2009 Vosne Romanee

The 2009 Vosne-Romanee is dark, rich and fleshy. It expresses tons of Vosne character in a generous, open style that is immensely appealing. Juicy dark cherries, spices and menthol come together effortlessly in this sumptuous Vosne. The style is very 2009, yet there is quite a bit of freshness as well. This gorgeous wine is a clear overachiever in 2009. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2019. A Becky Wasserman Selection, Le Serbet, various American importers, including: Grand Cru Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 974-2500; Veritas Imports, Beverly Hills, CA; tel. (310) 205-3803; Toepfer Imports LLC, CO; tel. (303) 818-7640

Good bright, deep red. Raspberry liqueur, chocolate and a hint of cotton candy on the nose. Very rich and creamy in the mouth, with a chocolatey quality leavened by adequate acidity. Impressively dense and powerful for village wine, finishing with building tannins, a lightly saline character and strong berry and chocolate flavors. Winemaker David Croix told me that he racked the 2009s only prior to the bottling (mostly in April of 2011), as he wanted to keep them on their lees as long as he could. He also filtered them to give them as much focus as possible. "The body of the wines could handle it," he explained.

The 2009 Vosne-Romanée is a touch linear and compact for the vintage, but nevertheless shows plenty of intensity and sheer muscle. Here the fruit tends towards darker tonalities of red, with notable depth and persistence. Croix used 20% stems in the Vosne. Tasted from barrel.