One of Volnay’s senior premier crus, Glantenay’s ‘Clos des Chênes’ comes from two parcels, one sited toward the bottom of the vineyard and planted with very old vines, the other farther upslope. ‘Clos des Chênes’ is a large vineyard, with appreciable differences in wine style depending on the location of a producer’s parcel. Wines from the lower part of the vineyard tend to show more robust structure and deeper fruit, while those from further up display appreciably redder fruit and a pronounced floral quality. Few producers have the ability to blend the two; Thierry Glantenay does, and he makes the most of the opportunity.

The stems are kept for the old vines, the younger ones destemmed. Thierry prefers élévage in older barrel, preferring to let freshness and a lithe structure emerge without straining against oak. The 2012 has just begun to evince the mellowing of its tannins, offering a pliant frame to this vintage’s abundant fruit. Gentle notes of maturity are also subtly joining the symphony of spice and small red fruits. Wines of this quality in Burgundy at even a moderate age are already so hard to find. I wish I could locate them oftener. - Jason

Thierry Glantenay, maintaining the domaine of his father since ~18 years ago, has recently been producing Volnay of remarkable perfume and textural elegance. Yet, as with many producers we have been keen to spotlight at Somm Cellars, he remains very much under-appreciated- at least by the public. Critics have been enthusiastic for over a decade.

Clos des Chênes is an ideally sited Premier Cru to the South of the village, continuing beyond Taillepieds and upslope of Caillerets. Thierry is blessed with some very old vines in his parcels which exceed 80 years of age. 2012 was quite successful for the Domaine, where wines show freshness and verve to counterbalance the abundant fruit and structure that typify the vintage. The wines are balanced and taut, and at 9 years of age they are only beginning to show secondary development to complement the pretty fruit. 

The 2012 Clos des Chênes is mostly destemmed with only a small percentage of new oak which has by now been fully digested. The nose abounds with violets around a core of spicy black cherry. The wine has buoyant energy which carries one harmoniously to the spiced and lengthy finish. This an excellent demonstration both of why this vineyard sits in the highest tier of the Volnay hierarchy and why Glantenay deserves greater attention. This is the only availability in the US.

- Spencer