1995 Chambolle Musigny Les Cras

First bottle: Dark luminous ruby. Very slightly musty on the nose. Jewel fruit that dries on the palate. I will not let it detain me any longer. Second bottle: Much fresher on the nose. Round and transparent and not desperately concentrated but very complete and well balanced on the front palate though it is drying out a little on the finish. Very slightly mousey. The fruit is by no means the most obvious characteristic of this wine! (JR)

The medium-to-full bodied Chambolle-Musigny Les Cras reveals a spectacular nose of refined violets and dark cherries; it is an elegant as well extremely well-structured, concentrated cassis and blackberry-filled (if a touch tannic) wine. Drink 2000-2008. This note is the result of tastings I did in Burgundy between January 7 and January 29. The wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Pinot Noir, a fragile varietal, reacts poorly to fining, filtration, and careless bottling techniques, I recommend caution when considering buying a red burgundy based on cask samples. I called it as I tasted it, and hope the bottled wine reflects the quality of the samples I was provided. The harvest took place here on September 29 for the Corton-Charlemagne and between October 2 and 9 for the reds. Yields averaged 28 hectoliters/hectare. Overall, Roumier's 1995s are stunning wines. They have breathtaking ripeness of fruit, elegance, power and texture. Bravo! Importer: Chateau and Estate Wine Co., New York, NY; tel. (212) 572-7725