The Juillots’ parcels of pinot noir in les Champs Martins and Clos des Barraults are only separated by a little tractor road, as they lie contiguous mid-slope in the band of Mercurey’s finest premier crus. Though they are so close, Pierre Juillot notes that the soils here are far stonier than next door in les Champs Martins. The 2023 Clos des Barraults rouge is an outstanding young wine, delivering a bit more black fruity aromatic blend of dark berries, red and black cherries, woodsmoke, stony minerality, a dollop of fresh herbs and a lovely framing of cedary oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, focused and nascently complex, with a superb core of fruit, excellent soil signature and grip, fine-grained tannins and a long, well balanced and gently tangy finish. Fine juice. (Drink between 2035-2070)