2005 Charmes Chambertin
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Tasting notes
Full red-ruby. Superripe, highly complex aromas of dark cherry, coffee, mocha and minerals, all lifted by a floral topnote that I did not find in any of Dugat's other '05s. Dense, sweet and superripe but with lovely perfume and freshness to the dark fruit flavors. A whiff of menthol and a sappy quality give lift to this 300-pound ballerina. Rather open today in the mid-palate, but surely this will shut down in the bottle soon. Finishes broad, fruity and very long, with no sign of heat.
Critic scores
Average Score
Allen Meadows, Burghound
The Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
A very ripe, expressive and pungent nose of plum, spice and earth combines with extremely rich and full-bodied flavors that are intense, textured and palate staining supported by buried tannins and outstanding length. While it must be said that this is not a particularly elegant wine, it is dramatic and built for long aging. In sum, this is a big Charmes constructed in the style of Roty.
The pure, creamy, refined Dugat 2005 Charmes Chambertin smells of cherry and black raspberry preserves along with herbal and almond extracts, stirs dark, faintly bitter notes of black chocolate and chalk dust into the pool of ripe black fruit that spreads out on the palate, and finishes with more polish, glycerin-richness, and refinement, if less savage intensity or grip than this year’s Lavaux. Known for his low yields and intensely concentrated Pinots (all but the Bourgogne raised in new barrels), Claude Dugat – with the increasing involvement of his son Bertrand – has rendered a formidable 2005 collection that makes no concessions to early charm. Importer: Robert Kacher Selections, Washington, DC; tel. (202) 832-9083.
Deep red-ruby. Sappy black raspberry, licorice and minerals on the nose, with lovely floral lift. Then densely packed and powerful, even a bit muscular, on the palate, with compelling sweetness and pinot sap. This builds slowly and inexorably toward the back, where the wine's solid tannins are buried in fruit. Turned rounder with aeration. This compellingly long wine really dusts the entire palate with flavor. I picked up an intriguing hint of orange peel on the end.