The wines of Pommard have long suffered from a less-exalted reputation compared to the more delicate wines of neighbouring Volnay, just to the south.
They are often considered burly and chunky compared to the lacey wines of Volnay. The different character, which indeed is a powerful and persuasive argument for terroir, comes, in large measure, from Pommard’s position lower on the slope where more iron-tinged clay, which imparts power to the wine, has accumulated over the millennia compared to the more limestone rich soil higher up on the slope of Volnay.