2017 Volnay Les Fremiets 1er Cru

Though I taste Henri Boillot’s wines each year, it had been a while since I called in at the estate, just outside Meursault. Boillot’s son Guillaume greeted me at the entrance to what is a sizeable barrel cellar compared to many. Guillaume now takes a more active role in the running of the domaine as the baton is passed to the next generation. I asked him about the 2017 vintage. “We were not touched by the frost and there was no mildew. We are organic here, no chemicals for 20 years. There was good maturity and fine balance for the reds. We started the harvest quite early, around September 5, finishing with the Grand Crus around September 10 or 11. We found the stems were a bit green, so everything was de-stemmed. There are lots of aromas and fruit with good tension. The reds will be in barrel for 12 months. For 2017 we have introduced vinification intégrale for the Pommard Les Rugiens, Volnay Les Caillerets and all the Grand Crus. It gives better colour and structure, more density, without marking the wine with the wood. I think 2015 is richer and denser whereas 2017 could be considered a mixture of 2008 and 2010.”

I have to confess, I am not a great fan of vinification intégrale because though it obviates the use of pumps, I often find it imbues homogeneity between terroirs. As such, though I find it can be beneficial when terroir is not a crucial factor, I worry when it risks blurring the nuances between vineyards. This was borne out by some of the 2017s that I tasted here and is reflected in my cautious scores. In fact, some of Boillot’s Premier Crus really caught my eye: the Volnay Les Chevrets (just like at Nicolas Rossignol) and in particular the Volnay Les Caillerets, a vineyard that excels this year.