Domaine Comte Armand in Pommard has been under the ownership of the same family in an unbroken line since before the French revolution, an extreme rarity in Burgundy. Until 1994 the domaine owned only one vineyard, their famous 13-acre Monopole Clos des Epeneaux – an outstanding 1er Cru in Pommard. The current Comte Armand – Vicomte Gabriel Armand, is a Parisian lawyer who has continued the family tradition of relying on resident-managers, or regisseurs, to conduct all of the domaine’s affairs.
In 1999 they handed the keys to 23 year-old Benjamin Leroux, a promising local winemaking prodigy who has risen to earn a reputation among the world’s best. Ben completed the transition to Biodynamic farming for the estate.
93-95 Points Wine Advocate
As usual, I sampled the various constituents of the cuvée before tasting a representative blend of the 2018 Pommard 1er Cru Clos des Epeneaux, and as ever, the whole is superior to the sum of the parts. Wafting from the glass with a deep bouquet of raspberries, cherries, peonies, spices, orange rind, cassis, woodsmoke and espresso roast, the wine is medium to full-bodied, deep and multidimensional, its lively and concentrated core of fruit framed by rich structuring tannins, concluding with a long and sapid finish. This promises to number among the Côte de Beaune’s wines of the vintage, and it will be well worth seeking out.
95 Points Vinous
The 2018 Pommard Clos des Epeneaux 1er Cru has an exceptionally well delineated bouquet with black cherries, iodine, incense and orange liqueur, traces of mint developing with time. There is still some wood to be assimilated – it just needs time. The palate is medium-bodied with a fleshy opening, gentle grip and superb mineralité. This feels very natural and effortless, a Clos des Epeneaux destined to age supremely well over the next 25-40 years. Wonderful