Domaine FOLLIN-ARBELET (Aloxe-Corton) -- 2015 Tasted from Barrel and Tank and a Pair of 2014s from Bottle

(Originally published 3 June 2017.)

Franck Follin-Arbelet said that he began harvesting on 2 September. As with the great majority of producers, he have very small yields. He included about 15-20% whole clusters overall and did very little punching down (pigeage). Malolactic fermentations were rather late here.

The wines at this estate are not flashy and not necessarily easy to understand young, but they are well worth your investigating and the wait for maturation.

2015 Pernand-Vergelesses    1er Cru   Les Fichots
The Fichots has spicy red and dark berry aromas. The mouth has dark fruit that is pure and focused and some mustard-like spice. An attractive wine, and a good introduction for those who know little or nothing about Pernand wines. (90-93)

2015 Aloxe-Corton
The village Aloxe has red and dark fruit that is clear and jelly-like with minerality, length, and good precision. (89-92)

2015 Aloxe-Corton     1er Cru    Clos du Chapître
This wine is crisp with clear dark berry jelly fruit. It has good penetration, but on this day is less open than the other wines. To compare with the Genot-Boulanger wine from this vineyard that I reviewed a few weeks back, Follin-Arbelet’s was harvested about two weeks earlier, according to Franck. (90-94)

2015 Aloxe-Corton     1er Cru    Vercots
The Vercots shows finesse for Aloxe with dense, mineral dark and red fruits and plenty of concentration. But there is tannin here, and so this wine needs time. (91-94)

2015 Corton
Looking like a huge success for the vintage, the Corton, from vines planted on white soils, is very pure and chiseled with firmness, depth, intensity, and precision. It is, simply, a beautiful wine.  (93-97)

2015 Corton-Bressandes
Follin-Arbelet’s Corton-Bressandes is dense with dark fruits that are pure, flowing, and clear. The wine also has excellent length. (93-96)

2015 Romanée-Saint-Vivant
Last among the reds and justly taking its place is the Romanée-Saint-Vivant. Here, the malolactic fermentation was only about 3/4 done and the wine had been racked and put in tank to finish its malo before being returned to barrel. The wine is dark, intense, deep, and powerful with a medium-weight body. There seems to be plenty of tannin here, but that could be due to the unfinished malo, which makes the wine less easy to judge. Nevertheless, there is tremendous material and potential here. (94-98)

2015 Corton-Charlemagne
The Corton-Charlemagne shows minerality and pear fruit with succulence but also freshness. Beginning in 2016, Franck will have a new parcel of 30 ares in Le Charlemagne to work with. (91-95)

My review of the all the 2014s tasted from cask is here. On this visit, I also tasted two 2014s from bottle, both showing better than they had from barrel:

2014 Aloxe-Corton
This wine is medium-light on the palate with good energy and nervosity, red berry fruit, good acidity, and finesse for an Aloxe-Corton. 90/A

2014 Aloxe-Corton     1er Cru    Clos du Chapître
The Aloxe-Clos du Chapître is pure, precise, light in weight, and intense with crystalline dark and red fruits. There good penetration in the mouth, both vertical and horizontal, with development in the mouth. This wine, too, shows finesse, but there are tannins here that will support substantial aging. 93/A