Tasted in Bouzeron with Pierre de Benoist, 27 October 2020.
Domaine A. et P. de Villaine
2 Rue Fontaine
71150 Bouzeron
Tel: +33 3 85 91 20 50
www.de-villaine.com
More reports for Domaine de Villaine.
Pierre on 2020:
“2020 was good year and we made 3 harvests this year! 20 Aug for the early ripening parcels. Our 2nd was the normal vintage and then a third because we had a pause until the end of September for the last part of Bouzeron and some St Aubin 1ers. The vintage resulted in a small quantity in the reds but of really lovely quality. Much of our viticulture is designed to minimise porriture but these days it is rarer – also the mildew is much less present. That said oïdium has been more present, this year we were more prepared than last year – we used ‘volcanic’ sulfur and other preparations and saw much less oidium. Verry happy with this improvement.”
Pierre on 2019:
“We always sell the 1er crus with one yer of delay so will be starting with some 2018s for the tasting. 2019 saw a lot of unstable colder weather during the flowering so the volume of grapes wasn’t very high.”
The wines…
A mix of 2019s and mainly 2018s here – as that is their commercial vintage – but, unsurprisingly, here you will find great wines in both vintages!
All cork seals here.
The only bottled 2019, done at the end of July/beginning of August. 17 different parcel averaging 65 years old, but the oldest are 115 years old and the source of further plantings.
That’s a fine if not very forward nose – fine herb, almost a suggestion of mint – attractive. Hmm, that’s a beautifully melting flavour with fabulous intensity; small waves of gorgeous finishing flavour, almost a suggestion of zestiness here too. That’s really great!
All tank samples:
Chardonnay from multiple parcels in Bouzeron with a little more depth of soil, mainly south, south-west facing. Not yet bottled, elevage in foudres and barrels.
A little extra weight of aroma – these vines in Bouzeron from higher slopes. Round intense again – and just so mouth-watering, almost juicy. Very open, layered and lingering – great Bourgogne!
An area that has had a problem with lack of potassium in the soil. So can have only 4 clusters per vine to bring sufficient maturity. So more a maturity by concentration than phenolic maturity.
A much larger, more encompassing nose – riper fruit but a subtle framing with herbs too. Intense, gorgeously combining texture and mouth-watering intensity. Juicy, energetic, saline, the flavours reflecting the nose with a riper and herbed impression to the fruit, stone fruit. A bigger wine, I have a personal flavour preference for the first two wines but this is more than excellent – great villages Rully.
Starting with 2018 we can taste the new wines of the domaine:
2018 Rully 1er Rabourcé
A blend of new foudres and a few barrels to make the balance. 2.3 ha
A nose with a touch of oak but also a more direct ripeness of citrus fruit – that’s very inviting. Supple, a certain richness but also with growing mouth-watering intensity, finding sufficient space for all its layers of flavour. A vibration, a resonance of the mineral and fruit in the finishing flavour. More of an experience than a wine. Really something.
2018 Rully 1er Raclot
0.40 ha so all barrel (one large format), younger vines than the last.
A more shy nose, touched by a little wood – the last drops in the glass opening and showing fine clarity. Supple, easy to start but growing in character in the middle. Growing in intensity, modestly mineral and nicely clean finishing – almost a touch of chalkiness in the finish. A long if guarded finish. Pretty wine.
2018 Rully 1er Cloux
This mainly foudres and some additional barrels.
The new foudres are showing themselves but also this wine is more open than the last – a fine width of aroma – agrume, perhaps shaded towards the lesser sweet fruit, like lime. Round a sweetness, but also a really super texture and then an acidity that grows more intense, more insistent, larger. The finishing slowly decaying from this peak – a long diminuendo. The most complete of these – simply excellent.
Les rouges…
Bio here since 1986, which allows us to achieve a maturity of fruit that we didn’t have before. The word ‘Digoine’ is an old one celebrating the quality of the water in a place.
A very forward nose, intense with berries and some added florals – I would have patience with this if only that the intensity reduces a little. Mouth-filling but no fat, a modest grain of tannin but really an energy of berry fruit and growing intensity of a summer fruit salad in the mouth. A small finishing dryness and a width of stony fruit flavour – very different. That’s great Bourgogne!
2019 Mercurey Les Montots
A little iron in the soil here. North-east of the appellation, near Clos Myglands and La Framboisière. Plain south-facing, the soil a little red.
A deeper register for the aroma – more width of floral perfume mixed with red berries – cherries/redcurrants. Mouth-filling once more, plenty of tannin to frame the flavours – a modest astringence but hardly any grain to this tannin. That’s easier to assimilate than the Bourgogne today – a really delicious thing…
2018 Rully 1er Champs Cloux
Organic since 2010 now changing to biodynamic.
A change of register again – fuller, ripeness of forward, darker-red, fruit. Hmm – but the width here – I like this very much – airy but intense – structured but without rigour – energy. Only very faintly astringent tannin. Always juicy. Love this style on the palate the nose is a little too potent for today.
A little more composed a little more complex – this nose passes the test – indeed it needs a larger glass! Rounder but with a freshness of melting flavour that is totally attractive. Micro-grained tannin that has almost no astringency. The most complete of the reds too – this seems a great terroir in both colours. A burst of mouth-watering finishing flavour. The first vintage here – ‘we always consider that it takes us 7 years – we say that people reach the age of reason at 7’ – but this is already practically a great wine – great terroir Les Cloux!
