2008 Volnay Fremiets

The d’Angerville 2008 Volnay Fremiet amplifies some of the themes of their Clos des Angles (grown just east of it): tart red fruits tinged with peat and pepper and underlain by salted meat stock. Hints of leather and prominent, dusty crushed stone suffusion are part of the lean, bright, intense picture here, too, and a relative austerity vis-a-vis Clos des Angles seems to reflect the rocky, thin surface soil environment in this part of Fremiet. This certainly grips implacably and invigoratingly. Will its extra measure of tannin and palpable extract help it live longer? Or – more to the point – will this be interesting or user-friendly a dozen years from now? Probably, but I’d still be inclined to put my money on Clos des Angles with its additional youthful enticement. Guillaume d’Angerville and Renaud de Villette had good reason for their upbeat assessment of 2008 quality given the vintage’s travails, notably July hail that ravaged their Champans and parts of their villages and Bourgogne holdings, as well as touching other sites. The hail came too soon in the season, though, to have ill-effects on the eventual health of the fruit, and the team did not start picking until the 27th of September. With the exception of Clos des Ducs and Taillepieds – bottled the week of my April visit, but showing no ill-effects, au contraire – the 2008s were bottled in early March. Importer: Diageo Chateau and Estate Wines Company, New York, NY; tel. (212) 419-1400