2006 Echezeaux

Raw meat, high-toned and tartly-edged red fruits mingle in the nose and palate of Dujac's 2006 Echezeaux, and a horseradish-like sizzle and pungency lends invigoration. Texturally refined, refreshing, and endearingly elegant, this preserves a precision and transparency of fruit that are notably, with its carnal and smoky, mineral aspects lingering intriguingly. An excellent example of 2006 vintage elegance, it should be worth following for at least 6-8 years. Jeremy Seysses only destemmed a minority of his 2006 fruit, and in some appellations none. The results demonstrate that Dujac got things ripe – not to mention right – in a challenging vintage, with a collection that need not fear comparison with 2005 at this address. (Perhaps, if anything, 2005 ought to look to its laurels!) The team here started picking only on September 23, and then very meticulously and selectively. Clos de la Roche, for example, was picked in two passes nearly a week apart. The top wines came in at between 13 and 13.5% natural alcohol, with minimal chaptalization employed in some instances to extend fermentation. "Color and flavor extraction was easy," says Seysses, "and we did more punch-downs than in 2005, because we felt quite confident of our material. The fruit is fresh and crisp, but not green, and we had no jamminess. It was just right. There's very little to complain about." Indeed! Importer: The Sorting Table, Napa, CA; tel. (415) 491-4724

Good deep red. Reticent red fruits, rose petal and minerals on the high-pitched nose. Suave and perfumed in the mouth, with red fruit flavors framed and lifted by sappy spices and flowers. The juicy finish shows sneaky length. This offers terrific potential but will require patience.