1996 Morey St Denis

This medium-to-dark ruby-colored wine is produced from this estate's youngest vines, planted in 1977. It offers a sweet, red and black fruit-laced nose that is followed by a character of excellent depth, intensity, and ripeness. This is a medium-to-full-bodied, expressive, thick, lively, and fat wine with plump cherries, blackberries, spices, and toasty oak flavors. Drink it over the next 5 years. Philippe and Vincent Lecheneaut produce wines that resemble them - strong, muscular, and expressive. In the past I have described certain wines as being like ballerinas, well-known actresses, football players, etc. These are rugby players, strong, rough (at first), but explosive, with considerable stamina (staying power). I tasted these wines twice, once in November, 1997, and then again in late January, 1998. At my first tasting the wines were quite backward, oaky, and tannic but two and a half months later they had softened while still displaying loads of fruit. Some of these wines are worth making every effort to locate. Importer: Robert Kacher Selections, Washington, DC; tel. (202) 832-9083.