Notes of red cherries, licorice and rose petals mingle with nuances of raw cocoa and loamy soil, introducing Come Armand's old-vine 2018 Volnay 1er Cru Frémiets, a medium to full-bodied, deep and layered wine that displays superb concentration and admirable energy. This will be well worth seeking out.

The 2017 Volnay 1er Cru Frémiets exhibits aromas of raspberries, plums, currant leaf and spices, followed by a medium-bodied palate that's firmer and spicier than the Volnay Village, with sappy acids and a subtly wood-inflected finish, while retaining a similarly elegant profile.

The 2016 Volnay 1er Cru Frémiets is reduced to two barrels this year, a mixture of 70% young vines and 30% of 90-year-old vines, with just 5% whole-bunch fruit. It took a little coaxing from the glass but it eventually reveals perfumed redcurrant, cranberry and pomegranate scents. The palate is just a little coarse at the moment and I feel this does not quite have the harmony of the Auxey-Duresses, somewhat brutish on the finish. Hopefully this will meliorate by the time of bottling.

The 2015 Volnay 1er Cru Frémiets is lovely, wafting from the glass with notes of red plum, raspberry, spice and forest floor. On the palate, the wine is elegant, fine-grained and silky, only medium to full-bodied, its acids sappy and its finish long and intense, but far from the tannic powerhouse one might have anticipated. A beautiful Frémiets.

There are just two barrels of the 2013 Volnay 1er Cru les Fremiets this year, one of them new and the other second-fill. It suffered a few problems with fermentation because it had been difficult to cool the grapes, so it initially smelled a little acetic. It has a refined bouquet, a little distant at first, yet returning after a minute there are some very seductive wilted rose petal, wet limestone and fresh raspberry scents that are just beautifully defined. The palate is medium-bodied with a firm backbone, a little chalky in the mouth, with a fine thread of acidity and an energetic, soy-tinged finish. This is very fine, though frankly there is little between this and the Volnay village cru.