2006 Chambolle Musigny Les Cras

Barthod's 2006 Chambolle-Musigny Les Cras was happily untouched by hail and constitutes a generous 16 barrels. As usual, it displays (from barrel) the most concentration in its collection, and in this case along with that goes a fine sense of clarity to floral and mineral nuances. Fresh, tartly-edged red currant and red raspberry are allied to attractively contrasting chalk, stone, iodine, and toasted pecan. A sorbet-like projection of fruit on the palate is offered continued counterpoint by piquant nuttiness, cyanic fruit pit, and complex mineral impressions, whose impingement reinforces the sense of tannins that are fine-grained and healthy. This finishes with genuine (brash brass) fanfare sounding off of stone. I would plan to give it 2-3 years of rest in bottle, and expect it to perform well for at least a decade. Ghislaine Barthod's yields were low not only on account of hail (notably in Beaux Bruns and Charmes), she explained, but also on account of the relative paucity of juice in the berries. That said, as with so many of the best 2006s, Barthod's are generous and largely free of tannic severity. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant, Pine Plains, NY; tel. (800) 910-1990