2003 Meursault Les Charmes

Reticent but pure and scented aromas of orange, minerals and vanillin oak. Sweet, rich and full, with excellent volume along with harmonious ripe acidity. Impressively long on the aftertaste. This offers the best combination of fat and focus of Lafon's 2003 Meursaults. There are normally 35 to 40 barrels of this wine, but only 15 in 2003.

In a typical vintage, Dominique Lafon produces 40 228-liter barrels of Meursault Charmes (white). In 2003 he made 14! Grilled oak-infused candied pears, spices, and honeyed minerals can be detected in its expressive aromatic profile. Medium-bodied, thick, and silky-textured, it is packed with spiced pears, buttered toast, stones, and minerals. Exceptionally long and refined, this is a candidate for drinking over the next 9 years. Importers: Daniel Johnnes/Jeroboam Wines, New York, NY; tel. (212) 625-2505, Classic Wine Imports, Boston, MA; tel. (617) 469-5799; and Beaune Imports, Berkeley Ca; tel. (510) 841-9815

(an approximation of the ultimate blend) Reticent aromas of spiced apple and pineapple. Fat, spicy and rich; large-scaled and impressive. As chewy as a solid, with a distinctly phenolic, tannic finish. Superripe Meursault that shows some alcohol today, but Thibodaux notes that it's below 14%.