2010 Chambolle Musigny Les Sentiers

The 2010 Chambolle-Musigny Les Sentiers wraps around the palate with dark red fruit, spices, minerals and mint. Although it is at first a bit virile, the wine turns more feminine and graceful as the saline, mineral notes emerge over time, giving the wine freshness and lift. Fourrier plans to bottle the Sentiers in magnums only, so the wine is likely to require more patience than most of the other 2010s. Anticipated maturity: 2025-2045. The biggest news at Domaine Fourrier is Jean-Marie Fourrier’s decision to launch a small negociant operation to augment his estate wines. Readers can look forward to new bottlings from the 1er Cru Aux Exchanges in Chambolle-Musigny and two new Grand Cru wines from Clos de Vougeot and Echezeaux, all of which will debut with the 2011 vintage. As for 2010, Fourrier told me he is down 40% across the board in terms of yields. The cold weather during the flowering produced 100% millerandage (shot berries), which Fourrier described as pea-sized grapes. While that is not good for quantity, it has certainly turned out great for quality. Readers who want to learn more about Fourrier’s thoughts on the vintage and approach to vinification might want to check out my video interview on www.erobertparker.com. As a quick note, none of the 2010s had been racked at the time of my visit in early December 2011. I have kept scores a bit wider than normal in the few cases where the wines were a touch reduced. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant, Pine Plains, NY; tel. (800) 910-1990