2014 Domaine Michel Lafarge, Volnay Premier Cru, Clos des Chenes 1x750ml

Robert Parker 93

"Tasted blind at the Burgfest 2014 tasting, the 2014 Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chenes offers a clutch of wonderful aromatics: very pure red cherry, cranberry and strawberry scents with an underlying mineral seam that bursts through with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, a crisp line of acidity and impressive salinity, and it is one of the few Volnays, at least in this particular flight, to show a persistent aftertaste. What a wonderful wine from l’equipe Lafarge. Tasted September 2017." [Neal Martin, 31/10/2017]

Anticipated maturity: 2019-2035

Vinous 90

(15% new oak): Medium red Reticent, slightly musky nose offers redcurrant and cherry aromas complicated by mocha, earth, spices and pepper; not exactly high-pitched but much more vibrant than the Volnay villages Can’t quite match the 2015 version for purity, but this wine boasts penetrating redcurrant sweetness with good acid cut and complicating salty minerality Finishes with substantial granular tannins that shorten the finish a bit today Left behind some decadent cinnamon and musky oak notes in the empty glass This should gain in texture and complexity with bottle age but I miss the floral lift it displayed from barrel [Stephen Tanzer, 03/01/2017]

Anticipated maturity: 2022-2029