2008 Gevrey Chambertin

From six old vines parcels, Boillot’s 2008 Gevrey-Chambertin smells of fresh cherry and high-toned kirsch; combines the tartness of fruit skin with a bite of horseradish on its bracing, firm, yet generously juicy palate; and finishes with a salty, carnal impression of beef jerky joined to its bright fruit. This will likely strike some tasters as a bit too aggressive and lean, though I find its sense of energy admirable. (After I’ve recorded that last comment, Boillot refers to the same phenomenon as “the sap and energy of old vines.”) Saline, meaty, chalky, and quite corseted in tannins, it displays a lot of depth, density, and intensity, albeit a relatively austere personality and little overt sweetness to its low-key fresh black fruit. I suspect it will be worth following for at least half a dozen years. Louis Boillot’s 2008s – all but three recently racked to tank when I tasted them in February, and due to have been bottled between April and June depending in part on the sensory evolution of their prominent acidity – represent one of those vintage collections that reminds one of the virtues of typical wines from two or more decades ago: restrained, a bit youthfully tart and tight, but back by admirable extract and energy, and likely to reward cellaring for at least the better part of a decade. Having described this collection as something of a throwback, I must note that Boillot said by the time he finished picking on October 4 his remaining fruit was already at 13.5% potential alcohol – riper than in 2007 – and only a few 2008 vintage lots in his entire cellar were chaptalized. The vintage reminds him of 1996 in terms of its acidity, but of the long under-rated 1972s overall. “I bottled a lot of magnums in 2008,” Boillot says with a confident twinkle in his eye. Unfortunately, time constraints precluded by tasting the 2007s from this cellar. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant, Pine Plains, NY; tel. (800) 910-1990