Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jasper Morris
50% whole cluster. Medium depth of crimson colour. Lifted fresh red berry with a certain acidity. The Taillepieds is evenly balanced on the palate with a wealth of attractive dark red fruit sitting alongside the whole cluster freshness. Drink from 2027-2032.
Barrel Sample: 91-93 -
Vinous
The 2021 Volnay Taillepieds 1er Cru has a touch of reduction on the nose, but it does not occlude the complex red berry fruit, crushed stone or shucked oyster shell scents that develop in the glass. Very nuanced and focused. The palate is well balanced with a patina of oak, though it is simpatico with the fruit. Beautifully balanced with a wonderfully sapid finish, this evinces clever winemaking. One of the best wines in the flight of Volnays.
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Decanter
The Taillepieds from de Montille has long been one of the iconic wines of the domaine and in 2021 it did not disappoint. The wine boasts ripe blackberry fruit with violet, earth, and liquorice notes. The texture is firmly tannic, yet there is a supple quality as well, and enough density to assure lingering finish. The grapes come from two parcels totaling 1.5 hectares. Most of the grapes from the old vines are left as whole bunches prior to the fermentation and ageing in cask with a modest proportion of new oak.
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.”
On the hillsides between Pommard and Meursault, Volnay is one of two villages in the Côte de Beaune of Burgundy that is recognized for its extraordinary Pinot Noir. Pommard is the other; the rest of the villages are most known for some of the most exceptional Chardonnay in the world. While Volnay Pinot Noir tends to be light in color and more delicate than that of Pommard, they typically stand on par with each other in regards to quality and demand.
Volnay can’t claim any Grands Crus vineyards but more than half of it has achieved Premier Cru status. Volnay Premiers Crus vineyards stretch across the entire village from northeast to southwest, abutting and actually falling “into” Meursault. Where they merge is a vineyard called Les Santenots. Pinot Noir grows in this Meursault Premier Cru but since that village is most associated with stellar whites, the Pinot Noir from Les Santenots, takes the name Volnay Santenots. Immediately above it are Volnay’s other prized Premier Cru, Le Cailleret, Champans, Clos des Chênes and Le Cailleret.
Volnay Pinot Noir are earthy with red or blue fruit. Aromas such as smoke, herbs, forest, cocoa and spice are common and on the palate they are gorgeous and concentrated with finesse but won’t truly charm you without some age.