One of my favourite producers of Pommard. The winemaker, Benjamin Leroux, is a very thoughtful chap who seems very committed to making the best wines. He speaks perfect English and is a charming fellow. From the 2001 vintage the Domaine became entirely biodynamic. This seems a good thing as the wines since then are damned good. Here is a picture of the winemaker (left) and me:
Volnay 2005
This was tasted from a new oak barrel, so it is a bit oaky. Good cherry fruit, nice depth of concentration. The palate is dense with good length. Good Volnay, alright.
Volnay Premier Cru Fremiets 2005
Lovely fruit nose with real concentration. The palate has some big tannins, but also lovely fruit. It is very long. Quite charming.
Auxey-Duresses Premier Cru 2005
Not yet finished malolactic fermentation. Nice fruit on the nose – blackberries. Still quite acidic. Good tannins. Shows real potential.
Pommard Premier Cru Clos des Epeneaux 2005 – young vines
This is normally declassified to Pommard or un-named Premier Cru. Quite a dense nose. Lawks, it is tannic. It has reasonable fruit and some good length. Not bad for young vines.
Pommard Premier Cru Clos des Epeneaux 2005 – 35 year old vines
There is some real density here. Powerful fruit and ripe tannins. This seems really good, but typical, Pommard.
Pommard Premier Cru Clos des Epeneaux 2005 – 50 year old vines
This is even more dense and concentrated. Very good old-vines complexity and concentration. No shortage of tannin. This is a serious wine. Excellent.
Pommard Premier Cru Clos des Epeneaux 2005 – 60-75 year old vines
Incredible richness on the nose. Great concentration. Very tannic, but the tannins are really ripe and in balance. Fantastic length. The cat’s arse, alright. Wehay!
Pommard des Dames de la Charite 2005 – a Hospice de Beaune wine
This is made from Pommard Premier Cru Rugiens and Premier Cru Grand Clos des Epenots. Some density, but it seems a bit light for Pommard. Really quite nice, but the Clos des Epeneaux is the way forward.
Beaune Cuvée Nicolas Rolin 2005 – a Hospice de Beaune wine
Charming red fruit nose. Palate is reasonably fun and fruity. Quite round and voluptuous. It is alright.
Pommard Premier Cru Clos des Epeneaux 2002
Nice ripe nose of clean fruit, quite Côtes de Beaune-y fruit. The palate is delicious – great fruit, balanced acidity and really ripe tannins. This is really excellent, top banana!
Pommard Premier Cru Clos des Epeneaux 2001
This is also quite ripe, harvested late according to M. Leroux. The palate is a bit like a very good, ripe Premier Cru Nuits St. Georges. This has a real depth of character that is very charming. This is a wine for long term ageing. It will be great.
