2006 Chambolle Musigny

The de Vogue 2006 Chambolle-Musigny – incorporating some of the young vines of Musigny plus non-cru parcels – smells alluringly of jellied red fruits, brown spices, candied citrus zest, white truffle, and iris. Sweetly-fruited and polished in texture, its bitter-sweet sense of herbal concentrate as well as it reserve of primary fresh fruit juiciness combine for a finish of refreshment, buoyancy, and invigoration that is – in a paradoxical but vintage-typical way – also caressing. "You feel very comfortable with it," says Millet trenchantly of this wine and the vintage as a whole. Both floral and subtly marrowy meaty elements persist here as well. This should be a delight over the next half dozen years. Francois Millet is always keen to pinpoint the expression of fruit he finds in each vintage, and for him 2006 is an instance of "jellied" fruit character. I can certainly agree with him about the seductiveness of the vintage at this address, and his laconic comment on the communal hail – "not too problematic" – seems clearly born out by the quality this estate has achieved. (I unfortunately did not have chance to taste the de Vogue Amoureuses post-malo, so I must refrain from offering a note.) Imported by Dreyfus Ashby, New York, NY; tel. (212) 818-0770; also a Peter Vezan Selection (various importers), Paris; fax 011 33 1 42 55 42 93