2017 Volnay, Clos des Chênes, 1er Cru, Domaine François Buffet, Burgundy
Critics reviews
Neal Martin, vinous.com (May 2020)
About this WINE
Domaine Francois Buffet
Domaine François Buffet is a Burgundy family-run domaine, which dates back to 1692, and is currently managed by Marc-Olivier, son of François, though still with help from his parents. The family had a very successful negociant business, under the name Ferdinand Buffet, until the 1930s when fortunes were lost in the great crash. Even so, there is an impressive range of Volnay (Taillepieds, Clos des Chenes, Champans, Carelles, Clos de la Rougeotte) and Pommard (Rugiens, Clos Micot, Poutures) vineyards.
Marc-Olivier uses some whole bunches when he feels the vineyard is suitable, though not for young vines. The wines are matured in barrel over 22 months, with one racking in the summer.
Volnay
The finest and most elegant red wines of the Côte de Beaune are grown in Volnay, a village which might be twinned with Chambolle- Musigny in the Côte de Nuits, for the high active chalk content in the soil and comparatively low clay content.
Whereas in earlier times Volnay was made in a particularly light, early drinking style, these days there are many producers making wines which age extremely well. The best vineyards run either side of the RN73 trunk road.- 98 hectares of village Volnay
- 115 hectares of Premier Cru vineyards (35 in all). The finest include Les Taillepieds, Clos des Chênes, Champans, Caillerets (including Clos des 60 Ouvrées) and Santenots in Meursault.
- Recommended producers: Lafarge, Lafon, de Montille
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.
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Description
This wine is a bin-end, discounted by 20%. Excludes BBX stock.
Marc-Olivier Buffet has some 80-year-old vines; he refers to others, at 47 years of age, as his “young” vines. The senior vines provide density and texture, so are aged in wood; the younger vines bring fruitiness, which is preserved by storage in concrete vats. For the 2017 vintage, he used 30% whole bunches. The end result is long and expressive. Drink 2022 to 2028.
Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy Buyer (October 2020)
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