Domaine Marquis d'Angerville, 'Clos des Ducs' Volnay 1er Cru, Burgundy, France, 2023

Overview of the Wine
Domaine Marquis d’Angerville is one of Burgundy's most sought after estates, and perfectly exemplifies the identity of Volnay. D'Angerville's list of holdings touches all of the village’s great terroirs, including one of the most picturesque vineyards in Volnay, the monopole of the estate, Clos des Ducs. The domaine started bottling its own production in the 1920s after the current Marquis’ grandfather, Sem d’Angerville, challenged the blending methods of the negociants’ and then began bottling his own wines instead of selling them his grapes. D'Angerville was one of the first Burgundy domains to do this, making history and encouraging the future of the region at the same time. Today the estate is led by Guillaume d’Angerville, farmed immaculately, and is producing some of the best wines in the entire Cote d’Or.    

Organic.

Winemaker
Guillaume d'Angerville

Grape / Blend
Pinot Noir

Origin
Burgundy, France

Winemaker's Tasting Notes
This is the great wine of the Domaine. This wine, firm and elegant at the same time, plays in a league apart. Its structure is complex and harmonious. Its aromas, very wide, give it an exceptional volume and a rare distinction. Wine on guard, it slowly evolves in the bottle to reach a great fullness from 10 years of age. Great vintages often take more time.

96 Points - Decanter
Elegant and aristocratic, the Clos des Ducs from d'Angerville is a bit restrained initially but opens up with pomegranate and blackberry fruit aromas and flavours on the palate. The wine is not astringent, but one senses the massive structure and impressive length at first taste. Because of the stony limestone and white marl soils in this 2.15ha holding at the top of the premier cru slope, this complex wine will take time to unwind, but it will undoubtedly be worth the wait.(CC)

96 Points - Jasper Morris
Bright mid purple. Immediate distinction and discretion, impeccably balanced. Alpine strawberry, finesse with intensity, picked at impeccable ripeness, the last red to be picked, on 9th September, but it has held out thanks to underground springs. Everything exactly where anybody would want it and stays in the mouth for so long. Drink from 2033-2045. Tasted Nov 2024.

96 Points - Wine Advocate
Aromas of dark berries cassis and cherries mingled with spices and orange rind in a complex bouquet introduce the 2023 Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs, a medium to full-bodied, complete wine that in some respects represents the synthesis of the d'Angerville premiers crus—the finesse and perfume of Caillerets, the layers of Taillepieds and the structure of Champans, united in a whole that's more than the sum of its parts. Guillaume d'Angerville and technical director François Duvivier began the harvest on September 4, 2023, picking only in the mornings, reporting yields no higher than in 2022. Supple, sensual and fragrant, these wines will offer a broad drinking window. As I've written before, followers of d'Angerville will be familiar with the protocol here: biodynamic farming, destemmed grapes, classical macerations and élevage in barrels—of which some 20% are new, with older barrels generally being retained for five vintages. These have always been seriously long-lived wines, but contemporary d'Angerville isn't quite as backward and slow to evolve as the wines were in the days of Guillaume d'Angerville's father. The use of barrels with a somewhat younger average age—even if percentages of new wood remain very modest—gives them a slightly glossier patina, especially in their youth.(WK)

95 Points - Tim Atkin
This beautiful, sloped vineyard amounts to 52 ouvrées. Rather big in Burgundy these days! The nose exudes bright cherry fruits before the palate feel starts to dominate. The tannins have a bit of a gnaw at the palate (in a pleasantly grippy way—surely from the white clay soils), and they are reinforced by the acidity melts gently into the palate. For such an age-worthy wine, it is impressive that this is by far the most integrated of the lot.

95 Points - Vinous
The 2023 Volnay Clos des Ducs 1er Cru seems to have a different aromatic profile from the other Premier Crus. More introverted at first with darker fruit as well as sea cave and light loamy scents, it takes time to cohere in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grip. It is structured with good tension yet more backward and less giving than, say, Champans or Taillepieds at the moment. This is the one cuvée I would cellar for several years before broaching.(NM)

95 Points - Burghound
Note: a monopole that measures 2.15 ha. This was the only wine in the range to display more than a trace of reduction and even here, the aromas are clearly ripe. There is more volume and power to the tautly muscular medium-bodied flavors that conclude in a wonderfully persistent, compact and impressively well-balanced finale where a touch of bitter pit fruit appears. This too is lovely and a Ducster that should be approachable after only 5 to 8 years yet has the stuffing to reward 12+ years of cellaring.*Burghound Sweet Spot Outstanding!*

Product size: 750ml