2005 POMMARD, 1er Cru Clos des Epeneaux, Comte Armand. Burgundy

Pommard is just south of Beaune but makes a wines very different to its neighbours (Beaune to the north and Volnay to the south). It is invariably the biggest and most powerful of the sub-region (the Côte de Beaune).
Clos des Epeneaux is a single ‘parcel’ of five hectares, one of the 10 largest ‘monopolies’ in Burgundy. It’s at the northern end of the village. Vines are between 30 and 80 years old, densely planted (12,000 vines per hectare).

Pinot Noir, all de-stemmed before fermentation – so no whole bunches, but they are careful to retain whole berries. Then given a long maceration on the skins (4 weeks) – the aim is a ‘vin de garde’. 18 months maturation in oak, (30%

The Comte Armand took over the heart of this estate in 1828. There are now 9 hectares in total, all in Pommard, Volnay and Auxey-Duresses. Until 2014 the wines were made by Benjamin Leroux, since then Paul Zinetti is in charge.

Still young, decant this an hour in advance.