2006 Meursault Les Perrieres

Very fine. Smoky. Not the densest at the moment. Maybe it will take on a bit more weight. Clean and mid to heavy weight. Second bottle much better and more vital! Really powerful and round. Score refers to the second, better bottle. (JR)

Chamomile, green tea, white peach, honeysuckle, orange blossom, and crushed stone are evoked by the scent of the Coche-Dury 2006 Meursault Perrieres. Citrus oils and marzipan, along with a subtle note of caramelization to its abundant pit fruits all testify irresistibly to the ripeness of the vintage, yet without any sense of superficial sweetness or fattiness. With a refined, slippery, silken texture and an airy sense of wafting elegance – yet at the same time suggesting a firm foundation of sheer chalky stone – this magnificent Perrieres stains even as it invigorates the palate. Implausibly, the 2005 soars to even greater aromatic and structural heights, and finishes with spellbinding length. Jean-Francois Coche’s 2006s did not even begin their malo-lactic transformation until high summer, and several were not finished when I last tasted there in November, 2007. Coche does not think 2006 quite measures up to 2002 or 2005, and given the amazing wines he rendered in the latter vintage, one can appreciate his perspective. Nonetheless, few if any other 2006s I tasted were able to combine complexity and charm, vintage-typical ripeness and verve in the way these did. Importers: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524