2021 Launay-Horiot - Pommard Chaponnieres (750ml)
The Horiot family has farmed vines around Pommard since the eighteenth century, though the modern Domaine Launay-Horiot only came into being after a hard-fought battle over inheritance. Xavier Horiot, a former French Air Force pilot, spent eleven years in court before finally taking control of his grandfather Raymond Launay's estate in 2011, releasing his first vintage in 2014 and quickly earning a reputation for wines of real power and polish.
Les Chaponnières sits just below the more famous Rugiens-Bas, on a gentle, east and south-facing slope planted entirely to Pinot Noir. The domaine's holding covers just under 0.6 hectares of vines approaching seventy years old. Grapes are hand-harvested at low yields, and the wine is aged in barrel for around eighteen months, giving it the structure and warmth typical of Pommard's better sites.
The 2021 is riper and more sweetly fruited than the domaine's village Pommard, gorgeously floral on the nose with rose petal carrying over red cherry and raspberry. The palate is confident and well-defined, finishing with a decisively spicy, slightly peppery edge and firm structure. It is an elegant, assured wine that shows why this small Pommard producer has drawn so much attention in recent vintages.