Domaine Pierrick BOULEY (Volnay) -- 2023 Red and White Wines Tasted from Barrel and from Cask/Tank Samples
Pierrick Bouley said he harvested between 11 and 23 September in 2023. Alcohols are high here, 14º for village wines, 14.5º for premier cru wines, but he says that the good acidity and low pH balance the alcohols. Althojgh I generally do not like high alcohol Pinot Noir, and I did not find the levels here to show or be objectionable.
All wines are from entirely-destemmed grapes.
Bottling was scheduled to start just before Christmas (i.e., a little less than a month after I tasted these wines).
Beginning in 2023, the estate is certified organic; however, in 2022 Pierrrick took on 5 ha from an estate in Pommard, thereby raising the total for his domaine to 12 ha. For 2023, only the wine from the original 7 ha is certified organic; the new 5 ha are in the process of conversion, and will qualify for certification in the future.
We start with the red wines:
2023 Bourgogne Passetoutgrains
Dark fruits, smooth texture, medium weight. Very fruity and attractive for what it is. 30% Pinot Noir, 70% Gamay. (86-89)
2023 Bourgogne Côte d’Or vieilles vignes
Round with some structure and purity. Pleasing. (86-88)
2023 Monthélie Aux Fourneaux
Nice acidity that holds together the red fruits, some minerality here. Smooth texture. (88-91)
2023 Volnay
Floral nose. Medium-weight in mouth, nice acidity and minerality, red Volnay fruits. (90-92)
2023 Pommard
Rounder and richer than the Volnay, more rustic, as one would expect. Half from hillsides, half from the plain (near the Château de Pommard). (88-91)
2023 Pommard Les Noizons
More power, more tannin, tighter structure than the regular Pommard. Red fruits. (89-92)
2023 Aloxe-Corton
Floral nose. Red fruits, good structure, still tannic, (90-92)
2023 Beaune 1er Cru Les Clos du Bas des Teurons
Good tannic structure, juicy fruits, even some citric notes. (89-92)
2023 Beaune 1er Cru Montrevenots
More supple than the previous, although still good structure. Silk texture and some finesse here. (89-92)
2023 Monthélie 1er Cru Les Clous
Very fine tannins, red fruits, drawn-out silky texture, length, fruit. (91-93)
2023 Volnay Les Pluchots
The vines here are from the upper part of Les Pluchots and thus on white soils, indicating a high limestone content. A bit of cedar in the nose to go with dark fruits. The mouth shows dark fruits along with good minerality and focus. (91-93)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Les Frémiets
This wine is made from purchased grapes. Red fruits, powdered chalk, airiness of Frémiets, good length. (90-92)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Robardelles
Floral nose with bushes. Dark fruits in the mouth, some power here, smooth texture, airy. (91-93)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Roncerets
Dark fruits, round body, smooth texture, juicy. (90-93)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Les Grands Champs
This is a monopole holding for Bouley in the sense that it is the only portion of Grands Champs classified as premier cru. Red fruit aromas. Red fruits in the mouth, wine falls across the tongue in layers, laciness. This is a classic of of the ideal of Volnay. (92-94)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Santenots
This wine shows the finesse of the vintage and displays excellent complexity. This grapes are from the lower portion of Santenots, generally regarded as inferior to the Santenots-du-Milieu upslope, but it is an excellent result, nonetheless. (92-94)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Champans
The roundness of Champans comes through with red fruits, some tannins, and a smooth texture. A good expression of the terroir. (92-94)
2023 Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes
Stoniness typical of Clos des Chênes in the nose. The mouth is lighter than most of the foregoing wines, also what I would expect from the relatively cold-climate Clos des Chênes. There is a silky texture already, but nevertheless this wine will need time in the bottle to achieve its full potential. (91-94)
2023 Pommard 1er Cru
Dark berry fruits, power, depth, ripe tannins. This is an attractive Pommard 1er cru, made from the Charmots and Chanière vineyards. (91-93)
On to the whites, tasted from barrel and cask samples:
2023 Bourgogne-Aligoté
This is good Aligoté with yellow fruits and minerality, but beware that it is a ripe Aligoté. It comes from vines on the lower part of Volnay and the upper part of Pommard. (86-88)
2023 Bourgogne Côte d’Or
This wine is from purchased grapes grown in Ladoix-Serrigny. The wine shows good Chardonnay fruit and good acidity for the vintage, but i found a bit of a hole in the middle. (85-87)
2023 Saint-Romain
The attractive Saint-Romain is from purchased grapes that originated from the Perrières and Poillanges vineyards, The nose is stony, and the mouth is dense, pure, fresh, and penetrating. This is an excellent village wine. (88-91)
2023 Chassagne-Montrafchet 1er Cru Abbaye de Morgeot
The Chassagne-Abbaye de Morgeot is fresh and mineral and it is richer than the Saint-Romain, It should make a good bottle. (90-92)