2011 Moulin a Vent Clos de la Roche

Scents of creme de cassis, chocolate, and nutmeg entice from the glass of Liger-Belair’s 2011 Moulin-a-Vent La Roche, though the torrefactive aspect here is no doubt prompted in large part by the wine’s low-sulfur condition in tank. Iodine and stone, marrow, and dark berry concentrate inform an impressively persistent finish. I suspect this will perform well at least through 2018. Thibaud Liger-Belair (see my reports in Issues 190 and 196 for more about his Beaujolais project) was not able to connect with me late last year, so I tasted his latest collection, which includes an exciting new bottling, via tank samples of the final assemblages. Unfortunately, I did not have an opportunity to re-taste Liger-Belair’s 2010s from bottle, but it seems clear from the promise which not only those wines but their successors have shown before bottling (a process which seldom seems to be especially traumatic in his hands) that this estate will be among the beacons of its region. Importer: Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL; tel. (205) 980-8802