There’s an old wine business adage that says, “Even in challenging vintages, elite properties make great wine.” With a recent streak of rough vintages, red Burgundy lovers have been forced to make this their credo. 2011 was besieged by rot and flawed aromatics, 2012 was a mixed bag of difficult weather, and 2013 and 2014 suffered apocalyptic hail storms in parts of the Côte de Beaune. As a result, production volume and quality plummeted while prices continue to skyrocket.
Collectors and sommeliers are still sifting through the rubble of this meteorological carnage, but the one brightly shining silver lining is 2012—a vintage that continually reveals itself to be a late blooming beauty. Despite the international wine press’ early rush to pan the vintage, Decanter now gives it a 4-star rating. Clive Coates MW—one of my favorite wine writers and a guy who knows more than a little about Burgundy—offers high praise, and followers of SommSelect already know that 2012 can produce stunning, classic wines. We are offering further concrete proof of 2012’s greatness. Bitouzet-Prieur is a personal favorite, and inarguably one of the most time-tested family estates in Volnay. In challenging vintages they make great wine—but in 2012, they made magic. This 2012 Volnay Premier Cru “Mitans” will knock your socks off.
As we’ve shared with past releases of cellar selections from this estate, the Bitouzet family has been farming in Volnay since the early 1800s and were among the first families in the village to bottle their own wines. Their holdings in Volnay, now overseen by Francois and Vincent Bitouzet, cover an impressive diversity of village-level and Premier Cru parcels—it’s not a stretch to say this one of the most impressive collections of vineyard real estate in the appellation. The vines that produce this wine come from the “En l’Ormeau” sub-parcel of the Premier Cru “Les Mitans”. This is a decades-old, tiny, 0.13-hectare tract located in the center of Volnay. The parcel produces only three barrels (75 cases) of wine each vintage, a small portion of which come into the US each year.
Francois and Vincent farm all their parcels organically, relying on zero shortcuts with chemicals or systemic treatments, and all fruit is harvested by hand. This restraint is echoed in the cellar: juice is vinified gently and slowly with no heavy-handed winemaking technology and minimal sulfur. The end goal of the entire process is to produce wines that mature in the cellar for many years, and gradually evolve in aromatics and structure. In a region increasingly overrun with estates bottling young-drinking, fruity, “modern” red Burgundy, the Bitouzet family are arch traditionalists. The family’s wines are seldom open and enjoyable upon release, but they offer a consistently impressive reward to those patient enough to cellar the wines.
The 2012 Volnay 1er Cru Mitans has a deep and reflective ruby core moving to ruby and garnet reflections on the rim. Intoxicating red currant, black currant, black and red cherries, hibiscus, fresh cut roses and stems, violets, wild alpine flowers, black truffles, dried chinese mushroom, black tea and verdant forest floor notes overflow from the glass—this aromatic mosaic is tied together with a gentle kiss of perfectly integrated oak spice. On the palate, the wine is currently enjoying an unbelievably flattering adolescence. Layers of assertive but soft tannins envelop a dense fruit core and seductively lengthy finish—this is one of those very special Burgundies that drinks deliciously now while promise to dazzle in the years to come. My ample experience with Bitouzet-Prieur and this specific 1er Cru tells me that this wine will only improve for at least another decade. I recently enjoyed an older bottle of 2007 Volnay Mitans from the family and it was both delicious still teeming with life and energy, with years of life ahead. So, I will of course encourage everyone to enjoy a bottle of the ‘12 now—simply decant for 20-30 minutes and serve at 60 degrees in large Burgundy stems and let the wine open up in the glass. You will not be disappointed! And for those looking to add a bankable classic to their Burgundy collection for future drinking, I can think of few Volnay producers as reliable as Bitouzet-Prieur, and even fewer wines that possess this unique combination of power, class, and finesse. This is a gorgeous bottle of wine! One of my favorite pairings with a wine of the pedigree is
Slow Cooked Shanghainese Hock (I use Pork Shoulder, both are great). The umami quality in both the wine and the food come together to create a perfect match. Keep this recipe close by, you will fall in love with it. If using shoulder, ask your butcher to get a cut with the fat still on and be sure to cook it low and slow.
