2006 Morey St Denis Les Ruchots

From the site immediately east of Clos de Tart and of the sliver of Bonnes Mares in the commune of Morey, Arlaud's 2006 Morey-St.-Denis Les Ruchots represents the latest rendition of what has become almost a flagship wine of this estate. Black cherry, cassis, herbal concentrates, and marine breeze-like salinity and alkalinity make for a highly expressive and distinctive nose. In the mouth, this takes invigoration for berry skins, pungent herbs, and salt, while offering ample, luscious, mouth-coating fresh fruit juiciness and a subtly creamy texture. What's more, it finishes with the sort of buoyancy, energy, and sappy persistence that accrue to some of the best wines of its vintage, as well as with a peppery note that amplifies the sense of invigoration. Plan to enjoy it over the next 7-9 years. Cyprien Arlaud – for more about whose very much family domaine and its recent progress and expansion, consult my report in issue 170 – harvested from September 23 through October 3, ending up with around a quarter less production than in 2005, and wines on which he reports having held back comparatively on fermentative extraction. The relatively low pH levels enhanced stability, says Arlaud, and they certainly help account for the tart edges and vivacity of the fruit character in so many of his wines. Save for the large volume of Bourgogne (bottled in January, 2008), all of the Arlaud 2006s were bottled in December, 2007, and Cyprien Arlaud is hypothesizing in retrospect that perhaps this has temporarily stunted certain wines whose bottlings might better have been postponed. (Note, though, that the wines are neither pumped nor filtered here now.) This explains the number of plus signs and question marks I employed in an attempt to offer shorthand accounts of my reactions, in many cases to hints of reduction, tightness, or tannic perturbation. A Peter Vezan Selection (various importers), Paris; fax 011 33 1 42 55 42 93