2012 Gevrey Chambertin Clos St Jacques
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Tasting notes
The 2012 Gevrey-Chambertin Clos Saint-Jacques 1er Cru has an intriguing bouquet, a little timid compared to Mugneret-Gibourg’s imperious Ruchottes-Chambertin alongside, yet it discretely gains intensity and complexity throughout the course of three hours, developing gorgeous scents of blackberry pastilles, cranberry, wild heather and a subtle ferrous scent. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin, a little gruff at first but developing more fruit concentration with time, becoming increasingly sensual towards the saline finish. Maybe this is just closing down for a period, so keep bottles tucked away for three or four years. Tasted blind at 67 Pall Mall in London.
Critic scores
Average Score
Allen Meadows, Burghound
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
Tasted blind at the annual "Burgfest" tasting in Beaune. The 2012 Gevrey Chambertin 1er Cru Clos Saint Jacques from Armand Rousseau has the most sensual nose of the quintet, perhaps the ripest with maraschino cherries, fresh strawberry and fruits pastilles. This is certainly the most generous nose. The palate is medium-bodied with supple ripe tannin, more modern in style but very pure and harmonious. The oak is a little more pronounced on the finish but that will be subsumed in time, and then it will be a Clos Saint Jacques that you'll with you could drink every day.
A heady, exotic Burgundy, the 2012 Gevrey-Chambertin Clos St. Jacques is remarkably vivid for such a big wine, with freakish levels of concentration that are beautifully balanced by insistent veins of underlying minerality. Layers of pure Pinot fruit build through the mid-palate and finish as this voluptuous, racy wine shows off its fabulous pedigree. It simpy doesn't get too much better than this.
About the producer
Based in Gevrey-Chambertin, Domaine Armand Rousseau is one of Burgundy’s most famous estates. Revered for making unearthly expressions of Pinot Noir, the estate’s wines are some of the most collectable in the world.