all the others today – it hints at greater things, but only hints…

Agree? Disagree? Anything you'd like to add?

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