2012 Charmes Chambertin

Wild game, smoke, tar, rosemary and sage lift out of the glass in the 2012 Charmes-Chambertin. Layers of deep, savory and floral-infused flavors develop in the glass, leading to an intense finish. The tannins are firm, but also nicely integrated at this stage. Lignier used 100% whole clusters on the Charmes.

The 2012 Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru, which comes from Mazoyeres on the limit with Charmes, is limited to just one new barrel. It has a very fragrant, floral bouquet with fine delineation. The palate is very smooth, almost viscous on the entry with a dab of alcohol noticeable on the finish. This is a voluptuous Charmes-Chambertin, without the breeding of some of its best exponents, but packed full of flavour. My second visit to see Virgile Lignier, cousin of Laurent Lignier at Domaine Hubert Lignier, did not go to plan. With the winery seemingly empty, I wondered whether he had forgotten our rendezvous. I soon discovered that the original domaine is tucked away within the village of Morey Saint Denis, and that like many, expansion has meant that they had to move elsewhere to make their wines. Virgile finally appeared driving a forklift truck loading wines destined for my homeland (incidentally I wonder how many Bordeaux proprietors have such a license?) Still, we eventually sat down to taste his 2012s that had been racked mid-September and were now in tank. I have to admit, having heard so many bon mots about Lignier-Michelot, the 2011s had not swept me off my feet back last July, though I could see the potential. However, the 2012s are a different matter and showed more complexity and nuance. The harvest here commenced a little later than others on 27 September, though not as tardy as Laurent Ponsot up the road.