2001 Charmes Chambertin

Deep red-ruby. Nose shows an almost roasted ripeness: black raspberry, violet, espresso and sweet oak. Fat, sweet and suave on the palate; at once voluptuous and vibrant, with excellent depth of flavor. Superb building finish features very sweet, fine tannins. Almost too good right now, but this has the spine to develop in bottle for the next 10 to 15 years. A compelling 2001.

Sweet blackberries, flowers, and spices can be found in the nose of the superb 2001 Charmes-Chambertin. Awesome layers of cassis liqueur and candied blackberries dominate this intense, expressive wine. It is medium-bodied, densely-packed with fruit, and possesses an astonishingly long finish that reveals red cherries enveloping exquisitely ripe, round tannin. Drink it between 2005 and 2012. While many producers’ 2001s had been bottled, in some cases for months, Christian Serafin’s were still on their original lees, having never been racked, when they were tasted in late-January, 2003. Importer: Robert Kacher Selections, Washington, DC; tel. (202) 832-9083

(the malo ended earlier, in April of 2002) Full red-ruby. Very sexy aromas of raspberry, red licorice and flowers, sweetened but not overwhelmed by oak. Sweet, supple and juicy, with enticing, sharply defined red fruit flavors. Finishes very long and fine, with the tannins spreading out to dust the palate.