Jacques Carillon describes his 2010s as "classic Burgundian chardonnay, like 2008." This vintage is the first year in which Jacques and his brother Francois have completely separate operations following the division of the domain three years ago. It was a bit too early to assess a couple of these wines at the beginning of June, as they still had significant unconverted malic acidity, but this looks to be an excellent vintage here. Carillon's 2009s have also turned out well, as an early harvest enabled the fruit to retain good minerality.
2010 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Puligny-Montrachet
(malo recently finished): Peach and clove oil complemented by a saline note and light sulfides on the nose and palate. Good grip and intensity, thanks to sound acidity and solid minerality. At once supple and firm. This struck me as rather 2008-like in style.
2010 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Puligny-Montrachet Les Perrieres
(just 7 barrels produced, compared to a typical 13; finished with its malo and recently sulfited): Bright lemon-yellow color. Lemon and stone on the nose, with a riper peach quality emerging with aeration. Concentrated, chewy and saline, with excellent grip to its densely packed flavors of peach and orange oil. Very long on the finish. Gives an impression of a high ratio of skin to juice, no doubt a function of the degenerating vines and the high percentage of grapes affected by millerandage. (In comparison to this cuvee, the Champs-Canet, which was still finishing its malo, was rounder and more opulent, with less citric energy.)
2010 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Puligny-Montrachet Les Referts
(tasted at the end of its secondary fermentation): Musky aromas of lemon and clove oil. Fat and sweet on entry, then suave and concentrated in the middle, wearing its rich lemony fruit gracefully. Really saturates the sides of the mouth on the very long, lively finish. (The Chassagne-Montrachet Les Macharelles still had a dry malic edge that cut off its finishing fruit.)
2010 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Bienvenue-Batard-Montrachet
(just a single new barrel of this juice, from a tiny crop of 22 hectoliters per hectare; 13.8% alcohol): Light-medium yellow. Brisk nose combines quinine, orange oil, minerals and obvious new oak. Oily, concentrated and strong, with ripe peach and apricot flavors complicated by saline soil tones. Finishes very long and a bit tannic, with a late suggestion of gunflint. Very densely packed grand cru.
2009 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Puligny-Montrachet
($63) Light yellow. Musky aromas of peach and minerals. Suave, rich and rather sophisticated, conveying an impression of sucrosite leavened by a firm mineral edge. Finishes with very good length.
2009 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Chassagne-Montrachet Les Macharelles
($84) Pale yellow. Pear and brown spices on the nose, plus a whiff of red berries. Fruity and quite dry, with ripe acidity giving shape to the pear flavor. This deep, clay-rich soil yields an ample style.
2009 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Puligny-Montrachet Champs-Canet
($105) Pale yellow. Expressive high-toned aromas of peach, hazelnut and flowers. Fat and round, with pliant peach and leesy flavors nicely framed by mineral cut. A suave and subtle wine with very good length. "August was hot in 2009," said Carillon, "but the nights were cool and there were good water reserves in the soil."
2009 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Puligny-Montrachet Combettes
($105) Pale yellow. Discreet, very pure aromas of peach blossom and spices. Drier and less open than the Champs-Canet but larger-scaled, despite the fact that this is from younger vines (19 years old, vs. about 40). Good underlying minerality gives the wine solid structure, but there's less early fat here. Carillon says that the vines' roots are now going deeper, hence the greater minerality in the wine. I'd give this three to five years in the cellar before pulling the cork.
2009 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Puligny-Montrachet Les Perrieres
($105) Pale yellow. White peach and minerals on the nose. Fat on entry, then silky and plush in the middle, with a saline minerality to the dried peach flavor. Rather closed today and less pure than the Combettes. Also more large than long. Does this have the structure to repay aging?
2009 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Puligny-Montrachet Les Referts
($120) Deep stone fruit and nutmeg aromas are complicated by a sexy leesy element. Sweet and fruity but not especially fat or easy, with lovely inner-mouth perfume to its mineral and hazelnut flavors. This may not have the typical gunflinty force of Carillon's Referts but it still envelops the palate with flavor on the long aftertaste. Drink it now or hold it for five years.
2009 Domaine Louis Carillon & Fils Bienvenue-Batard-Montrachet
($375) Fresh apricot and peach complemented by clove oil and sweet oak. Fat and chewy in the mouth; round and full but not a bit heavy. Conveys good spicy, dusty minerality but this is quite unforthcoming today and in need of patience. Still a bit aggressive on the back end.
