2008 Nuits St Georges Les Pruliers

Pale ruby red. Complex, appealing nose. Nice balance and raciness. Why does this wine remind me of elastic? It’s so springy… Clean and pure, though no obvious sweetness. All the right ingredients are here though. (JR)

Blond tobacco, faded lily, iris, blackberry, red currant, and rhubarb on the nose of Grivot’s 2008 Nuits-St.-Georges Les Pruliers lead to a bright, invigoratingly tart and saline yet creamily-textured palate underlain by marrowy-rich meat stock. Abundant, fine-grained tannin does nothing to halt either the flow of primary fruit juiciness or of saliva in response. A hint of cherry pit bitterness and savory salinity help extend the finish. Grivot is managing to capture a vivacious, almost delicate side of Nuits-St.-Georges, especially evident in this instance. I wouldn’t be surprised to witness this take on depth with time, and certainly expect it will be worth following for at least 10-12 years. “We never want rapid malos,” notes Etienne Grivot, “but those in 2008 were not especially late or long by our standards – no longer than in 2002 or 2005. And I didn’t sulfur the wines when they were completed, because the volatile acids were really low and the pHs were very good” (i.e. low). Instead, most of Grivot’s 2008s were only sulfured after the 2009 harvest. Grivot gave them at least 3 weeks in tank before bottling, which took place between January and early April. Based on my intuitions and Grivot’s testimony, several of his 2008s were suffering significantly from post-bottling depression when I tasted them in late April, so readers should bear this is mind and recognize that my scores, in isolation, might prove misleadingly low. Grivot characterizes the 2008s as “dynamic but introverted” and “less accessible” than either the 2006s or 2007s, but that contrast appears to have been exacerbated by circumstances on this occasion. (In view of the delightful showing of two Grivot 2007s in April, I regret that I simply wasn’t able to taste more wines from that collection in the time available to me.) Importer: Diageo Chateau and Estate Wines Company, New York, NY; tel. (212) 419-1400

Subtly sweet perfumed red fruit. Delicate but sure. Fine sour cherry on the palate, tight, restrained and harmonious. Tannins are fine, very present but matched by the fruit. Not a show off but long and sleek even in youth. (JH)