- These Will Be 2-3 Times these Prices in 5-10 Years
- The "Lyle Wayback Discount Machine"
- Prices for this Quality Level Last Seen 10-20 Years Ago Through 3 Tier
Pascal Bouley
- Took Over in 2016
- Elite Levels of Fruit Density
- Burstingly Ripe Fruit
- Piercing Freshness
- For Sheer Deliciousness, Very, Very Hard to Beat
- Small Production So Prices Will Increase Geometrically Once He Gets Discovered
- Worth Over $100 Easily: $69.99 and $49.99
2017 Pierrick Bouley Volnay 1er Cru "Robardelles"
- Mega, Mega Deep Nose - a Knockout, Very Complex
- Intense Palate with Nuclear Levels of Fruit
- Old Vines, Tiny Berries
- Cooling Cherry and Tons of Stones
- A Collector's Dream - Very, Very Small Vineyard
- $69.99 Compare Rossignol-Fevrier (Who?) at $100-$110
2017 Pierrick Bouley Pommard
- 80 Year Old Vines
- Low Yields
- Epic Levels of Concentration
- Deep But Still Fresh and Balanced
- Very Limited
"Pierrick is clearly fashioning elegant Volnays in a similar style to Michel Lafarge of Jean-Pierre Charlot at Domaine Joseph Voillot, the highlight for me being his Clos des Chênes (although I was only able to taste four of his 2016s). I will make a visit next time I am in the village to taste the full range." Neal Martin, The Wine Advocate
The Lyle Wayback Discount Machine
I remember when I was a kid, we would sometimes stop at outlet malls when we were away in the country. Now these were not the outlet malls of today which are mobbed with people and have lower discounts of a lot of stuff that is not so great. Outlet malls are now an industry and there aren't usually great values. Back then, 40 years ago, almost no one knew about them. And the values on top end merchandise were incredible. 60-70% off was the norm,
This is how I feel about some of these producers in my Burgundy portfolio.
- They are top or close to top producers in their areas.
- Prices lower than awful producers through 3 tier.
Long time listers know the producers that I've discovered and have gone on to greatness (and 2-3x price hikes):
- Galeyrand
- Thomas Bouley
- Chavy-Chouet
- Martin Muellen
- Florent Garaudet
They all went from outlet mall prices to full tilt top "suggested retail price" markup retail within 5 years of me offering them.
Pierrick Bouley Is Next
Another Fass Find is on the queue for discovery and price increases...Pierrick Bouley. Neal Martin is no fool. Pierrick is on his radar and time is not on our side.
Since the 2016 vintage when Pierrick 100% took over from his parents and changed the labels to
The wines under Pierrick's direction are much better.
- they have a darker fruit profile,
- less sulfur,
- more freshness,
- incredible purity and
- vivid flavor detail, along with
- finer, more suave and refined tannins.
These wines have an early accessibility which is a huge change from his parents' style which was decidedly old school and the wines all need decades to come around. I've had many of Pierrick's 16s since they have arrived and they are super delicious young but still have that famous Bouley structure that ensures a long life. These are elite wines and are BOTH less then the least expensive expensive examples out there of today's two vaunted 1er Crus (see below).
The 2017 Vintage
2017 is a Vintage that is perfectly suited to Pierrick's increasingly elegant, structured and precise style. It's like a 16/14 blend but more accessible young but still will age effortlessly to the end of their respective drinking windows. They are full of expressive "gout de terroir" and unreal pure, sappy red and black fruits along with insane freshness and succulence. They will age gloriously and long. Pierrick has added some new slices of great terroir to the stable as well since last year and also his prices are inching up, which I've been saying for years now they will. Especially since they have now been compared to the wines of Michel Lafarge by Neal Martin of the Wine Advocate.
The Wines
Up first is the 2017 Pierrick Bouley Volnay 1er Cru "Robardelles" for $69.99 a bottle on a 3-Pack. It's south of Clos du Chenes and Caillerets and sits right below Chevret. Ronceret and Champans lie to the east. So it's surrounded by greatness.
A knockout nose. Stunning. Super aromatic and very spicey. Licorice peeks through and the nose is ripe and very complex. Mid season ripe cherries and cooling cherry and tons of stones. Maybe even a hint of blue/black fruits. Fascinating. Floral notes emerge after some swirling to complicate things. These are very old vines and the grapes were very tiny. It really comes across in the nose of this wine. There is a sense of mega mega deepness here. It's brooding.
The palate is intense. I know I use intense a lot but man this palate is intense. Almost a paste-like feeling or texture. Insane dark to middle season concentrated cherry fruit and so much richness. Remarkably fresh and intensely chewy and so, so dense. So sappy and complex. But fresh as a daisy. So much fruit. I mean nuclear levels of fruit.
The finish is a squeegee of fruit on your palate. You can tell when the wine is made from tiny berries. Super great wine and will age effortlessly for years.
Now we have another wine that is insanely limited and the best version I've ever had. And again, yields were silly low. The 2017 Pierrick Bouley Pommard is $49.99 a bottle today on a 4-pack. This is all from 80 year old vines and yields were low. They were insanely low for a Village Pommard or any Red Burgundy for that matter. Another brilliant effort.
Big huge nose. But it's also refined elegant and stoney. The aromas were closed on this day but I opened the 15 recently to research the email and it showed really well. This wine will show what the 15 showed aromatically but it will be more precise, less opulent and more complex. I've had 12-17 and know what's missing when they are closed aromatically. Loads of spice, tea leaf, earth, loam, big red cherry fruit and some licorice after air. Big confectionary nose. Earthy and very very Pommard.
But the palate totally OMG. It's massive and chewy. So pure and very very wide open. Dense with amazingly sweet confectionary fruit. Black and red cherries. It's super long, incredibly saturating, amazingly pure and so so long. Opulent ad very rich but elegant and energetic. The balance and freshness on this wine are extraordinary. It goes on and on. This is a wine I'd wait 5 years on and will last 20. This is very limited.
2017 Pierrick Bouley Volnay 1er Cru "Robardelles" - $71.99
($209.97 3-pack) (*Including tariff of $8.48)
2017 Pierrick Bouley Pommard - $51.99 ($199.96 4-pack)
(*Including tariff of $5.65)
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