2012 Domaine Dugat-Py Pommard Levrieres Vieilles Vignes

The 2012 Pommard La Levriere is one of the more savory wines in the range. Iron, dried flowers, smoke and tobacco all add complexity to a core of intense, dark-fleshed fruit. This is another huge, powerful wine that is likely to require considerable patience. In 2012 there are just 5 barrels of this juice rather than the more typical 9-11, illustrating just how challenging the vintage was in the Côte de Beaune.

45% whole bunch, 60% new oak. First grapes picked. Escaped hail but lots of coulure. Near the Ch de Pommard. Exotic and energetic on the nose. Lots of drive. Masses of voluptuous fruit. Such a charmer! Structure too. A halfway-house Pommard between Grèves type and long-term bets... Long and rich. (JR)

The 2012 Pommard Le Levrieres Vieilles Vignes comes from 82-year old vines that yielded just 5 barrels this year, of which 2 barrels are new and includes 50-60% whole cluster fruit. The wood is still a little present on the nose but underneath lies some lovely, floral tinged raspberry fruit laced with blackcurrant and creme de cassis. The palate is medium-bodied with good grip on the entry, well-judged acidity. This has fine grip, a bullish Pommard but with great depth and poise on the finish. This will outlast many a Pommard in 2012. Rapping the door at Domaine Dugat-Py, at first sight I thought that Bernard Dugat had aged a little…about thirty years to be exact. Now I know that his parents live in the conjoined house next door and that his son inherited his looks from his father, Pierre Dugat, as well as some of the most propitious vineyard holdings in Gevrey. Bernard’s wines have always had a modern sheen with relatively high use of new oak from his village crus upwards (100% for all his premier and grand crus.) These are not wines for those expecting subtlety or “transparency” – they are packed with intense flavors, bold structure and occasionally extravagant finishes. The 2012s are no exception, but for the most part these wines handles the new oak with aplomb, principally because a combination of grand crus and old vines give the solid foundation for that level of new oak, that culminate in a quite audacious Mazis-Chambertin. Of course, as Bernard mentioned, his preponderance of old vine material meant that he was hit hard by millerandage and as a consequence yields are miniscule: around 18 or 19hl/ha. The harvest commenced on 21 September with the premier crus and like many growers the malo-lactics were late, which meant that I was unable to taste two or three crus such as the Gevrey Petite Chapelle. If you like your Burgundy packed full of intensity but with finesse and do not mind cellaring for a decade a more, Dugat-Py is the place to come. Importer: The Sorting Table, LLC, 1700 Second Street Suite 380 Napa, CA 94559 ; tel: 707-603-1466 and also through Lea & Sandeman in the UK.