2016 Domaine Dujac Echézeaux Grand Cru

(the estate's vines in the lieu-dit Les Champs Traversins lost about 35% of their fruit to the frost): Healthy medium-deep red. Darker on the nose than usual for the Dujac Echézeaux, offering musky scents of black raspberry and licorice. Rich, thick, seamless wine with lovely sweetness and a savory complexity; strong in extract but not particularly clenched in the early going. Finishes with ripe, dusty, chocolatey tannins, a slightly roasted fruit element and excellent length. This will need time in bottle to harmonize.

Some vines lost to the frost. Barrel sample. Intensely orange peel on the nose with lots of complex fruit underneath. Pure and polished. Very refined. Where’s the grunt? But it’s a lovely sensation for now. Forward. (JR)