2006 Domaine Arlaud Père & Fils Clos de la Roche Cuvée Unique Reserve Grand Cru

From the lower edge of that cru, the Arlaud 2006 Clos De La Roche smells of wood smoke, sage, sassafras, resin, and dark cherry. Expansive and mouth-coating, it seems just a bit shallow by comparison with the best wines of the vintage at this address; then comes back with a hint of tannic roughness. This appears to be suffering from a bit of reduction, but as it takes on air it becomes evident that its abundance of herbal, carnal, and black fruit elements have the potential to shape themselves into something memorable. Certainly the wine's sheer persistence is impressive. I suspect it will prove itself a good candidate for following over the better part of a decade. 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