Winemaker Notes
Pair with flank steak with pepper, oeufs en meurette or aged French cheese.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Pommard 1er Cru Les Jarollières has an attractive bouquet with slightly earthy black fruit laced with black tea and bay leaf aromas. I appreciate the way this unfurls in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, quite fresh and harmonious, focused with a fresh, oyster shell-tinged finish. Yes, I would like a little more personality perhaps, but this is still a well-crafted Pommard that should give 15 years of drinking pleasure.
Barrel Sample: 89-91 -
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: One of the issues with Pommard is that historically, there has been a lot of mediocrity in the marketplace. The La Pousse d'Or 1er Cru Les Jarollières has always been one of the exceptions. The 2016 vintage is top of the line. TASTING NOTES: This wine is generous, supple, and delivers from start to finish. Its aromas and flavors of ripe fruit stay generous and long on the palate. Pair its ripe red and blue fruits with roast pork of tenderloin. (Tasted: March 18, 2019, San Francisco, CA)
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
Representing some of the darkest, deepest and sturdiest Pinot Noir of Burgundy, Pommard is one of the two villages in Côte de Beaune—along with Volnay—that is recognized for its impressive Pinot Noir. While it can’t boast any Grands Crus vineyards, its extraordinary Premiers Crus vineyards are aplenty.
Les Pézerolles, Les Épenots, Clos des Épeneaux, Les Chanlins, Les Jarolières, Les Fremiers and particularly Les Rugiens are among the most outstanding Premiers Crus.
The best Pommards will be concentrated in flavors such as black cherry, blackberry and dark chocolate, have dazzling aromas of violets, menthol or wild herbs and a firm and powerful finish. They typically demand some time in the bottle to reach their peak.