2010 Le Montrachet

A huge burst of fruit hits the palate as the 2010 Montrachet shows off its irrepressible personality. The Montrachet simply won’t be denied. And why should it? The 2010 is a marvelous wine endowed with tropical fruit, butter, nectarines, honey and spices, all of which continue to flesh out beautifully on the wine’s big, broad-shouldered frame. I have a slight preference for the Batard here, but the Montrachet is also striking in its purity and beauty. The only open question is whether the wine will acquire finesse in bottle, or if it will remain big and bombastic. I look forward to finding out. Anticipated maturity: 2016+. I was deeply impressed with the wines I tasted at Fontaine-Gagnard. The 2010s are rich, deep and racy, but also show tremendous transparency with regards to site and have a little more polish than is customary. Celine Fontaine told me she was very surprised by the concentration of the wines given the poor weather during the summer, but that, ultimately, it was the small size of the berries that played a big role in giving the wines their personalities. The harvest started on September 21. All of the 2010s were bottled in August 2011. Although I did not taste any of the reds, Fontaine also told me a number of the estate’s Pinot vineyards were heavily affected by the December 2009 frost and required replanting. Importers: Polaner Selections, Mt. Kisco, NY; tel. (914) 244-0404, Jeffrey Wellburn Selections, Van Nuys, CA; tel. (818) 780-4446

Pale yellow with a green tinge. Deep, brooding nose offers iodine, clove oil and brown spices. Thick on entry, then minerally, saline and uncompromising in the middle, with nothing heavy about it. This very uncompromising young Montrachet shows little in the way of easy sweetness. In a rather inscrutable stage today.