2005 Nuits St Georges Les Boudots

The 2005 Nuits-St.-Georges Aux Boudots displays an alluring sweetness of black cherry, and nutmeg, and cocoa powder. Yet for all of its obvious, generous ripeness and expansiveness, silken texture, it retains a fine fruit edge. Meat and minerals may come later. With ravishing, seductive length, it is an early charmer that might also be a keeper; but plan to revisit and relish it in 2-3 years. Between the effects of drought and of localized hail (in May, before it could effect quality) Jean-Nicolas Meo reported one of his smallest-ever harvests. His production, however, is being boosted these days by a range of negociant wines under the label “Meo-Camuzet Frere et Soeur” (marked “F&S” in the listing above). The top wines had been assembled in tank and sulfured in preparation for bottling, and were suffering a bit on account of this. Importer: Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 524-1524. Also a Jean-Marie de Champs Selection (various importers), French fax 011 33 3 80 22 58 25.

Bright ruby-red. High-pitched aromas of blackberry, spice, licorice and minerals. Fat and sweet, with enticing dark berry flavors lifted by minerals and spices. Very fresh and impressively long on the back end, where the wine saturates the palate with flavors of dark berries, chocolate and minerals. Boudots is often wonderful in its youth, notes Meo.

A wonderfully spicy, sexy and seductive nose of a range of black and blue fruit aromas and the range of spices is sufficiently broad that on the nose at least, this could easily be mistaken for a top flight Vosne. The flavors are slightly fresher and brighter than those of the Chaumes with a fullness and density that speaks clearly of the underlying power and punch as this is a big wine with plenty of muscle on the hugely long finish. Great potential here. Allen Meadows, Burghound Jan01,2007