Volnay, Les Champans, 1er Cru, Domaine de Montille
£75.95 per bottle
"En Champans" is one of the most highly regarded vineyards of Volnay. This steeply sloped terroir is very calcareous with a light brown soil and sits at the highest end of the parcel (along the D973). Toward the bottom, the terroir is more clay-driven with earth that vascilates between brown and red. This is a major Volnay cru. The Domaine de Montille vines line up across the slope and benefit from optimal sunshine exposure.
"Champans" comes from the combination of two words, "champ" or "field" and "pans", which means "slope".
A Volnay Premier Cru "En Champans" is a spawning wine that delivers vibrant red fruits (cherries) and a structure of dense tannins that somehow resist rigidity. The palate is ample, structured and thoroughly elegant. This wine tends to open up after seven to 12 years.
The wines, the style
Domaine de Montille is known to craft wines with great aromatic purity, always favoring balance and elegance over power and extraction. The wines are classic expressions of Burgundy, produced in the most natural way possible and possessing an impressive ability to age, as the family believes only time can reveal the true potential of the greatest wines. The domaine's current style remains faithful to Hubert's natural and idealistic approach, which demanded considerable patience while waiting for appropriate drinking windows for certain vintages. Etienne, however, has taken up the task to bring greater aromatic expression and silkier and more unctuous textures to the reds, allowing them to drink earlier, without compromising their ability to age. The domaine is known in Burgundy, among others such as Arlot, DRC, Dujac and Leroy, to regularly vinify using a significant proportion of whole clusters, varying by cuvée and by vintage.
