2014 Francois Carillon, Puligny-Montrachet, White Burgundy, France.
A very serious Puligny with a rich and full bodied character that showcases the vintage and a refinement of style coming out of Francois Carillon’s cellar, this wine is not the modern lean and nervy Puligny-Montrachet that we’ve seen in recent years from the likes of Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey or Jean-Marc Roulot, it’s more of a throwback to the denser wines of the late nineties. While I’ve grown fond of the steely verve of the new classics, this wine has an opulence that is hard to resist, while underlying acidity holds it together and it’s layering is seductive, and it makes an excellent contrast in a quality offering. The 2014 Francois Carillon Puligny-Montrachet village wine starts with a light golden hue and a nose of orchard fruit, citrus blossom and brioche on the nose before a concentrated palate of golden apples, bosc pear, lemon curd and Turkish fig along with subtle creme brûlée, wet stones, stone fruit fleshiness and mineral tones. This wine is creamy in texture with leesy roundness and exceptional length, this is a regal Chardonnay that reminds me more of Corton-Charlmagne than Puligny in many ways, but after it has time to open up it changes back into a fine and elegant example of white Burgundy gaining energy with every sip, making for a slightly backward wine, but one that has potential to develop over the next 3 to 5 years in bottle. The Carillon brothers Francois and Jacques split the family’s domaine and cellars in 2009, each deciding to do their own thing after centuries of being a classic generational domaine, dating back to 1611, though Carillon’s have been making wine in the region since at least 1520, they both are traditionalists in winemaking and even though Jacques is more the true winemaker, this Francois Carillon is well crafted and could be mistaken for a Premier Cru of even a Grand Cru. This ripe Puligny comes from the Carillon owned five hectares of vines in Puligny, it has a soft mouth feel which hides the inner vibrancy a little and a touch of smoky oak that adds to the impression of nobility and grace, this is a powerful wine in the glass and it demands your attention.
($62 Est.) 92 Points, grapelive
