The 2016 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières was the only premier cru touched by frost and quantity was consequently reduced by 50%. That does not appear to have compromised the fragrant nose with scents of white flowers and a hint of aniseed. The palate is well balanced with a fresh entry, quite full in the mouth with quince and nectarine towards the spicy, feisty finish. Perhaps one of the most expressive of Sauzet’s 2016s in its youth, nevertheless it will age well. This is perhaps the most personality-driven of Sauzet's 2016s.

The 2015 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières, which comes from the lieu-dit "en Richard" (though never stated on the label), offers appealing aromas of green apple, slate and a touch of blackberry leaf, gaining intensity with each swirl of the glass. The palate is crisp and fresh on the entry with a fine line of acidity. It has a sense of harmony and composure perhaps missing in the La Perriere, with impressive mineralité and tension on the finish. This comes recommended.

The 2014 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru les Folatières is much more aloof on the nose compared to the nascent les Perrières, doesn't quite get out of second gear. The palate is fresh and vibrant with a keen thread of acidity and goes some way to make up for the sulkiness of the aromatics. Especially towards the finish, where it delivers Meursault-like hazelnut and walnut notes. Give this 3-4 years in bottle and it should rise phoenix-like.

The 2013 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru les Folatières, which comes exclusively from the lieu-dit “En la Richarde” this year, has a very austere, flinty nose that almost brings to mind a dry German Riesling! The palate is lighter than I was expecting, and perhaps not as complex as say, the les Referts or Perrières. My advice would be to approach this a little earlier than Sauzet’s other 2013s.

The 2012 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatieres is a very small cuvee this year – just two barriques from the lieu-dit “En Le Richard”. There is a sense of orthodoxy and conservatism on the nose coming after the vibrant and much more expressive Les Perrieres. The palate is well-balanced with mineral tones, a touch of ginger developing in the mouth, but it feels a little clipped and truncated towards the finish. Etienne Sauzet has been a source of fine Puligny wines since I first dipped my toe into Burgundy. I visited their winery located on the fringe of Puligny that was constructed just over ten years ago: a tastefully furnished facility equipped with a comfortable tasting room, ideal for laptops tired of being precariously balanced between barrels. Sauzet’s policy has been to buy in fruit to augment their own 9.5-hectare of holdings, almost exclusively from within Puligny-Montrachet. The original parcels had been accumulated by Etienne Sauzet in the 1920s and expanded in piecemeal fashion until 1989, whereupon his daughter divided their vineyards for tax purposes. After almost inevitable familial dissention the holdings were splintered to form domains Jean-Marc Boillot (based in Pommard and taking a significant proportion of the vines) and Henri Boillot (Volnay). Together they essentially deprived daughter Jeanine and her husband Gerard Boudot of the lion’s share of their premier crus. Ergo from 1991 Gerard and Jeanine supplemented the family’s remaining vines with out-sourced fruit and set about rebuilding their own portfolio in Batard-Montrachet and Bienvenue-Batard-Montrachet. Jeanine’s son-in-law Benoit Riffault, who escorted me through their 2012s, commented that these days the domaine is out-sourcing less than previously. Now approximately 15% of fruit is bought in through contracts and I can imagine that figure might ultimately be zero. Their portfolio did not go unscathed by the difficult growing season. There were one or two esteemed premier crus such as Les Folatieres and Les Champs Canet whereby the triple whammy of hail damage confiscated the wines of their usual breeding. Some of these parcels were up to 80% down and the total crop was depleted by half. Fortunately, they are in the minority. Otherwise, I found that their best wines were brimming over with vigor and tension, encapsulating the mineralite of their terroirs. Sauzet’s wines can sometimes be obscured by sulfur in their youth. However, I did not find such problems here. And I feel that as the domaine as relied less and less on out-sourced fruit, so their wines have become more and more consistent. In 2012 they are crowned by a scintillating Chevalier-Montrachet that ranks as one of the finest that I tasted. If that is beyond your means, then apart from some outstanding premier crus, their Puligny village cru is as dependable as ever. Spotting a couple of palates of village cru destined for “The Wine Society” in the UK, I imagined a lot of satisfied members savoring this superb wine over the next three or four years. N.B. Readers can view Benoit expressing his opinions of the 2012 vintage on www.erobertparker.com. Importer: Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL; tel. (205) 980-8802