Lafarge Volnay 1er cru Clos du Château des Ducs 2005

92-96 points Fine Wine Review: "Lafarge’s Volnay-Clos du Château des Ducs is supple with pure red currant fruit, minerality, and intensity. There is sensuality here, but not as much as one would get, say, from a Champans, probably the most sensual terroir in Volnay. (Issue #115; 2007)"

94 points John Gilman (View From the Cellar): " The 2005 Clos du Château des Ducs is also very early on in its evolution, but is not quite as hermetically sealed as the 2006. The bouquet is deep, pure and beautiful in its primary profile of red and black cherries, cocoa, woodsmoke, a lovely base of soil, fresh herb tones and a nice touch of violet in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite powerful for this cru, with plenty of ripe tannins, tangy acids and outstanding length and grip on the still very youthful finish. It would be a crime to open bottles of this before the wine has seen a decade of bottle age, as there is just so much more to come that to drink it now, in its voluptuous, but very primary puppy fat of fruit stage would be to miss all of the complexity latent in this fine wine. 2020-2070. (Jan/Feb 2010)"

93-94 points David Schildknecht (Wine Advocate): "From their monopole immediately above the village, the Lafarge 2005 Volnay Clos du Chateau des Ducs combines black cherry and cassis with concentrated meat stock, displays flattering creaminess of texture for such a youthful and richly tannic Pinot, and finishes long on a myriad of low-toned bitter-sweet notes including fruit skin, fruit pits, dark chocolate, caramel, marrow, black truffle and wet stone. This concentrated Volnay, preciously eloquent and elegant though it is (and more typical of the vintage than its stable mates) bids fair to reward 10-12 years in the cellar. (After that, as becomes the case with most Pinots, it is risky to speculate and personal preference plays the deciding role. I recently polished off my last bottle of 1989 Clos de Chateau des Ducs, and found it not only stronger than its age or the general character of that vintage would have led me to expect, but thoroughly delightful in the fungal culinary context that was at hand.) (6/28/07)"

93 points Allen Meadows (Burghound): "(from 50 year old vines; a monopole of the domaine). A gentle touch of wood frames very ripe red berry liqueur aromas yet despite the ripeness, the dominating minerality of this appellation is in full display and it continues onto the rich, refined, pure and beautifully detailed flavors underpinned by a velvety mouth feel, firm tannins and an explosive finish. While I have always admired this classy wine for its understatement and purity, there is a bit more forcefulness to the overall impression and this is potentially the best Ducs in years. Drink: 2015+. (Apr 2008)"

92 points Stephen Tanzer (International Wine Cellar): "Deep red-ruby. Very closed nose hints at black cherry, black pepper, shoe polish and bitter chocolate, along with a suggestion of superripe fruit. Broad, rich and liqueur-like, and currently showing less of the treble quality of the premier cru. But this is wonderfully rich and ripe, and finishes with big, broad tannins and a hint of surmaturite This atypically rich wine probably won't reach its peak until 2020 or so. (Mar/Apr 2008)"

(Note on bottle condition: These older Lafarge wines are from a perfect French cellar, and its relatively high humidity has incurred some mold and cosmetic degradation of the labels. These cellar conditions are identical to the Lafarge cellars themselves, where bottles are not labeled until immediately prior to shipment, as they're blanketed with black mold until that point. The bottles are otherwise pristine with excellent fills and capsules. Images may be furnished upon request. -WHWC, May 2024)