The 2008 La Tache is another huge, powerful wine. Deep layers of perfumed fruit flow from this gorgeous wine. Mint, crushed flowers, orange peel and spices are just some of the notes that emerge from the wonderfully textured fruit. Darker hints of earthiness, tar and minerals frame the sweeping, eternal finish. This is simply dazzling. Anticipated maturity: 2028-2048. tasted the 2008s in bottle in late June 2011 after having gone through the 2010s from barrel. Aubert de Villaine describes 2008 as a difficult vintage with a lot of rain. Botrytis was an issue and the vineyards required constant attention. On September 14 the weather changed dramatically. A steady north wind dried out the grapes and concentrated sugars quickly, which also reduced the size of the berries. A further selection of fruit lowered yields to an even greater extent, resulting in overall production that is as much as 50% lower than normal for the Domaine. As for the wines, they are magnificent in my view, but will require considerable patience.

This takes a while to get going because like the Richebourg, this is initially reduced so you'll need to decant it if you're going to sacrifice a young wine on the altar of curiosity. After aggressive swirling, a highly expressive and kaleidoscopic nose offers up a dazzling breadth of aromas with more rose petal and violet notes combining with those of kirsch, herb and humus, all of which are reflected by the ripe, pure and extremely fresh silkily-textured big-bodied flavors that possess firm tannins that are completely enrobed by the impressive amount of extract that also coats the mouth on the hugely long and ever-so-slightly minty finish. The '08 La Tâche is not an especially powerful wine by its standards and it's more like a gymnast with its sleek muscularity. That said and again like the Richebourg, all of the structural elements are not yet in perfect balance but the sheer length of the finish is immense, which is always a very positive sign.