2007 Louis Jadot Domaine des Heritiers Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

A strikingly complex nose that possess excellent breadth to the ripe, pure and airy aromas of white flower, spice, green apple and subtle pear aromas that complement to perfection the big-bodied, rich and mouth coating flavors built on a base of fine minerality, all wrapped in a sappy and mouth coating finish that oozes dry extract. This is really a lovely effort with a chiseled and driving finale of superb persistence though note that while patience will be required, there is sufficient mid-palate sap that the finishing austerity is not forbidding. A "wow" wine.

Pungent, bitter-sweet floral perfume, white peach, fresh lemon, nut oils, nutmeg, and chalk dust rise seductively from the glass of Jadot 2007 Corton Charlemagne. In the mouth, this continues to show an unusual generosity and youthful allure for its appellation, although it certainly does not stint on mineral and mysteriously carnal density – in the form of meat broth and palpable crushed stone. There is plenty of fuel in place here for a decade or more of potentially awesome evolution, but I would give this at least 3 years in bottle before pulling a cork. Jadot is one of those addresses where I confess to having feared that the combination of this vintage’s marked impression of acidity and relative leanness with Jacques Lardiere’s love of precision and merely selective use of malo-lactic fermentation might result in a dearth of sensual appeal. And he is the first to admit that a relatively high proportion of malic acidity was present in 2007, along with a danger of vegetal notes. But Lardiere took most of his 2007s all the way through malo, and my fears were at worst marginally realized. An overarching caveat is that these wines received higher dosages of sulphur (25 versus 15 grams) at bottling than those of other recent vintages, and will – Lardiere opines – take longer to shake off a certain pungency or hardening, but it did not find that alarming. As usual, I could not take time to taste all of Jadot’s many bottlings, which are less numerous this year, in any case, than in 2006. Incidentally, the first vintages of Domaine Ferret Pouilly-Fuisse under Jadot’s ownership and Lardiere’s direction – on which I shall report at a later time – are tremendously successful, preserving and even elevating critical elements of the personality that has long wines from that estate so memorable. Importer: Kobrand, Inc., New York, NY; tel.(212) 490 9300

Full yellow. Sexy nose combines lime, crushed stone, menthol and wild rose. Very dry and backward, with citrus and crushed stone flavors that saturate the palate. There's a compelling silkiness here, but it's the wine's cut and energy that impress today. The superb rising finish features notes of white flowers and almost metallic minerality. A beauty.