2006 Richebourg

Grivot's 2006 Richebourg unsurprisingly displays a richness, meaty substantiality, and carnal depth that go beyond the other wines in his current collection. Peat, myriad tobaccos, black tea, roasted game, faded lilies, toasted praline, and dark fungal and forest floor elements kaleidoscopically scent the nose, and carry onto a sumptuously-, silkenly-textured, wet stone-lined, yet juicy, buoyant, and dynamic palate. While this wine is not about fruits and berries, it offers black cherries and purple plums to spare. The finish here perpetuates the seemingly paradoxical alliance of grip with levity; caress with vibrancy; and concentration with elegance that characterize many of the finest wines of the vintage. Grivot tasted it with me for the first time after bottling and remarked that he was amazed at what it had gained – not to mention how little if anything it had lost – in the process. You could safely plan on following this masterpiece for 15-20 years. "For me, the virtues of 2006 are freshness, reflection of terroir, minerality, and enormous vinosity. It is an accessible vintage," says Etienne Grivot, quickly signifying that "accessible" should on no account be taken pejoratively, or as excluding cerebral appeal. His aim to reinforce these characteristics by very gentle extraction has proven highly successful. Grivot says that since his experience in 2004 he is determined to chaptalize only extremely lightly – to extend fermentations a bit – if at all, because he believes that depressing finished levels of alcohol will other things being equal promote more expressive and elegant wines. He finds the frequent comparisons of 2006 to a cross between 2000 and 2001 reasonably apt. Incidentally, prices dropped a bit here in the 2006 vintage, an especially welcome move when one considers the high quality of the wines, not to mention the prestige of this estate. Importer: Diageo Chateau and Estate Wines Company, New York, NY; tel. (212) 419-1400

Good full deep red. Very pure aromas of cassis, dark raspberry, minerals and nutty oak. Like liquid silk on entry, then vibrant yet seamless in the middle, with terrific density and energy to its dark raspberry and mineral flavors. Finishes impressively long, with mounting, tongue-dusting tannins. This seemed to close down in the glass, then roared back with a bit of aeration to show explosive black fruits. Should be long-lived for the vintage.

Bright, dark red. Pungent aromas of maraschino cherry and minerals. At once suave and penetrating, with superb purity and cut to its concentrated dark fruit and mineral flavors. Not an especially powerful style but wonderfully juicy and soil-inflected. The wine's finish stains the palate with perfume, with the big but ripe tannins coating the front teeth and gums. A great '06 in the making.