2014 St Aubin, Les Pitangerets, 1er Cru, Domaine Jacques Carillon, Burgundy

Domaine Jacques Carillon

The Carillon family has been making wine in the village of Puligny-Montrachet since the 16th century, beginning with Jehan Carillon, who was a vintner in Puligny in 1520.

After completing his studies at the winemaking school in Beaune, France, Jacques Carillon joined his father in the family vineyard in 1980. His specializations include winemaking and marketing.

In 2010, Jacques and his wife Sylvia founded the Jacques Carillon vineyard with 5.25 hectares of vines, primarily in the village of Puligny-Montrachet.

Saint Aubin

Though tucked away in a side valley behind the two ‘Montrachet’ villages, Saint-Aubin is a great source of fine, steely white Burgundy and some attractively fruity reds. Production used to be about 50:50 between the two colours, but the whites have become the more sought-after and now represent two-thirds of the crop. There is a significant difference however between the best Premiers Crus – such as En Remilly – and the vineyards tucked away further up the valley.

• 80 hectares of village Saint-Aubin
• 156 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards (15 in all). The finest include En Remilly, Murgers des Dents de Chien, La Chatenière, Les Frionnes
• Recommended producer: Hubert Lamy

Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir is probably the most frustrating, and at times infuriating, wine grape in the world. However when it is successful, it can produce some of the most sublime wines known to man. This thin-skinned grape which grows in small, tight bunches performs well on well-drained, deepish limestone based subsoils as are found on Burgundy's Côte d'Or.

Pinot Noir is more susceptible than other varieties to over cropping - concentration and varietal character disappear rapidly if yields are excessive and yields as little as 25hl/ha are the norm for some climats of the Côte d`Or.

Because of the thinness of the skins, Pinot Noir wines are lighter in colour, body and tannins. However the best wines have grip, complexity and an intensity of fruit seldom found in wine from other grapes. Young Pinot Noir can smell almost sweet, redolent with freshly crushed raspberries, cherries and redcurrants. When mature, the best wines develop a sensuous, silky mouth feel with the fruit flavours deepening and gamey "sous-bois" nuances emerging.

The best examples are still found in Burgundy, although Pinot Noir`s key role in Champagne should not be forgotten. It is grown throughout the world with notable success in the Carneros and Russian River Valley districts of California, and the Martinborough and Central Otago regions of New Zealand.