2006 Gevrey Chambertin Combe Aux Moines

The Fourrier 2006 Gevrey-Chambertin Combe Aux Moines displays a luscious, concentrated combination of tart but ripe cherry and red raspberry with brown spices, vanilla, and licorice. Undertones of salt, chalk, and roasted red meat gain prominence as one moves closer to a gripping and invigorating finish. A suffusion of fine tannins seems to suggest the promise of a decade's interesting maturation without any rough periods. Eyebrows as well as stakes in the Burgundy-buying game were raised when the prices of certain Fourrier 2006s came out well above those of 2005. Time will of course tell whether this new positioning "sticks," but there can be no overlooking either the consistently excellent results Jean-Marie Fourrier achieves, nor the extreme paucity and remarkable quality of his two most celebrated bottlings, particularly in this vintage. Jean-Claude Fourrier – with whom I tasted the majority of his son's 2006s – told me that contrary to usual practice here, the stems were removed from all of the fruit this year, because none were really ripe (i.e. truly lignified). (For more about Fourrier's always articulately and thoughtfully expressed methods, consult my report in issue 170.) Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant, Pine Plains, NY; tel. (800) 910-1990