Pommard
Overview
Pommard is a Côte de Beaune village situated between Beaune to the north and Volnay to the south, known for producing the most powerful, structured red wines of the Côte de Beaune. Where Volnay offers silk and elegance, Pommard delivers muscle and grip — dark-fruited, tannic, and built for long cellaring. There are no grand crus, but the premier cru Rugiens (especially Rugiens-Bas) is widely regarded as grand cru quality, and Épenots (both Grands and Petits) produces some of the commune’s most refined wines.
Key Producers
- Domaine Comte Armand — historic estate; Clos des Epeneaux monopole
- Domaine de Montille — Rugiens-Bas, Pezerolles, Grand Epenots
- Domaine de la Pousse d’Or — Les Jarolieres
- Domaine Henri Boillot — Pommard premier crus
- Domaine Joseph Voillot — Rugiens, Pezerolles, Epenots, Clos Micault
- Domaine Louis Boillot — Croix Noires, Fremiers
- Domaine Clos de la Chapelle — Grands Épenots, Chanlins Très VV
- Maison Lucien Le Moine — Rugiens, Grands Epenots
- Domaine des Comtes Lafon — Vaumuriens (new cuvée from 2023)
- Domaine Gilles Lafouge — Grand Epenots, Chanlins, Noizons
- Domaine Michel Lafarge — Pezerolles (grubbed up 2021, absent recently)
- Bouchard Père et Fils — Pezerolles
- Domaine de la Roche Aiguë — villages Pommard
- Domaine Pierrick Bouley — villages Pommard
- Thomas Bouley — premier crus
- Maison Louis Jadot — Grands Epenots
- Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard — Rugiens (young vines)
- Domaine Thierry Glantenay — Rugiens Hauts, Combes Dessus
- Domaine Marquis d’Angerville — Combes Dessus
Premier Crus (highlights)
- Rugiens (especially Rugiens-Bas) — widely considered grand cru quality; powerful, mineral, age-worthy. Voillot’s 2024 Rugiens rated 94+ by VFTC (“my favorite red wine in the Voillot cellars”).
- Épenots (Grands and Petits) — more refined and elegant than Rugiens; Clos de la Chapelle’s 2022 Grands Épenots scored 93+ from Gilman
- Clos des Epeneaux — Comte Armand monopole (~5 ha, ~80% Petits Epenots / 20% Grands Epenots); the commune’s most famous single vineyard
- Pézerolles — elegant, silky for Pommard; produced by de Montille, Voillot, Bouchard
- Jarolières — produced by Pousse d’Or; tautly muscular
- Clos Micault — Voillot premier cru
- Chanlins — Clos de la Chapelle “Très VV” rated 94 in 2022 (Gilman)
- Croix Noires — Louis Boillot scored 94+ in 2024 VFTC
- Frémiers — Louis Boillot scored 94 in 2024 VFTC
Grape Varieties
- Pinot Noir — exclusively red; no white Pommard is produced
Style Notes
Classic Pommard is dark-fruited (black cherry, plum, cassis), firmly structured, with pronounced tannins and mineral backbone. The wines are more masculine and slower to open than neighboring Volnay. Young Pommard is often described as “tautly muscular” and “youthfully austere” — requiring patience. Top premier crus from strong vintages can age 30-50+ years. Gilman and Meadows both note that Rugiens-Bas achieves a depth and minerality that justifies grand cru status.
My Cellar
~31 bottles across multiple producers