2005 Clos Vougeot

Notes of tallow, charred meat, and blackberry rise from the glass of Bouchard’s 2005 Clos Vougeot crafted from purchased fruit. Broad and expansive, rich, substantial and creamy in texture on the palate, this displays impressively concentrated black fruit, meat, and savory, soy-like essences and a solid finish. It ought to repay at least 8-10 years in the cellar, although one must add that a track record cannot yet have been established for the quality of wine that Bouchard Pere & Fils has begun crafting of late. Managing director Stephane Follin and cellar master Philippe Prost preside over a remarkable new, gravity-fed winemaking facility capable of handling the fruits of Bouchard’s 130 hectares of vines – Burgundy’s largest estate (with 84 hectares in premier and grand crus alone) – not to mention the enormous range of wine from purchased fruit or wines. Fully 40% of the reds are vinified in open-top fermenters with manual punch-downs (the balance in a battery of roto-fermentors) and the system of traffic control alone that must be in place during crush is hard to imagine. The underground acreage devoted to barriques similarly defies imagination – until one sees it. Prost was very cautious with pigeage this year, but incorporated a significant percentage of whole clusters with stems in many of his better lots. A reputation for improved quality is being built here to which the results of 2005 will certainly contribute. I suspect that a number of the wines I tasted had not recovered from their recent bottling, hence the number of “+?”s one sees displayed following my scores. (Wines from the Domaine are designated D on the list above.) Also recommended: 2005 Savigny-les-Beaune Les Lavieres D ($30.00; 86), 2005 Monthelie Les Duresses D ($35.00; 84), 2005 Monthelie Clos des Champs Fulliot D ($35.00; 85), 2005 Beaune 1er Cru “Beaune du Chateau” D ($45.00; 86+?), 2005 Beaune Marconnets ($35.00; 86+?), 2005 Volnay Taillepieds D ($55.00; 85+?), 2005 Pommard 1er Cru ($45.00; 84+?), 2005 Nuits-St.-Georges ($55.00; 85), 2005 Gevrey-Chambertin ($35.00; 86), 2005 Vosne-Romanee ($35.00; 85), 2005 Nuits-St.-Georges Les Porrets St.-Georges ($55.00; 86+?), 2005 Nuits-St.-Georges Les Damodes ($55.00; 86+?). Importer: Henriot, Inc, New York, NY

Deep ruby-red. Knockout nose offers black cherry, violet, truffle, minerals and dark chocolate. Suave on entry, then quite backward in the middle following the expressive nose, and dominated by its firm tannic spine. The very unevolved flavors of black cherry, minerals and spices need more elevage But this should be strong.

Cask sample. Bags of sweet clove-spiked black fruit, very rich aromas. Warm and inviting but not casual. Sweetly aromatic red fruit in the middle then a wonderfully delicate and subtle length. Very very fine melting tannnis. Intense flavours with a remarkable lightness of touch. (JH)