A complex aromatic melange of smoked meat; sauteed mushroom; diverse, lightly-cooked berries; and nutmeg greets the taster from the glass of Roumier 2006 Chambolle-Musigny Les Cras. A tart edge to the fruit and savory salinity lend some of the same invigoration that characterized other wines in this collection, but here allied to deep meatiness and an underlying impression of wet stone. The tannins are superbly refined and the finish penetrating and dynamic in its interplay of fungal, fruity, mineral, carnal, and spicy notes. Here is another instance of the vigor and almost airy openness of the vintage beautifully expressed. I suspect this will be worth following for 6-8 years, but make sure not to deprive yourself of the pleasure of its youthful charms. Rigorous triage - along with Christophe Roumier's seemingly intuitive sense for the limits and potential of the vintage - have resulted in a set of 2006s here that are youthfully generous, but in the best instances will be well worth cellaring. The fermentative regimen and elevage (including no racking until assemblage, to maximize contact with lees convey both fat and structure; yet early bottling to preserve fruit) were tailored to the vintage, whereas the regimen of new wood was little changed from other recent years, meaning around one-third for the premier crus. Stems were selectively included, up to something over one-third in the grand crus. I tasted these wines from barrel at 14 months and again from bottle at 18, and they had in most instances both gained textural allure as well as structure and refined their flavors, clearly demonstrating the success of Roumier's strategy.

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