2022 Comte du Armand Pommard 1er Clos des Epeneaux
Every Burgundy collector I have ever come across always has a handful of wines they look for every year, as they usually invoke some memory of a great bottle drank at some point. I’ve had a number of different vintages of Clos des Epeneaux and many were truly memorable bottles. With a little patience, this year offers another one of those memory-making wines.
STORY
The Clos des Epeneaux estate’s history dates back to the French Revolution, but over the past 40 years we have seen its reputation grow as one of the reference point wines from the Cote de Beaune. A number of very talented winemakers got their start while tending to the 5.3 hectare Clos located mostly within Grands Epenots: Pascal Marchand from 1985-1998, Benjamin Leroux in charge 1999-2014, and since the 2014 vintage Paul Zinetti has led (joining in 2010).
It's been a few years since I have visited the Domaine, but I do remember Ben Leroux telling me about the different sections of the vineyard and how they ripened at different times. As we tasted the different barrels each offered something different. There is a high percentage of old vines in the clos, some approaching 100 years old, which really gives this wine its character.
Most of the fruit is destemmed with a rather low use of new barrels (30%). I have not yet tasted the 2022 but based on some of the other wines I tasted from the vintage this is going to offer ample fruit but with a much more polished edge than some of the other recent warm vintages. It is a wine that will require some patience but has all the makings of a spectacular Clos des Epeneaux!
2022 Comte du Armand Pommard 1er Clos des Epeneaux
First we tasted the component parts. (1) Young vines from 1980s. A deep concentrated purple. Lesser foliage in the hot dry summer has concentrated the colour and other aspects, giving a dark style of fruit as well, with a nutty finish, but good acidity. (2) A blend, mainly from plot #3 and a bit of #1. Mid purple in colour, less demonstrative on the nose. A much suppler style of fruit, less forceful acidity, fine length, more typical Epenots here. (3) Old vines, 90+ years old: A deep glowing purple. A little more intensity, a gorgeous quality of deep red fruit, just a touch tougher in its tannins, plus the acidity. (4) Press wine: dark purple, powerful rather than fine on the nose, more volatile, but could be useful in the blend. Sweet thick dark red to black fruit. Chunky stuff. And now the blend: A deep purple colour with only a very slightly lighter rim. The bouquet suggests poise as the fruit has melded together harmoniously. On the palate this is, as almost always, a much more complete wine than the individual parts. The wine seems to push down deeper while retaining all the class of the very best components. We are approaching the cusp of red and black fruit, the acidity is perfectly harnessed and the tannins are fine grained. Potentially a very fine Clos des Epeneaux. Drink from 2032-2040+. Tasted: October 2023.
- Jasper Morris, 93-96
The 2022 Pommard Clos des Epeneaux ler Cru was tasted from individual cuvées blended to make a representative final blend. This year, there is 8% vin de presse. It has a backward nose at first, demanding encouragement from the glass. There's blackberry, raspberry and sea spray, and quite an elevated marine influence compared to recent vintages. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins. Silky smooth in texture with fine delineation, very well-balanced with a touch of white pepper and clove on the finish. This is set to be a generous Clos des Epeneaux, slightly more opulent in style yet with ample freshness and tension. It will require 4-5 years in bottle.
- Vinous Media, 92-94
