Tasted in Puligny-Montrachet with Jacques Carillon, without his red jacket, 22 October 2021.
Domaine Jacques Carillon
1 Impasse Drouhin
21190, Puligny-Montrachet
Tel: +33 3 80 21 01 30
www.jacques-carillon.com
More reports with Domaine Jacques Carillon.
Jacques on 2021:
“What we have is nice. The problem is that we don’t have very much of anything – particularly the 1er crus.”
Jacques on 2020:
“2020 was a lot calmer year – March was a little cool but dry so we avoided the frost with the help of some candles – just one time. Minus 2°C but the wind and dry saved us. Then was a perfect flowering, much better than 2019. Regular rain came until July. There was plenty of heat in the daytime but then nights were fresh. From 20 July until mid-August we had heat. We made a nice harvest three days earlier than in 2003 – we started 23rd August and harvested only in the mornings but we easily finished in August too. We were really helped in the bottom of Puligny to have plenty of rain in the first months of the vintage, so we never really had a strong deficit. The yields are not as high as in 2018 but were good and certainly more than in 2019.”
The wines…
Always enjoyable, excellent wines at this domaine – Jacques has the recipe…
Jacques is currently testing DIAM in his villages cuvées.
2020 Puligny-Montrachet
7 lieu-dits, 9 parcels, 2.7 ha. Already all the parcels have been assembled in August with some lees, planning to fine in February for bottling in March
Fresh, fine citrus – good depth too. Ooh, a real blend of concentration and sweetness to this wine – the freshness is enough but not too much, holding a fine vibrating finish too – super balanced and very tasty indeed!
2020 Chassagne-Montrachet
A single plot planted in 2013 – in 2016 there was none due to frost – before this parcel was planted to red. Vines on the plain below the Château de Chassagne-Montrachet.
Again a fine and very forward nose – plenty of energy here. Here the flavours melt over the palate – a different style to the delivery of flavour here – but so long finishing. This is completely delicious… The flavour lasting very well too.
2020 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Champs Canet
Here the nose is a little more compact, more overtly yellow-citrus in style. In the mouth, though, there’s more mouth-filling volume and an extra flavour depth – flattering wine but with a very easy to appreciate ‘extra’ – this is delicious.
2020 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Perrières
A waft, a freshness of extra aromatic width. More direction to this wine, not the louche easiness of the last, there’s a bit more structure here and a clear turn to the more mineral side in the depth and complexity of middle and finishing flavours. That’s a real beauty – simply excellent Puligny – great finishing too!
2020 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Referts
Here the nose is a little less flattering than the Perrières but a more complex structural/mineral side is starting to show, adding a white-flower accent too – lovely. A different style again – plenty of freshness but here there’s a different depth to the flavour – a little more considered than the Perrières. The finish has a bit more energy here vs the Perrières but doesn’t better it today, for me. I’ll keep the Perrières in my glass today…
2020 Bienvenues Bâtard-Montrachet
Less width of aroma but here’s a super depth and extra fineness to the silky aromas. Calm, extra mineral, a layered wine with a certain additional richness to the flavour – it’s clearly the most mineral. A grand cru finish with a nice, slowly mouth-watering line of flavour. Very good and very grand cru.
As we are here, why not take a look at some 2019s? All bottled in March 2021:
2019 Puligny-Montrachet
An easier nose, less focus, a faint pepper. A good vibration of energy here, lots of width – a tasty wine that’s clearly Puligny but lacks the definition of the 2020…
2020 Chassagne-Montrachet
There’s a bit more aromatic complexity here, some higher, fresher, tones too. A more together wine, some generosity, richness of flavour but it’s lovely and mobile a little mineral too in the middle and finish – a better showing with this wine – really lovely – and very long finishing
2019 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Champs Canet
A width of attractive citrus. The most direct and ‘together’ wine yet. A warmness, almost a spice to the flavour but this is very attractively drinkable wine – yum – also a very good finish!
2019 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Perrières
Much more aromatic freshness – there’s both weight and a modest airy aspect to the aromas too. Mineral and direct, slightly saline, this is super but it’s also a wine that I’d wait for – a couple of years, perhaps – vibrantly finishing – ooh lovely another excellent Perrières
2019 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Referts
Height and depth to these predominantly citrus tones. A width of fine freshness here – that’s lovely. Also a mineral wine but showing a width of flavour as opposed to the direct approach of the Perrièes. I like this a lot – showing well whilst still a baby. Excellent!
2019 Bienvenues Bâtard-Montrachet
Tighter at the base but the high tones are very attractive here – quite a bit of white-flower complexity too. Less overt richness than the 2020, though it’s still there – wide, bubbling, sitting beautifully on the palate. There’s a bit more focus to the 2020 too but I prefer the balance and mouth-watering complexity of this wine – today – it would be a nice comparison to make in another 5 years 😊