what a great wine—probably one of the best Volnays I have ever had. Super focus and density, dark blue fruit and licorice, gentle layered texture, very silky, still no tertiary notes, just a beautiful mouthful of pretty, pretty wine, fruit almost explosive. While known for his whites, this red is a great version. Long future ahead.
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1999 is such a great vintage, particularly in the cote de Beaune. Their time is just beginning to come.
I tasted this wine early on in it’s life and bought a case and a half. It a bruiser for a Volnay but as a wine, it is excellent. Structure, power, depth, earth, and still on the young side with the dark '99 vintage color. Looking forward to these over the next several years.
Certainly one of the very best Volnay wines Alan. Always deep and in need of plenty of cellar time.
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I was interested in this thread because of this very experience. I remember having it years ago and when asked my impressions I said, “It’s the nicest Barbaresco I have had in some time.” It was a monster wine in both its fruit profile and structure. I have one or two left but I would have to look extensively for it/then as I knew forgetting about them for years was the only chance. Glad to hear this has turned a corner!
Jim’s comments made me realize I’ve never actually chosen to buy this wine. Although I’ve had a number of very good bottles (in other years), I much prefer the more precise, pure, crystalline style of Volany from Lafarge and d’Angerville (plus, I have enough Barbaresco to last me a lifetime). Maybe the examples I’ve had have all been too young. This report, though is very promising, and I look forward to trying the 99 one of these days. I can’t remember having a 99 from the CdB that I didn’t absolutely love.
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It’s the vineyard, Santenots has little to do with Volnay back over the border. A great wine, I agree, but extremely masculine.
I bought this wine upon release but have none now. One bottle made its way into a mixed case of wine I took to burgundy (!) five years ago as part of a large group gift to becky and russell to replenish their burgled cellar and then I consigned the rest to HDH after trying somebody else’s bottle. Maybe I will get to drink someone else’s if it has turned out better than I expected.
Maybe I should start thinking about opening my bottle of 1993?
Thanks Alan. I have a vertical going back to 1978 which I have put on the back burner, and your note is encouraging me to do something about it.
found an old Tanzer review where the stingy scorer rated the wine 94(+?) and wrote, “Bright ruby-red. Pristine, fruit-driven aromas of blackberry liqueur, black and red cherry and violet. A Volnay of compelling density, sweetness and power but at the same time brilliantly detailed and firmly structured. Great verve here. Finished extremely long and perfumed, with a medicinal reserve and a piquant element of black pepper . . . should gain in complexity for at least 15 to 20 years in a cold cellar.”
Tanzer and Meadows were the influence to try this wine originally. Here are Allen’s notes from 2001 - "1999 Volnay “Santenots du Milieu”: While the Clos des Chênes performed as expected relative to the cask sample, the final Santenots was even better than the cask sample. Wonderfully expressive with massive amounts of spicy black fruit and seductive flavors; the wine has an enormous amount of underlying material and is incredibly complex. But it’s the length that defines this wine as it simply goes on and on. It’s not hard to see why Lafon believes this is one of the finest wines ever produced at the Domaine. Simply magnificent. 94/2009-20
I guess it’s time to try another bottle.
So y’all saying I need 15 more years before I try this 6 pack of 14s I bought
Hey–but what do Steve and Allen M. know, anyway? Once you get to wines of the highest quality, it’s all about personal preferences in terms of style. I’ve found over the years that Steve has a slightly different palate than mine (prefers more oak and density than I do). I’m not sure how I fit with Allen M.'s palate (or Alan W. for that matter). For me, the wine is more Pommard-like in many years, and i’m not so much of a fan of Pommard (in general).
Whatever the case, it sounds like a great example. I hope I get a chance to try it one of these days. (I suspect someone in our group likely has it).
(actually it turns out I did try it before --1/9/09. My comments mostly say “very young”, but promising)
Having this today during the football games - dark, extracted, ripe, spicy, and holding well. No importer label - I’m not sure where I got this but have had it for at least 20 years.
Good one!
Drank a 96 a few weeks back. Great bottle, right at its apogee. Was still a bit of a brute not that many years ago though. Definitely important to give them the time they need!
That’s very high praise from you, Alan—great note and thanks for sharing.
Haere Ra,
Mike
1 in the cellar.
I predict you will have a chance to revisit it!
Maybe if and when Jim (and Kelley) are up here. I’ll keep an empty Barbaresco bottle around to slip it into, just in case.
Seriously, it will be very interesting to see where it has ended up.