1995 Chambertin
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Tasting notes
Good medium-deep color. Classic Chambertin aromas of black cherry, licorice, minerals, spices and cinders, plus a cooler note of medicinal herbs. Highly concentrated, saline wine in a rather powerfully structured style but with considerably more supporting stuffing than the 1996 version. The big, dusty, slightly drying tannins reach the incisors. This wine seems still to be evolving. Trapet referred to the '95 as "a wine of skins," as there was a lot of millerandage following "yo-yo-like weather" in April, May and June. Following a hot but showery July and August, good weather just before the late harvest on October 4 dried the grapes and thickened the skins. The growing season featured the warmest autumn since 1945, said Trapet. (12.7% alcohol)
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The dark-colored Chambertin's bouquet of black cherries, roasted spices and mocha jumps from the glass. This fabulously ripe and intense wine is packed with flavors suggesting stones, minerals and blackberries in its regal, full-bodied and thick personality. Slightly rugged and backward, it will require extended cellaring before it is ready to drink. Projected peak of maturity: 2004-2015. This note is the result of tastings I did in Burgundy between January 7 and January 29. The wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Pinot Noir, a fragile varietal, reacts poorly to fining, filtration, and careless bottling techniques, I recommend caution when considering buying a red burgundy based on cask samples. I called it as I tasted, and hope the bottled wine reflects the quality of the samples I was provided. A Patrick Lesec Selection (Paris Fax: 011-33-1-42-84-38-22), and in Massachusetts: Classic Wine Imports, Boston, MA; tel (617) 731-6644.
Excellent dark red-ruby color. Subtle, nuanced aromas of black plum, redcurrant, iron and pepper, plus an almost mentholated suggestion of austerity and a vegetal/spicy hint of soil. By no means an outsized grand cru, but suave and silky in the mouth, with superb intensity and penetration of flavor. Plenty of backbone. Very subtle and extremely long, with a burst of black cherry flavor. Fine, toothcoating tannins fill the entire mouth. Appears to be the best wine bottled to date by the young Trapet.