2006 Nuits St Georges Les Vaucrains

The richness of ripe black cherry and black raspberry is augmented in Gouges's 2006 Nuits-St.-Georges Les Vaucrains by dark chocolate; smoky black tea; bitter herbs and fruit pits; and a wonderfully savory saline, chalky, and somehow ore-like suggestion of things mineral. Palate-staining and insistently fresh and invigorating for all of its richness and sweetness of fruit, this deep, dense, darkly-hued wine manages to soar in its finish. The tannins here are more evident than in wines that went before it in the present line-up, and I would advise holding this for 3-4 years before planning on relishing it over the subsequent half dozen or more. To hear Christian Gouges tell – and, indeed, to taste the wines – there was nothing terribly problematic about 2006 or exceptional about his approach to it; he considers his (in the context of this vintage) relatively low finished alcohols of 12.5-13% ideal; and he says the wines all clarified beautifully without fining or filtration. I find the denser, more structured 2005s here are completely routed by the 2006s' charm offensive, though perhaps a return engagement half a dozen or more years from now will prove a fairer fight. Importer: Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL; tel. (205) 980-8802