2015 Volnay Santenots

Tasted blind, the 2015 Volnay 1er Cru Les Santenots-du-Milieu offers up a deep bouquet of red-black cherries, spices, potpourri, espresso roast and subtle grilled meat. Full-bodied, ample and sappy on the palate, it's rich but vibrant, with fine-grained structuring tannins that are beginning to assert themselves on the finish. Having drunk several bottles of this wine since release, the extent to which it's shutting down is clearly apparent, and at this stage, patience will be required.

Concentrated enough not to be bottled till July 2017, after extended barrel age and two months in tank. Lifted charming cherry fruit. Flesh but no obvious sweetness. Crisp and appetising. (JR)

Cask sample. From a 2012 cask. Lots of complex vegy aromas. Real character and persistence and confidence. Sinews and potential. (JR)