1993 Domaine Faiveley Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru

The '93 Mazis has a terrific nose of deep, rich, expressive, dark pinot fruit and obvious earth notes plus a hint of game that leads to big, intense, robust, textured flavors that deliver plenty of complexity and fine length. The only nit is the hard nature of the tannins and it's not clear as to whether these will ever completely round out. If they do, my score may be very conservative.|

The 1993 wines tasted but not recommended possess the nastier aspects of the 1993 vintage - excessively hard and tannic personalities, without sufficient underlying fruit, glycerin, or body to support the wine's framework. The obvious as well as legitimate question of whether I can review Faiveley's 1993 wines fairly (Faiveley sued me, Simon & Schuster, and its former Chairman of the Board, Richard Snyder, for libel in 1994), will have to be answered by my readers. The 1993s were tasted blind with three other Burgundy enthusiasts, and, true to form, my scores averaged 1-3 points higher per wine than those of my co-tasters. The most successful wines possess the tell-tale hardness, austerity, and toughness of the vintage, but they possess enough fruit to carry them through the 7-10 years they will require to shed some of the tannin. Importer: A Henry Cavalier Selection, various American importers, including Ideal Wines, Medford, MA; tel. (617) 395-3300

The 1993 wines tasted but not recommended possess the nastier aspects of the 1993 vintage - excessively hard and tannic personalities, without sufficient underlying fruit, glycerin, or body to support the wine's framework. The obvious as well as legitimate question of whether I can review Faiveley's 1993 wines fairly (Faiveley sued me, Simon & Schuster, and its former Chairman of the Board, Richard Snyder, for libel in 1994), will have to be answered by my readers. The 1993s were tasted blind with three other Burgundy enthusiasts, and, true to form, my scores averaged 1-3 points higher per wine than those of my co-tasters.|The most successful wines possess the tell-tale hardness, austerity, and toughness of the vintage, but they possess enough fruit to carry them through the 7-10 years they will require to shed some of the tannin.|Importer: A Henry Cavalier Selection, various American importers, including Ideal Wines, Medford, MA; tel. (617) 395-3300 Wine Advocate.August, 1995