Drouhin Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru 2005
We have more Red Burgundy without notes that any other varietal or region. That is probably because we buy more wines from this region than any other and barrel tasting notes are very early impressions so not very useful in this context. The wines vary within the region but are nearly all made from the same varietal, Pinot Noir, so I can give you a reliable idea of what to expect. The colour can range from robish to quite light but don’t be fooled. The nose is tease; its ethereal, dried roses, spring deciduous leaf, tea leaves and often a sweet earthiness. In the mouth it is often very supple and silken. The flavours are from a motley palette including cherries of most any hue, sometimes truffle, gaminess and a wonderful comforting earthiness.
Expert Review
91 Points Wine Advocate
Given its origins in such crus as Combottes, Hauts Doix (beneath Amoureuses, where they are the largest owners after Groffier), and Borniques (abutting Musigny), it is perhaps little wonder that Drouhin’s 2005 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru epitomizes communal virtues. It leads with alluring bitter-sweet flowers, cherry, and red raspberry; displays deep, marrowy meatiness and nutmeg-, ginger- and pit-tinged red fruits on a polished, tender, silken palate; and finishes with delightful friskiness of fruit and subtly salty, chalky minerality. This extroverted, luminous 2005 can be enjoyed immediately, although perhaps it will shut down for a couple of years.
These 2005s were bottled around two months earlier than usual, says Frederic Drouhin, to retain freshness. (Long-time oenologue Laurence Jobard, incidentally, was replaced this year by Jerome Faure-Brac.) As is always the case, fruit from a great many properties owned or accessed by Drouhin is declassified and blended out, leaving only selected terroirs as the subjects of single-site bottlings. (In 2004, for example, even the Beaune Clos des Mouches – due to hail – was declassified into lip-smacking, remarkably soothing Cote de Beaune.) That said, as befits the quality of 2005, there were more individual bottlings from this vintage than is usual, and I did not taste all of them. (Wines from the Drouhin domaine holdings display a “D” in their listing.) This year’s collection radiates class from top to bottom. Even Drouhin’s ubiquitous, 25,000-case generic “Laforet” displays tender, ripe cherry fruit, a silky palate and iodine-like minerality.
David Schildknecht
Food Pairings
Roasted birds are a preternatural match but Pinot Noir goes with any number of dishes ranging from those incorporating wild game and foraged mushrooms to veal stews or grilled fleshy fish. For a classic cheese pairing hunt down some Epoisse...
