Domaine de MONTILLE (Volnay) 2023 Part 1: Reds Tasted from Tank and Barrel Samples
Brian Sieve, chef de cave at de Montille, said that picking took place from 28 August to 16 September; for the period of the heatwave during that time, there was no picking in the afternoon.
A green harvest at the end of May and beginning of June nevertheless did not prevent a large harvest; the highest yield was 55 hl/ha, in some others at 50hl/ha was achieved. There was a saigné (bleeding of the vats) on almost all wines. All of the alcohols are between 12.6º and 13.2º. For a couple of the early-harvested wines, there was some chaptalization, and there was an addition of acid on the last last few vineyards picked. Malolactic fermentations finished in May-June 2024.
We start with the reds:
2023 Bourgogne
Smooth, clean, dark fruits, medium weight. (87-89)
2023 Nuits-Saint-Georges Aux Saints-Juliens
Saline, strawberry fruit, medium-weight, smooth. 1/3 whole cluster, couldn’t do more because of space limitations. (88-90)
2023 Beaune 1er Cru Les Sizies
Fresh, pure, red and dark fruits. Good concentration, freshness, less solar than previous wines. (90-92)
Up to here the wines had been racked to tank to await bottling; the rest below were still in barrel at the time I tasted in early December.
2023 Beaune 1er Cru Grèves
Fresh red currant nose. Saline, smooth, red fruits, light on palate, good density. Just under 50% whole cluster. (91-93)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Carelles
Mineral, red fruits, good concentration. Just over 1/3 whole cluster, sandy limestone soils, 65 year-old vines. (91-94)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Champans
Precise, focused pure, fresh, crisp. Not blocky the way Champans can be at some addresses. Bunches from clay soils at the bottom of Champans are destemmed, but not those from the limestone soils at the top of the vineyard. 1/3 whole cluster, 1/3 new oak. (92-94)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Mitans
Crisp, pure, dark fruit, smooth, fresh, not solar. 90% whole cluster. (92-95)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds
Dark berry fruit, tannins but they are ripe; Taillepieds structure is there. Good salinity. Great freshness. Huge success. 80% whole cluster. (94-96)
2023 Pommard 1er Cru Pézerolles
Blueberry fruit, smooth tannins, good body, nice freshness, no rusticity. (92-95)
2023 Pommard 1er Cru Rugiens Bas
Redder fruit than Pézerolles, good tannic structure, chewy texture, dense. More than 2/3 whole cluster. (93-95)
2023 Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Aux Thorey
Dark fruits, good concentration and depth, crunchy, energetic, pure. 2024 is last year that de Montille will make this wine; as part of an exchange, it will go to Bouchard Père & Fils. (93-95)
2023 Corton-Clos du Roi
Fresh, red and black raspberry, dense, intense, powerful. One of the best Corton-Clos du Roi I can remember here. About 2/3 whole cluster. (93-96)
2023 Clos-Vougeot
Black raspberry fruit, dense, pure, crystalline, very good Clos Vougeot. 1/3 whole cluster. (93-96)
2023 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Malconsorts
Pure, red fruits, dense but elegant, deep. Smooth tannins. (93-96)
2023 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Malconsorts Cuvée Christianne
Darker fruit, darker, denser than regular Malconsorts. Very concentrated, with some tannic. structure. As always, this wine is from a parcel that is an enclave in La Tâche. (94-96)
2023 Monthélie
Offered blind after the tasting of the reds. This is a wine made with no sulfur, 1/3 whole cluster. Pure, intense, deep, nervy. Impressive. (91-93)