2011 Volnay Santenots du Milieu

The 2011 Volnay 1er Cru Santenots has a crisp, herbaceous bouquet with attractive undergrowth aromas that are more masculine and tertiary than I anticipated. The palate is tannic on the entry with firm structure. There is a touch of bell pepper on the grippy finish that would benefit from a little more flesh. I think there are better vintages out there. Drink now-2016. It was a pleasure to return to one of my favorite Meursault growers, Francois Mikulski, a conscientious winemaker. His wines offer both broad commercial appeal and the complexity to satisfy aficionados. If I am being honest, I do not think Francois’ 2011s quite hit all the buttons, and occasionally displayed too much herbaceous character. However, they are keenly priced and from my own experience can mature deceptively well, though I think I would enjoy these wines in the flush of youth. Francois told me that he replaced his Gamay with Chardonnay, therefore 2012 will be the last vintage of the Bourgogne Passetoutgrain. Since 2008, Francois has made three barrels of Meix Chavaux, which is orientated east/northeast. No known American importer.