2009 Domaine Nicolas Rossignol Nicolas Volnay Les Caillerets 1er Cru

The 2009 Volnay Caillerets is built on an attractive core of plush red fruit. Floral, mineral notes appear on the mid-palate, adding complexity as well as a sense of dimension. This is a pretty Volnay, but not as exciting as some of the other wines in this lineup. Rossignol used 30% whole bunches for the Caillerets, a departure from his usual practice here. The vineyards are also a bit younger than in some of the other parcels he works with. Tasted from tank. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2027. Nicolas Rossignol began picking on September 10th and brought in very ripe fruit, with natural alcohols in the 13.5% range. Rossignol used a higher percentage of stems than normal to give the wines a measure of freshness. The wines saw 20-24 days of cuvaison (with no cold soak) with one punchdown per day. New oak ranged from 15% for the villages to 33-50% for the 1ers. The wines were not racked during their time in barrel. Rossignol has an energy and passion that will take him far. His 2009s are a bit all over the place stylistically, though, and it appears that a distinct house style has yet to emerge. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet, various American importers, including: Toepfer Imports LLC, CO; tel. (303) 818-7640; Pas Mal Portfolio, NY; tel. (201) 569-4132