Domaine Delagrange Volnay 1er Cru Santenots
The Delagrange coat of arms dates back to 1570. The family has been vineyard owners from this time forward. They were not themselves making the wine until more recently, a mere four generations. The border between the villages of Volnay and Pommard, where a good part of the Domaine's vines are situated, is perhaps one of the most interesting geological contrasts in all of Burgundy. Here, the slopes of Volnay produce Pinot Noir that is lacy, delicate and fragrant. A few hundred feet away, where the slopes flatten out, the soil of Pommard gives the same grape variety muscle and concentration.
Didier owns 14 hectares of vines in the communes of Volnay, Pommard, Aloxe Corton, Meursault and Haute Cote de Beaune. The famous 1er Cru "Clos des Chenes" vineyard of Volnay is 15ha of vines and Didier can boast one of the best plots located right in the center. The first principle that Didier adheres to in his winemaking is that the majority of the work is done in the vineyard. We hear this time and time again. However, the amount of manual labor that Didier performs in his vineyards is remarkable. Leaves are thinned by hand multiple times to remove those that shade the bunches. His canopy is trellised unusually high to counteract the severe lower thinning so that photosynthesis isn't stunted. And, using sustainable cultivation methods, he ploughs the soil and uses only organic fertilizers. In the cellar he uses new oak only sparingly. Didier's main focus is to make wines that have very rich and precise aromatics as well as very pure fruit. We think he succeeds every year.
Volnay lies on the small mountain of Chaignot, its vines are on an east to south-east facing slope at an altitude of 230 to 370 meters. The production area covers 213 hectares of AOC created in 193 and is exclusively red. The Volnay slopes have a succession of ferruginous oölitic limestones, usually covered with brownish red loam.
