Wine Advisor
Alain Hudelot Noellat, Vosne Romanee 1er Cru Les Suchots 2017
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2017 Vosne-Romanée Les Suchots 1er Cru has a lovely bouquet of red cherries, red currant, autumn woodland and black truffle aromas that billow from the glass. The medium-bodied palate offers fine tannins and a superb seam of acidity. Very cohesive, with a silky-smooth, beautifully proportioned finish. Highly recommended.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2017 Vosne-Romanée Les Suchots 1er Cru has a beguiling bouquet of precise black cherries, wild strawberry and a hint of black olive, the mineral element tucked in just underneath. The palate is beautifully balanced with a sappy entry, sharing the marine/oyster shell influence of the Les Beaumonts but displaying great density and grip on the finish. It delivers all you wish for from a Suchots.
Reviewed by: William Kelley
More than living up to its fine performance from barrel, the 2017 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Suchots is showing very well from bottle, wafting from the glass with aromas of black cherries, wild berries, smoked tea, spices and rose hip. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, velvety and enveloping, with fine concentration at the core, ripe but succulent acids, powdery tannins and a long finish. This beautifully balanced bottling exemplifies what could be achieved in 2017 with old vines and moderate yields, and it comes very warmly recommended.
About the Producer
In 1962, Alain inherited two small parcels of his father's Chambolle-Musigny Grand Cru Les Chames, plus several vineyards from his marriage to the great-granddaughter of Charles Noellat, a Vosne-Romanee winery family, and he established Domaine Alain Hudelot Noellat. The winery is now about 10 hectares (24 hectares) in size. The estate now has about 10 hectares (24 acres) of vineyards with an average age of over 50 years, including several dating back to 1920, including the vineyard at Romanée-Saint-Vivant. The winery is known for its lighter wines with nuanced and natural flavors. Now managed by third-generation grandson Charles van Canneyts, Hudelot-Nollat is not so different from its grandfather's time, when it was less visible in the thicker wines, but now it has the advantage of refinement, often with fresh, bright fruit, balanced acidity and silky tannins. The vinification is entirely de-stemmed, using local yeasts that are not comparable to artificial yeasts, with a relatively long pre-fermentation cold soak, mainly with trampled skins, and 18 months in new barrels at 20-60%. In 2012, Charles also started to buy grapes from other winegrowers under his own name to make his wine. Vosne-Romanee is a blend of three first growths, Suchots, Beaumonts and Malconsorts, and as young as it is, the Hudelot-Noellat family owns three first growths that are over 100 years old, so this VR is ostensibly a village wine, but with a first growth heritage. Jasper Morris MW has high praise for Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat. He believes that while Alain Hudelot's management has produced fine style reds, Charles van Canneyt has taken over and given the wines more concentration and backbone, retaining their elegance, but with more ageing potential and balance.
