On Sale: $144.94 (was: $159.94)*
"Winemaker Brian Sieve has excelled himself in 2018, producing a portfolio of elegant, precise wines..." - Wine Advocate
Pommard is one of our favorite sources for overachieving 1er cru Burgundy, as the current lack of any grand crus allows wines like today’s ‘Les Grand Epenots’ to be priced like a 2nd tier wine, when it is anything but. Les Grand Epenots is undoubtedly one of Pommard’s unofficial grand crus, (the AOC is applying for such a promotion), and in the hands of the family-run Domaine de Montille it captures the distinct combo of power and elegance that we find in the top Pommards. “Another impressive Pommard from Brian Sieve” (Decanter), we’ve been thrilled with the quality coming out of Domaine de Montille lately, as Etienne de Montille has brought a level of refinement and freshness to the famously austere reds of his father, Hubert. At the 1er cru level, prices are pretty competitive too, the catch (as always) is frustratingly small quantities, and you won’t currently find this biodynamically farmed 2018 Grand Epenots anywhere else in the US.
Domaine de Montille has nearly 300 years of history making wine in Burgundy, and under the long tenure of Hubert de Montille developed a lasting reputation for austere vin de garde. That placed his son Etienne in a difficult position of modernizing without sacrificing what made them so well liked to begin with. 2018 was a “more energetic” vintage, “destined to give a lot of pleasure” (Vinous), and Les Grand Epenots won’t need more than a year or two to show its charms. Cheers!
94 points, Decanter: "Always picked early at De Montille because it sits against the heat-reflecting wall on the north side of Les Grands Epenots. This is another impressive Pommard from Brian Sieve and his team: floral, textured and red-fruited with fine-grained tannins, some clove and pepper spice, subtle oak and expertly integrated one-third whole bunch fermentation."
*Offer publication date June 22, 2021. Pricing and availability subject to change.