2005 Chambolle Musigny Les Amoureuses

This vineyard was hailed early enough in the season for recovery to be reasonably good and 2,000 bottles of this will be filled. Brilliant crimson with hints of moss on the nose and some rather winning fruit underneath but no great hedonistic appeal, yet. Very, very precise relatively high acidity fruit. Still uptight. Needs to let its hair down a bit. Extremely fine tannins on the finish. Still at the mineral rather than fruit stage. Millet calls this vineyard 'the mother of the commune, the wife of the boss' and agreed the wine was still 'aloof'. (JR)

The 2005 Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses displays sweet aromas of peony, ripe black raspberry and cassis. A tender palate impression of subtle creaminess, ultra-refined tannins, insistent freshness of fruit, and spice and chalk nuances leads to a finish of startling clarity and purity, with evocative florality, sumptuous ripeness and ineffable mineral shadings. Francois Millet notes that skin-to-juice ratios this year were as formidably high as those of 2003, yet thanks to relatively mild temperatures, the fruit retained what he terms a “sorbet-like presentation.” Dreyfus Ashby, New York, NY; tel. (212) 818-0770 and a Peter Vezan Selection (various importers), Paris; fax 011 33 1 42 55 42 93

Brilliant deep red. Cool aromas of blackberry and menthol, with a suggestion of peppery brown spices. Densely packed and quite broad in the mouth, with mineral-borne energy and a piquant note of pomegranate leavening the wine's almost confectionery sweetness. This fruit-driven wine really spreads out to coat the palate. Finishes with firm tannins and lingering notes of raspberry and minerals. Offers superb potential.