From Ponsot's site worst-hit by hail and from some of his youngest vines, a 2006 Griotte-Chambertin betrays neither of these facts in the glass. Ripe plum and black raspberry mingle with wood smoke in the nose. This is especially bright and energetic on the palate, yet glycerin helps support the rich, sappy fruit impression and cream-over any tannin for one of those 2006 finishes that manage to be at once soothing and invigorating, and that exhibits the peculiar and somehow seemingly ferrous notes that signal this site. Like most of the wines in its collection, this really blossoms and takes on nuance as it takes on air. I suspect it will be worth following for at least a decade. (DS)

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Note: from a .90 ha parcel Producer note: As is his usual practice, Laurent Ponsot was one of the last growers to begin picking reporting that he began on "September 10th and harvested through to the 20th. Like many of our colleagues, the early flowering caused us to believe that we might begin picking early but the summer weather conspired to make this impossible. The sugars were amazing and nothing came in below 13% and at those levels, who needs chaptalization? And because of the high sugars, you had to watch the fermentations closely as they risked overheating. Overall, I would call 2007 a vintage of unexpected quality but it is also a vintage that was made in the vineyard, which is to say that either you devoted the time to work them properly or you simply didn't have very good raw materials as there was no way around it. In 2005 you could have done just about anything and wound up with great fruit but in 2007, there was no margin for error. The good news though is that with the proper diligence and timing, you could get truly wonderful fruit in 2007. I quite like the wines as they're classic wines of terroir and should give a lot of pleasure over the next 20 years or so." Fans of the domaine will note that there is no Morey villages Cuvée des Grives as the vineyard was replanted in 2006. As to the Ponsot '06s, except for a heavily reduced Cuvée des Alouettes, they have turned out pretty much as originally previewed and are really quite lovely. Lastly, I point out again that it is not me taking a bit of journalistic license by adding the modifier "Très" to the Clos St. Denis. Ponsot told me that effective with the 2006 vintage, the new name for the Clos St. Denis is Très Vieilles Vignes. Tasting note: A seductive and wonderfully airy nose of black cherry and raspberry also displays a much more discreet hint of reduction that merges into rich, full and sweet flavors that offer good detail and fine intensity, culminating in a textured, long, stylish and mouth coating finish where the dryness it displayed from cask has completely dissipated. Note that in contrast to the Alouettes, the reduction is quite minor and a brief decanting should be sufficient.

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