Wines

From vines planted in 2013 in Voillenot-Dessous, located immediately south of the village itself, Jacques’s villages-level Chassagne-Montrachet Blanc displays more breadth than his Puligny-Montrachets, with a slightly less forward mineral element. Still, the wine shows impressive verve, with surprising depth from such young vines. A modest proportion of new barrels keeps the delicate fruit-mineral interplay at the forefront.

Jacques Carillon owns a half-hectare of vines in this 1er Cru site in the center of Chassagne. The vines were planted in 2003 so the vines are young at this stage. In fact, for the first years the wine was bottled as simply Chassagne-Montrachet without declaring it as a premier cru. Now, as the vines age, the nuance that justifies its status as a premier cru is on display. During the fermentation and élevage in barrel, the wine is exposed to 15% new oak. The resulting wine is flattering, generous, open and round, showing the richness of Chassagne rather than the finesse of Puligny.

Jacques’ Puligny-Montrachet comes from eleven small parcels in seven different sites scattered throughout the appellation, with vines averaging forty years of age. Jacques operates on a six-year barrel rotation for his villages-level wines, and the modest 15% new oak allows the limestone essence typical in Carillon to shine through. The palate is lean and quite long, showing youthful verve and a stern minerality that will repay a few years of cellaring.

Located at the northern limit of Puligny on the border of Meursault, Jacques’ ever-elegant Champs Canet comes from a 0.55-hectare parcel planted by his father in 1973. It offers a gorgeous combination of generosity and minerality, always with a floral overlay and a mouthwatering impression of quinine. This cuvée displays outstanding equilibrium, with a kinetic palate on which the ripe citrus fruits and punchy chalk engage in a saliva-inducing tango.

Carillon owns just over a hectare of 40-year-old vines in this enviably located cru just south of Les Referts on the slope, in the northern sector of Puligny. Perrières tends to show a more pungent limestone essence than the Champs Canet: sleeker and less rich, but more overpowering in its overall carriage due to its electric acid-mineral interplay. The finish is tightly coiled, dominating the palate with chalky intensity and suggesting many years of upside.

Jacques exploits a mere quarter-hectare of 40-year-old vines in this great northern-Puligny 1er cru. Where Perrières is punchily mineral, Referts is broodingly intense, with a limestone core that murmurs rather than shouts. There is a hair’s breadth more concentration to the fruit here, but the impression of freshness and salinity is still notable, with the palate showing a gleaming energy.

Jacques exploits barely a tenth of a hectare in this hallowed and little-seen vineyard; production is clearly very limited. The wine is treated in a fashion similar to all the whites of this domaine; the exposure to new oak is limited to 20% during the fermentation and élevage. More than justifying its grand cru status, this delivers almost overwhelming density; there is simply more material here —more viscosity, more layers—but with an elemental minerality underpinning the richness. As befits such a mammoth, ample cellar time is demanded for the wine to reveal its full spectrum.