2010 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay

Medium red. Black cherry, dark chocolate and a hint of earth on the nose and palate. Sweet and vinous, with lovely balance and intensity for village wine. Finishes with serious dusty tannins and very good length.

The 2010 Volnay blossoms onto the palate with refined dark red berries. This is a supple, generous Volnay endowed with gorgeous inner perfume and terrific overall balance. A juicy, generous finish rounds things out in style. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2020. Yields were down 40% in 2010 at Lafarge. According to Frederic Lafarge, a superb September saved a year marked by damp, cold weather during the flowering and later throughout the summer. On the positive side, the low yields per plant allowed the grapes to achieve full phenolic ripeness. The 2010s were racked in mid-August 2011 and were aging on their fine lees when I tasted them from barrel in November 2011. As pretty as the 2010s are, today I have a slight preference for the 2009s. That said, the 2010s are terrific, and many of the wines are at or near the top of their respective peer groups. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet, various American importers, including: Martin Scott Wines, Little Neck, NY; tel. (516) 327-0808; Veritas Imports, Beverly Hills, CA; tel. (310) 205-3803; Toepfer Imports LLC, CO; tel. (303) 818-7640

Lightly meaty on the nose. Exceedingly well polished with gentle tannins and a lovely texture. A very light touch. Bone dry with a cornucopia of fruit. Classic Volnay. (JR)