1995 Volnay Clos de la Bousse d'Or

Potentially Potel's finest 1995 (the 60 Ouvrees will certainly be in the running for this honor), the dark ruby-colored Volnay Clos De La Bousse D'Or exhibits delightful aromas of ripe blackberries, fresh rosemary and Asian spices. A thick-textured wine, it possesses sweet, medium-to-full bodied flavors filled with layers of cherries, raspberries, earth, mocha and spices. This highly structured yet awesomely elegant wine is tightly wound as well as built to last. With proper shipping and cellaring, it will evolve gracefully for well over a decade. Projected maturity: 2000-2010. Gerard Potel has produced some of the purest and most elegant Volnay's I have tasted. His '85 Clos De La Bousse D'Or is graceful, sweet, silky, and simply magnificent today. It is one of the few '85s that is putting on body as it evolves. Potel, historically an interventionist winemaker, lectured me on his belief that fining and filtering do no damage to a wine's quality. Yet he also informed me that he was not subjecting his wines to either procedure in 1995 because they were so clear and healthy. As always, ratings with a score in parentheses indicate the wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York, NY; tel (212) 355-0700.