Ripe blackberry tinged with ginger and mace gets a 2006 Volnay Clos des Chenes off to a satisfying start, but there is not the refinement of tannin to accompany the fruit and spice here that accrues to the best wines in this year's Bouchard collection. I would relish the wine's virtues over the next 3-4 years and serve in contexts where a bit of rusticity presents no problem. Director Philippe Prost emphasized the importance of flexible and surgical picking (with a crew numbering upwards of 300) and getting his crop to Bouchard's battery of presses within two hours via a fleet of mini-vans. He insists that relatively little triage was necessary on the domaine vineyards (as opposed to those under contract) and the estate wines are certainly predictably stronger as a group. (I have generally mentioned in the notes that follow which wines are from Bouchard's domaine and which from contract fruit, but have explicitly noted this as part of a wine's description, only if there are two versions of the same appellation within the present portfolio.) The fruit was crushed very gently and the wines racked only once – at 10-14 months, than usual – explains Prost, in order to guard against exposed or drying tannins, a policy which my tastings suggest was generally successful. Importer: Henriot, Inc, New York, NY; tel. (212) 605-6767

A structured, relatively cool Volnay, dominated more by ripe tannins than by fruit. The fruit that is there is fresh, layered with acidity, juicy in texture, with cranberry and black plum skin flavors. The finish suggests red berries with its firmness. The wine demands at least five years’ aging.——R.V.(12/31/2008)—— 93